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The Seattle Kraken are well out of Western Conference playoff discussions as the second half of the NHL season begins. While they were not expected to contend this year, it has been a disappointing campaign. The NHL trade deadline is March 7 and the Kraken are one of few teams sure to sell pieces. The Fourth Period insider David Pagnotta says Brandon Tanev and Yanni Gourde are just two of the players that could get dealt.
“It sounds like Seattle – talking to other people around the league – they’re at least open to having those discussions for guys that are not on an expiring deal right now,” Pagnotta reported. “So that’ll be an interesting way of kind of navigating the trade market for some contenders that wouldn’t mind adding somebody now for a run, but also have them on the roster next season, as well.”
Tanev and Gourde are on expiring contracts and will be highly sought after at the deadline. But Pagnotta's report puts defenseman Jamie Oleksiak and forwards Oliver Bjorkstrand and Jaden Schwartz under the spotlight. The Kraken have only made the playoffs once with this core and should be trying to build a new one.
The Kraken could be the biggest seller at the NHL trade deadline. Who should they trade and where should they go?
The Kraken should trade everyone willing to move
The biggest issue with trading these players is their no-trade protection. All of the players floated by Pagnotta have trade protection of some kind. Schwartz and Oleksiak have 16-team no-trade lists, Bjorkstrand and Tanevs' lists are ten teams, and Gourde's is 23 teams. So they may have to waive to facilitate a deal.
Whichever players are willing to waive their deals should be traded from the Kraken. They have two young centers to build around with Matty Beniers and Shane Wright so it won't be a complete rebuild. But the rest of the roster should be up for sale considering their poor signings this offseason.
The Kraken signed Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour this offseason, two recent Stanley Cup winners. Neither one has been the championship-caliber player they were in their previous stops. So trading veterans to free up cap space around those assets to be serious buyers this offseason.
The Kraken should be a major seller this trade deadline and other teams should be asking for their players with an extra year of control. That will increase the packages Seattle gets back and set them up for the future.
