For a franchise that’s still building its own identity, the Kraken have already collected a few stories that sound like they were pulled straight from a Ripley’s book. There’s a goalie chant, a college superstition, a draft-day surprise, and a Hollywood heavyweight with a long memory for hockey.
Start with Nikke Kokko, because his name alone was enough for Coachella Valley Firebirds fans to turn into a chorus. They’ve latched onto “We’re in love with the Kokko,” a riff on “We No Speak Americano” by Australian band Yolanda Be Cool.
The line has made its way into posts from both the Firebirds and Kraken social media teams. Kokko, for his part, sounds like he’s enjoying every second of it.
“I really love everybody in the Valley. This is a really beautiful place.
We have the best fans and I’m really happy I can play for this organization. People are so nice to me.
I feel really comfortable, and every home game it’s really nice to play with those fans.”
Then there’s Mackie Samoskevich, the new Kraken trade acquisition who spent one season alongside Matty Beniers at the University of Michigan. In his second year with the Wolverines, Samoskevich put up 40 points in 41 games, finishing with 19 goals and 21 assists and landing on the second-team All-Big 10.
Part of that run may have come with a little help from a pregame good-luck charm: a hat featuring Pikachu. Once he reached the pros, that piece of his routine was done.
“I got rid of it. I burned that thing.”
He also had a bonus rookie memory from Florida teammates before he took his first lap in Minnesota in 2023: “Just don’t fall, and make sure you do your hair before.”
Finn Kearns has his own odd little Kraken connection. The defender, taken by Seattle in the fifth round of the 2026 draft last month, plays for the Toronto Beaches in the Ontario Junior Lacrosse League.
He was actually in the middle of a lacrosse practice when he found out he’d been drafted. Hockey still came calling, though, and Kearns had to miss a couple of Beaches games to get to Kraken development camp.
The Beaches, like the Kraken, have their own version of a postgame honor. They recognize an outstanding performer after a win, and Kearns was pictured wearing the “Player of the Game Shirt.” The design is memorable enough on its own, and the grin on Kearns’ face says plenty.
The strangest thread of all might be the one tied to Jerry Bruckheimer. The Kraken investor and filmmaker gave the team a race car helmet that matches the one Brad Pitt wore in the 2025 film, F1.
Bruckheimer, now 82, has been around hockey since childhood. He told ESPN that his father took him to games in Detroit when he was six or seven years old.
“When I was six or seven years old in Detroit, my dad would take me to hockey games. We’d sit up in the rafters. It was great to share that with my father.
“It’s been in me forever to try to be part of this wonderful game. I played a little bit when I was 10 or 11, and then when (Wayne) Gretzky moved to Los Angeles we met him and his wife. I bought season tickets and started taking skating lessons, and I still need them, believe me.”
Before he became part of Kraken ownership, Bruckheimer was involved in a group trying to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2004. “They drafted Sidney Crosby and they decided they weren’t going to sell.”
He also took part in bids for the Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights. “In my heart, I knew the best place for a hockey franchise was Seattle.
It’s a great sports town. They love their athletes.”
Since that 2004 Penguins bid, the Penguins, Ducks and Golden Knights have all won Stanley Cups. Maybe the Kraken will give Bruckheimer his own championship moment someday, too.
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