The Seattle Kraken (5-2-1) may be down two veteran defensemen when they close their five-game road trip Saturday in Sunrise, Fla. against the Panthers (4-2-2). Already without Ryan Lindgren, Brandon Montour missed most of Thursday’s OT loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning with a lower-body injury.
As reinforcement, Seattle called up prospect Ty Nelson from AHL Coachella Valley. Much more about the 2022 3rd round draft pick from Toronto in a moment.
Seattle, carrying eight defensemen, started the season rotating Cale Fleury, Josh Mahura and Ville Ottavainen in the number six blueliner spot. Since Lindgren went down Oct. 6, victim of an illegal hit from behind by Vegas forward Marc Gatcomb, two of Fleury, Mahura, and Ottavainen have drawn into each night’s lineup. While Lindgren completes his 4-6 week recovery on I.R., and for as long as Montour can’t go, all three may be called on.
What do the Kraken lose without the 32-year old Montour (besides an expert at Plinko)? He played more than 30 minutes in the Oct. 13 victory over the Flyers, and has racked up five assists.
“He plays with a bit of an edge,” said Kraken coach Lane Lambert. “He plays with passion and energy. We’ve made adjustments to help with our defense’s gaps. I think he’s done a better job this year of his spacing when he joins the rush. We need him to continue jumping into the play at the right times.”
But perhaps not for a while, which created the need for Nelson. I asked Firebirds radio voice Evan Pivnick about the 5-10, 208 pound spark plug of a blueliner.
Newest Kraken Has ‘Chip On His Shoulder’
“He hasn’t had an easy road to get to pro hockey. He’s always been told, ‘Hey, you’re not big enough.’ He kind of uses that as firepower. He plays like he had a chip on his shoulder.
“He’s not the biggest guy, but he plays like it. He has a fantastic shot. He does a lot of things really well. Power play, penalty kill, even strength. Not afraid to mix it up as well. Incredibly fun to watch.
“He’s a great guy to have on the team, represents the team well, represents the community really well. Great teammate. Always will do anything to help out anybody.
“When you’re looking at a player that you want to have on your team, he’s one of those guys. He’s just a guy you want to root for.”
‘Murmuring’
Pivnick relayed a happy scene most of us never get to see: how the 22-year old farmhand found out he would be joining the Kraken for the first time.
“We were in Henderson (Nev.) and we flew from Vegas to Vancouver to play in Abbotsford (against the Canucks AHL farm team). We were like ten minutes removed from the airport and started hearing some murmuring on the front of the bus that someone might get called up.
We had to turn around, go back to the airport, and ‘Lax’ (Firebirds coach Derek Laxdal) got to tell the team on the bus that that Nelly was getting called up. I grabbed his stuff off the bus. The equipment truck pulled over and they grabbed all that stuff. So then he’s on his way to meet the team. We’re super excited for him.”
Memo to coach Lambert: put Nelson in for at least one game before returning him to Coachella Valley. Otherwise, he might spontaneously combust. Wouldn’t you rather have him expend his constantly revving motor against a Kraken opponent?
Homecoming For Several Kraken
Montour is one of three ex-Panthers on the Kraken roster. Others include Mahura and Mackie Samoskevich, traded to Seattle over the summer.
(Editor’s note: Here’s a “Future Kraken” feature on Nelson from 2023. Note the other three names on links at the bottom of his story — all are gone from the organization.)
Earlier Kraken:
— Gutsy Kraken Comebacks Fall Short in 4-3 OT loss
Earlier Canucks:
— What The Tkachuk! Canucks Manage To Lose In OT
BONUS VIDEO: Glenn Dreyfuss with Firebirds voice Evan Pivnick. EVERYTHING you need or want to know about the Coachella Valley team and prospects …
