Post by krakengm on Nov 23, 2023 23:45:12 GMT -5
Seattle, WA - In the hopes of getting better in their second season, the Seattle Kraken juggled their lineup through the entire pre-season. No player had the full 8 games in the NsHL or on the farm, though youngster Juraj Slafkovsky got into eight games total. In the end, it was determined that the club's power forward of the future would be best served being a top line producer with the Aviators, rather than limited minutes with the Kraken. While this may come as a bit of a surprise from afar, the club wants to make sure not to rush the talented youngster.
Another talented youngster stood out during the pre-season, and will not only make the club, but is expected to play on the top pair to start the year. Arber Xhekaj was a formidable force in all seven of his games, and proved that he can hang with the best of them. Xhekaj is expected to line up next to veteran Justin Schultz. Sebastian Aho also had a strong training camp, and once again has made the team to start the year. His performance was much stronger this time around, and the club expects him to play the full season in Seattle. Robert Hagg will be the odd man out to start the season, and rather than have him waste away in the press box, he'll get top minutes with the Aviators. Rounding out the blueline will be veterans Justin Holl and Jan Rutta.
The biggest surprise may have come in net. Last season Adin Hill eventually took over as the main starter, though it was mainly a platoon between him and partner Kevin Lankinen. This preseason, Lankinen was outstanding, and will get the start on opening night and as long as he continues his strong play will get about 60% of the games if the club sticks to their willingness to trust both goalies.
Up front Kirill Marchenko had a completely unproductive pre-season, but he played with a different set of linemates every time he got into the lineup. Coach Todd Reirden was pleased with his defensive responsibilities enough to give him a shot in a prominent role to start the year. "He'll line up with Kadri and Mantha to start the year. Those vets will take care of the details, but won't let him slack on the defensive side of things. As long as he continues to come back and be on the right side of the puck in our zone, we'll give him a few games to see what he can really do with top end offensive talent."
Newcomer Tomas Nosek was effective in his pre-season and, as expected, has locked down the third line center role. He is expected to be flanked by Isac Lunderstrom and Logan O'Connor, who were among the top scorers for Seattle in the exhibition games. The projected lineup for the Kraken looks like this:
Marchenko - Kadri - Mantha
Barabanov - Johnson - Vatrano
Lunderstrom - Nosek - O'Connor
Nyquist - Carpenter - Blais
Schultz - Xhekaj
Rutta - Jensen
Aho - Holl
Lankinen
Hill
The Seatac Aviators will also sport something of a new look, and are extremely excited to have Slafkovsky as a marquee player to start the year. Jet Greaves has come in and surprisingly claimed the starting job in net after his one NsHl game and strong play with the Aviators. Veteran Sean Kuraly will join the mix up front along with newcomer Tye Kartye. Ryan Donato lost his spot with the Kraken and will be a huge boost to their scoring up front. Youngster Jeremie Poirier will be working prime minutes on the powerplay but will be likely on the third pair to learn the finer points of defending at the AsHL level.
Projected lineup in Seatac:
Slafkovsky - Peterson - Grimaldi
Maltsev - Kuraly - Donato
Biro - Harkins - Studenic
Kartye - Barre-Boulet - Kolesar
Hagg - McKeown
Zamula - Miromanov
Poirier - Johansen/Kiersted
Greaves
Soderblom
With a strong pre-season, optimism abounds in Seattle.
--- Johnny Pike for the Seattle Times
Another talented youngster stood out during the pre-season, and will not only make the club, but is expected to play on the top pair to start the year. Arber Xhekaj was a formidable force in all seven of his games, and proved that he can hang with the best of them. Xhekaj is expected to line up next to veteran Justin Schultz. Sebastian Aho also had a strong training camp, and once again has made the team to start the year. His performance was much stronger this time around, and the club expects him to play the full season in Seattle. Robert Hagg will be the odd man out to start the season, and rather than have him waste away in the press box, he'll get top minutes with the Aviators. Rounding out the blueline will be veterans Justin Holl and Jan Rutta.
The biggest surprise may have come in net. Last season Adin Hill eventually took over as the main starter, though it was mainly a platoon between him and partner Kevin Lankinen. This preseason, Lankinen was outstanding, and will get the start on opening night and as long as he continues his strong play will get about 60% of the games if the club sticks to their willingness to trust both goalies.
Up front Kirill Marchenko had a completely unproductive pre-season, but he played with a different set of linemates every time he got into the lineup. Coach Todd Reirden was pleased with his defensive responsibilities enough to give him a shot in a prominent role to start the year. "He'll line up with Kadri and Mantha to start the year. Those vets will take care of the details, but won't let him slack on the defensive side of things. As long as he continues to come back and be on the right side of the puck in our zone, we'll give him a few games to see what he can really do with top end offensive talent."
Newcomer Tomas Nosek was effective in his pre-season and, as expected, has locked down the third line center role. He is expected to be flanked by Isac Lunderstrom and Logan O'Connor, who were among the top scorers for Seattle in the exhibition games. The projected lineup for the Kraken looks like this:
Marchenko - Kadri - Mantha
Barabanov - Johnson - Vatrano
Lunderstrom - Nosek - O'Connor
Nyquist - Carpenter - Blais
Schultz - Xhekaj
Rutta - Jensen
Aho - Holl
Lankinen
Hill
The Seatac Aviators will also sport something of a new look, and are extremely excited to have Slafkovsky as a marquee player to start the year. Jet Greaves has come in and surprisingly claimed the starting job in net after his one NsHl game and strong play with the Aviators. Veteran Sean Kuraly will join the mix up front along with newcomer Tye Kartye. Ryan Donato lost his spot with the Kraken and will be a huge boost to their scoring up front. Youngster Jeremie Poirier will be working prime minutes on the powerplay but will be likely on the third pair to learn the finer points of defending at the AsHL level.
Projected lineup in Seatac:
Slafkovsky - Peterson - Grimaldi
Maltsev - Kuraly - Donato
Biro - Harkins - Studenic
Kartye - Barre-Boulet - Kolesar
Hagg - McKeown
Zamula - Miromanov
Poirier - Johansen/Kiersted
Greaves
Soderblom
With a strong pre-season, optimism abounds in Seattle.
--- Johnny Pike for the Seattle Times