Seattle Kraken

Release the Kraken! In 2021, the hockey world welcomed the NHL’s newest team to the fold, with the Seattle Kraken lacing up their tentacles to play out their debut season in Climate Pledge Arena. The Kraken are the first NHL franchise in Seattle, though a team from the city called the Seattle Metropolitans actually won the Stanley Cup in 1917 (and…tied for the Cup in 1919!?) back when the trophy was available to non-NHL competitors. The Kraken opened their NHL account with a 4-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights (their older sibling as an expansion team by just four years, having joined the league in 2017) followed by their first-ever win against the Nashville Predators, also 4-3. The Kraken failed to make the playoffs and finished the year at the bottom of their division with a record of 27-49-6. Few people, even the most optimistic fans of the fledgling franchise, expected any better in 2022-23, but the Kraken actually found their feet in this sophomore season, not only finishing the regular season with a strong winning record but beating the Colorado Avalanche in seven games before ending up on the wrong end of a seven-game series in the next round against the Dallas Stars. Going forward, it is hoped that the Seattle Kraken will develop strong local rivalries with the nearby Vancouver Canucks, San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks, and Los Angeles Kings in the battle to be the next team from “out West” to pilfer Lord Stanley’s Cup from the plethora of teams in the East.