Shane Wright’s time in Seattle appears to be nearing an end.
Late Friday night, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Kraken and Wright’s camp are working toward a summer move, quoting agent Kurt Overhardt directly: “I can confirm that we have had positive conversations with GM Jason Botterill, and he has agreed to move Shane this summer to a team in need of a top young center.”
Friedman wasn’t able to get a response from Botterill, but he did report that people around the league believe the two sides are aligned on the broad plan. At the same time, Seattle is not treating this like a giveaway. As Friedman put it, “the Kraken made it extremely clear they expect a fair price and won’t be pressured into anything they don’t want to do.”
That tension sits at the heart of the story. Wright’s agent is framing him as a “top young center,” while the Kraken, at least privately, may not be eager to accept that label at face value. Seattle has every reason to talk up the 22-year-old’s value, but the market will ultimately decide what that value really is.
The raw production is there in pieces, but not in the way the Kraken hoped when they used the 4th overall pick on him in 2022. Wright has 36 goals and 42 assists, yet it took him two full seasons and parts of two others - 169 games - to get there. That’s not the kind of pace that screams cornerstone.
The disappointment has been building for a while. In May, Shayna Goldman of The Athletic wrote, “While he hasn’t always had All-Star linemates to lift him up, the Kraken have done a lot to insulate him to maximize his strengths, and he still hasn’t become a difference-maker.”
A group of her colleagues went even harder, naming Wright Seattle’s “Most disappointing player,” and adding, “The Kraken’s inability to find or develop a star-level player is the story of the franchise after its first half-decade.”
There were signs last fall that maybe Wright was ready to turn the corner. Bob Condor noted in October that Wright’s “11 goals in the final 31 games of 2024-25” pointed toward a 30-goal pace, and that his “17 goals in 50 games” after sitting out three games as a healthy last scratch last November also lined up with that benchmark.
Seattle’s brass sounded encouraged, too. “He’s had a great camp,” coach Lane Lambert said.
Strength coach Nate Brookreson added, “Shane is among our top players in overall fitness.” Botterill said, “You see him making more plays out there, having more confidence with the puck.”
But the scoring never followed. Instead of building on the 19 goals he had two seasons ago, Wright dropped to 12 last year.
By then, the trade talk had already been simmering. In January, David Pagnotta of The 4th Period reported, “The Seattle Kraken are open to moving Shane Wright. They’ve been searching for a top-six forward and packaging Wright might get them that.”
Pagnotta also suggested Wright might not be thrilled with how he was being used. “I don’t get the sense that Shane Wright is overly thrilled with his usage lately.
He wants to have more responsibility. He wants to have more ice time.
There’s a little bit of disappointment there with respect to his usage from his side of things.”
Friedman backed that up later in the month, saying, “The Shane Wright stuff, that he’s available and out there and the Kraken are considering moving him - that’s real.”
Wright tried to shut the rumors down at the time. “I don’t really care too much about that.
At the end of day, it’s just rumors. I’m not too worried about that.
I’m focused on the team here and winning hockey games. That’s all I care about.”
The chatter never really stopped. In February, Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos said, “If Seattle can find the scoring it needs in a trade,” Wright “would absolutely be someone the team would entertain moving.” He also pointed out that younger NHL teams could be interested in betting on the upside.
Friedman kept the topic alive on his March 2nd 32 Thoughts podcast, saying Seattle was still looking for “Somebody who juices their lineup offensively,” while naming Wright as a trade chip. Then last month, Pagnotta wrote, “Wright is still available and remains open to a move.
Botterill continues to scour the market. Teams continue to poke, and sources say the Philadelphia Flyers recently entered the chat.”
Any deal would close the book on a pick that once had the hockey world buzzing. Seattle took Wright 4th overall in 2022, and at the time the reaction was pure shock in some corners and pure joy in others - especially for then-GM Ron Francis. Wright had been projected for much of the year as the likely No. 1 pick, and he had even said in an interview that he should go first.
The resume that got him there was loud. In 141 OHL games with the Kingston Frontenacs and Windsor Spitfires, he scored 86 goals and totaled 197 points.
Even now, there are still reasons teams would look at him and see something worth betting on. Chris Johnston of The Athletic wrote in February that “Wright profiles as an intriguing two-way center,” and Lambert later praised his improved 200-foot game after the season. Johnston also noted that Wright “will likely only be moved in a trade that sees a player with similar upside going back to Seattle,” while adding that the Kraken “like their organizational depth down the middle and are looking for a game-breaking winger.”
So the next chapter may be a trade, but the bigger judgment is still ahead. Was this a case of the Kraken failing Wright through shifting usage, coaching changes, and a lack of help? Or did Wright fall short of the expectations that come with being a 4th overall pick?
That debate is just getting started.
In Other News...
Ron Francis Just Reopened A Painful Kraken Debate
Ron Francis is back in Pittsburgh in a front-office role, and the move has naturally sent his thoughts drifting to the expansion project he left behind in Seattle. Hired June 19 as a senior advisor to Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas, Francis has already been involved in draft decisions and development camp, while also reflecting on the years he spent helping build the Kraken from the ground up, from the arena and locker room to the practice facility and the Palm Springs minor-league rink.
For Seattle fans, the reunion carries an extra layer because Francis once tried to bring Dubas to the Kraken before Dubas eventually landed with the Penguins. Francis also revisited his path through Carolina before returning to Pittsburgh, a reminder that his NHL rsum stretches well beyond one franchise. The part that lingers, though, is what his return says about the unfinished feelings around Seattle, where early promise gave way to a rougher stretch and a front-office change that still invites debate. [Read more 🡒]
Kraken Are Quietly Building Something Bigger Than Just The Roster
The Kraken are spending part of the summer on something bigger than roster construction, once again serving as host for the NHL Coaches Association development camp. It is the fourth straight year Seattle has welcomed the event, and this time the staff includes Seattle Torrent head coach Christine Bumstead and Jr. Kraken AAA 16U head coach David Min, giving local hockey a front-row seat to a gathering built around teaching, sharing ideas and helping younger coaches move forward.
Bumsteads path to the camp says plenty about how the Kraken have widened their network around the organization. She was invited by assistant general manager Alex Mandrycky, and her coaching ties run through the Seattle ecosystem as well, including past connections with Coachella Valley Firebirds assistant coach Brennan Sonne and Kraken goaltending coach Colin Zulianello. For a franchise still carving out its identity, the camp is another sign that Seattle is trying to build depth in more places than just the lineup. [Read more 🡒]
Kraken Prospects Left Fans With One Big Stucky Cup Takeaway
The Fourth Annual Stucky Cup gave Kraken fans a final look at development camp with a fast, loose 4-on-4 scrimmage that had the prospects playing for keeps in an exhibition setting. Team Blue came away with the win behind goals from William Tomko, Will Reynolds, and Zeb Forsfjall, while Team White got on the board through Ola Palme in a game that was more about pace, skill and a chance to see who stood out than the final score.
Even without piling up points, several names helped make the afternoon feel meaningful for Seattles future. Hawke Huff, Clarke Caswell, Ollie Josephson, Nathan Villeneuve and defenseman Rylan Singh all drew notice for strong showings, and the lineup also offered a glimpse of the organizations draft pipeline with Jake OBrien and Chase Reid on opposite sides. For a camp-ending scrimmage, it was the kind of showcase that left plenty for the Kraken to sort through once the ice was cleared. [Read more 🡒]