If you only want to read optimistic Seattle Kraken opinions from national hockey media, Turn Back Now! Nothing To See Here! Toxicity Incoming!
Scott Wheeler of The Athletic ramped up the bad vibes this week, calling Seattle center Shane Wright “vanilla” and Coachella Valley Firebirds forward Eduard Sale “low-compete.” Both Wright (2022) and Sale (2023) are Seattle 1st round draft picks.
Even before that, Adam Proteau of The Hockey News was calling the Kraken “a dog’s breakfast.”
Kraken ‘Epitomize Mediocrity’
Apparently suffering a case of FOMO (fear of missing out), Matt Larkin of Daily Faceoff took his whacks at the Seattle piñata. “The Kraken hold the ‘pull my hair out and yell, WHY?’ championship belt. Nothing this franchise does makes any sense to me. Seattle was going nowhere at the trade deadline yet tried to act as a buyer.
“Refusing to quit their strategy of loading up on middle-six forwards and middle-pair defensemen, the Kraken are never bad enough to rock their foundation. The Kraken epitomize mediocrity, lacking an elite player at any position, and re-signing (Bobby) McMann, after extending Jordan Eberle suggests they truly don’t understand how to win in this league. They’re chasing quick-fix, fringe-tier competitiveness rather than constructing a sustainable winner.”
Seattle Coach ‘Major Failure’
THN’s Proteau is back, delivering another Seattle diss. This one comes in his ranking of NHL head coaches. The good news is that coach Lane Lambert didn’t come in last. The bad news is he came in next-to-last.
“The Kraken hired Lambert in 2025, but he couldn’t push Seattle into the playoffs last season, as the Kraken finished in sixth place in the weak Pacific Division. This follows one-and-a-half seasons in which Lambert coached the New York Islanders, and Lambert didn’t produce much success on Long Island. He hasn’t developed Seattle youngster Shane Wright, and his inability to turn the Kraken into a playoff team is a major failure for Lambert.
“There’s significant pressure on Lambert to develop talent in 2026-27, steer the Kraken into the post-season, or both. If he can’t do that, Lambert will be fired sooner rather than later.”
Maybe the summer heat has made these guys grumpy. If you’ve read this far, we direct your attention to our somewhat sunnier Seattle stories, here and here and here. On the other hand, Simmer provided his own dose of off-season reality here.
Have a great weekend, Seattle fans! Only 69 days until the start of the regular season.
Earlier Seattle:
— Seattle D-corps Has A Wild Card In Fleury
Earlier Canucks:
— Canucks PR Poisons Writers Association
Bonus Video: Simmer had a chance to speak with NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly about a variety of interesting and entertaining hockey topics and current events. Check it out …
