SEATTLE — Remember that day when the Kraken season tickets sold out in a matter of minutes? Awesome. A striking reminder of how rabid a sports town Seattle can be.
How about the NHL expansion draft at Gas Works Park last summer? Amazing. Thousands of people on the grass in Northlake bearing witness to the birth of their new team.
How about the first home game of the season? Incredible. New arena. Off-the-charts decibel levels. A yearslong project finally coming to fruition.
But the Kraken right now? Not awesome. Not amazing. Nowhere near incredible.
More than halfway through this NHL season, the Kraken fever appears to have been broken. The club is in a distant last place in the Pacific Division and owns the third-worst record in the NHL.
They've won just 16 of their 55 games. They've accumulated 37 points. Their minus-56 goal differential was third-worst in hockey heading into Tuesday's games, indicating their record does, in fact, reflect their performance.
Hockey was supposed to fill the winter-sports void Seattle has suffered since the departure of the Sonics 14 years ago. Now, unfortunately, hockey seems to be contributing to that void.
Perhaps fans were dealt unfair expectations based on the success of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, the last NHL expansion team before the Kraken. Vegas went to the Stanley Cup Final in its first year and has reached the playoffs every season since. The Golden Knights appeared to be proof that a first-year team could not only contend but thrive in the NHL. But the Kraken haven't done anything to mirror their success.
So what happened? Some might point to COVID-19. Preseason bonding exercises were virtually nonexistent. The opening of the practice facility was delayed. If you want to get a couple of dozen athletes who have never played together on the same page, last year was probably the worst time to do it.
But if one were to put the spotlight on any one figure for these early struggles, it would have to be general manager Ron Francis, right? He was the one who made the selections in the expansion draft. He is the one who has been noticeably frugal thus far. I'm not saying there isn't hope for this franchise. But in terms of capitalizing on a hockey appetite that's been brewing in this town, these first few months have been a failure.
Ticket prices aren't what they were at the start of the season. Empty seats in the Climate Pledge Arena are not a foreign sight. And ... I don't know — there's just this feeling that the NHL flame this town saw in October has been reduced to a flicker.
So is all hope lost? No. As I mentioned earlier, Francis hasn't spent much money. The Kraken have been hoarding salary-cap space. They've given themselves financial flexibility to sign bigger names down the road. But how much comfort is that providing for season-ticket holders who, as you might remember, had to commit to at least three years of attendance? Probably not a whole lot.
The Kraken did get the second pick in the amateur draft last summer, when they selected 19-year-old center Matty Beniers. Barring a miraculous surge in the standings this season, they'll get another high pick in the next draft. Combine that with salary-cap space, and the future isn't as grim as the team's record indicates.
And, yes, there have been 12 games in which the Kraken lost by one goal — five of which went to overtime. They haven't been completely uncompetitive. But there have been a good share of ugly losses, too.
Seattle has the ability to be one of the most raucous sports cities in the country. The home-field advantage they provided to the Seahawks and Sounders for most of the past decade was practically peerless. The attendance figures in the early 2000s for the Mariners was at the top of the league. Storm games sell out if the team is playing well. Huskies men's and women's basketball games, too. But — teams have to play well, or the fans around here will forget about you.
The hype around the Kraken was immense. The people of the Puget Sound region were quick to jump on board. They haven't abandoned ship yet, but the Kraken need to give them a reason to stay — and soon.
