Oh Yes! Early Kraken, Canucks, Pacific Division Predictions

We’re less than a month away from the start of NHL training camps, so why not take a stab at a little Kraken prediction or two.

Here’s how I view the Kraken and Pacific Division season unfolding with maybe a few line-up changes/deals still to come.

1) The Edmonton Oilers – The Oil’ will be back on top with new coach Mike Babcock, despite loads of baggage in tow, in charge of holding the big guns responsible. German star Leon Draisaitl believes just that, recently suggesting that “Babs” will hold he and fellow superstar Connor McDavid accountable.

Given the trouble he’s previously gotten himself into by nosing around in players’ affairs, this bench boss should be on his best behavior.

I think moving on from Darnell Nurse was addition by subtraction, not only by dumping a fat contract, but losing an overrated player who seemed to be the poster boy for Edmonton’s wildly inconsistent D-corps the last few years.

Goaltending has been a consistent problem in northern Alberta as well. Is Stanley Cup champ, soon-to-be 37-year-old Freddie Anderssen, over from the Hurricanes, the answer? We shall see. Either way, this club will be ready to play come October.

2) San Jose Sharks – This team is coming on fast behind superstar Macklin Celebrini. As much as I dissed Nurse above, adding him and Jacob Trouba to the blueline will make it murderers’ row back there. Those are a couple of big, mean fellas.

Up front, I still hadn’t quite figured out the Mason Marchment allure until he ripped home 15 goals and added 17 assists in 39 games with the Columbus Blue Jackets after leaving the Kraken last season. The Sharks are his 4th NHL team since 2024. Hmmm.

Another former Kraken, Alex Wennberg, will likely center the third line. There’s some ancient warriors in the mix, the youth movement isn’t complete, but a healthy Sharks team will be a fast, feisty one.

3) Vegas Golden Knights – OK, another Stanley Cup Final hangover might be in order. Understandable. It’s one thing to go the distance, a whole ‘nother thing to go the distance and fall short.

They’ll be fine, although they did lose some scoring in Pavel Dorofeyev, who ripped home 37 goals in the regular season and 12 more in the playoffs. This club has salary cap issues and couldn’t afford him. They sent him to the New York Rangers for picks.

Once they find their legs, the VGK’s will present a very familiar team and look. They’ll be fine in the NHL’s weakest division.

4) Anaheim Ducks – It was a tumultuous off-season with the Flyers offering restricted free agent Leo Carlsson a massive offer sheet that the Ducks were obligated to match. How about a 21-year-old center, not the best player in the NHL, coming off his entry-level deal, now making $18-million per season for the next five.

And whatayaknow, his winger Cutter Gauthier is getting pissy about it, recently turning down $14-million a year. (How soon until hockey turns in baseball? Ugh!)

Besides 35-year-old Nick Jensen, the blueline is incredibly young, bolstered by a large investment in 25-year-old lefty Jackson LaCombe. This is a unit that GM Pat Verbeek plans to see grow and improve together.

This is a team that made the playoffs last season and beat the Oilers in the first round. They’ll be back and could finish as high as 2nd.

Those top four will all be playoff teams.

5) Los Angeles Kings – While weathered D-man Drew Doughty keeps plugging along at age 36, longtime captain, two-time Stanley Cup champion, and two-way stalwart Anze Kopitar has hung up his skates. The Kings have reloaded with veteran wingers Artemi Panarin and Mats Zuccarello, both former Rangers, and are counting on Quinton Byfield to take over top-line center duties.

It’s an interesting mix of veteran grit and scoring throughout both the forwards and defense, with former Kraken blueliner Brian Dumoulin occupying a spot, likely on the 3rd D-pair.

The goalie combo of Darcy Kuemper and Anton Forsberg seems a bit questionable, although the 36-year-old Kuemper should be motivated to get after it again and has been known to shine. He won a Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2022.

6) Seattle Kraken – Benefit of the doubt? “Hometown” discount? Lousy division? For those reasons I originally had the Kraken slotted fifth, but upon further review …….

Saving time and space here because we talk about and break down the Kraken on a daily basis here at pacificnorthhockey.com. If you’re not caught up on all of the elements, it won’t take long for you to know everything you need to know.

Kraken fans can hope the youth movement pays off sooner than later.

7) Calgary Flames – Young Slovakian D-man Simon Nemec, acquired from the New Jersey Devils, was the big add this off-season. Jacob Middleton, over from the Wild, is a solid 31-year-old addition back there as well.

Otherwise the Flames are a mixed bag of somewhat used up veterans — call them unpredictable — and chemistry still trying to find itself.

Their goalies are talented and entertaining, a mix between undersized dynamo Dustin Wolf and extra large Devin Cooley. They’ll see plenty of work.

8) Vancouver Canucks – If they’re not careful, they could pop up into the 7th spot. OK. Probably not. This club should be thinking ahead, and probably is thinking ahead, again, to the NHL Draft Lottery.

They added 30-something defenseman Luke Schenn and forward Brendan Gallagher — yippee — and also Jamie Oleksiak along the blueline. The former original Kraken “Big Rig” is the youngster of those three.

This is a full on rebuild under new head coach Manny Malhotra. The team drafted his son Caleb in the first round of the NHL Draft this summer. The latter won’t be having an impact for awhile.

Zeev Buium, acquired in the Quinn Hughes deal with the Minnesota Wild, is an exciting, young puck moving defenseman to keep an eye on.

Again, like with the Kraken, we’ll be delving deeper into this club on a regular basis as the season approaches.