The Seattle Kraken walked into the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo with a name they liked in Chase Reid. What they didn’t expect was to actually land him at No. 7 overall.
Reid said Seattle had barely been in touch with him during the season and never reached out at the combine, which made the pick a shock.
“I talked to them one time throughout the season, and I didn’t talk to them at the combine,” said the defenseman selected 7th overall by Seattle. “So, I was a little stunned, but I couldn’t be more excited to get started.”
GM Jason Botterill said he and the scouting staff felt the same way. Stunned, then thrilled.
Reid also gave the Kraken a small off-ice win. After being selected, he slipped into his team sweater, and unprompted offered a line that should play well in Seattle.
Adorned in his Kraken #26 jersey, Reid said, unprompted, “The colors are unreal, so I’m excited to wear them one day.”
Seattle’s second-round choice, forward Casey Mutryn, brings a different kind of profile. He models parts of his game after Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Knies, two players he sees as hard, physical, and still dangerous with the puck.
“Guys like Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Knies. They play really hard and really physical, but at the same time, they bring a ton of skill to the table.”
Mutryn turns 18 on July 5 and has spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team. He said that experience sharpened him in more ways than one.
“It teaches you a lot about adversity and how to push through it. With that, you grow really tight with all the guys.”
A Norwell, Mass. native, Mutryn will keep his next stop close to home. He’s committed to Boston College for the 2026-27 season.
Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis sees a player with a clear NHL path, even if the ceiling may not be flashy.
“I like his physicality and work ethic and think that could allow him to be a decent third-liner,” says Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis. “He’s smart, battles hard and has the ability to find chemistry with just about everyone.
Although I don’t think his ceiling is that high, I feel confident Mutryn will be an NHLer. He’s the type of guy every team wants come playoff time.”
Later in the draft, Seattle used a fifth-round pick on defenseman Hawke Huff, 148th overall, and Huff brings a story built around patience and persistence.
The odds are steep for players in that range. According to a study of draft picks between 1970 and 2020 by gmnhl.com, two-thirds of fifth-round selections never reach the NHL, and fewer than 15% play more than 100 games.
Huff, though, has already spent time navigating obstacles. He grew up in Mazama, Wash., an unincorporated community in Okanogan County with a population of 158, according to Wikipedia.
The area sits in the Methow Valley on the east slopes of the North Cascades and offers cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, rock climbing, and mountaineering. It also holds the record for the coldest temperature ever recorded in the state: -48 in December 1968.
Before his junior hockey rise, Huff earned recognition as a Minnesota high school player. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune named him to its 1st All-Metro team in 2024, describing him as a player who “plays with an edge and gets all of his 6-3, 195-pound frame into body checks. Known for his tireless work ethic.”
His 2024-25 season hit a snag with the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede, where he struggled to stay in the lineup.
“It was kind of tough. I was trying to stay in the lineup,” Huff told the Cedar Rapids Gazette.
A trade to the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders changed the trajectory. Coach Mark Carlson gave him more minutes, and Huff started to expand his game.
“When I came here, coach (Mark) Carlson gave me a huge opportunity. I got more playing time.
I got more comfortable. One thing we talked about a lot was getting up into the play and creating offense when I had the chance.
Obviously I’m trying to keep my defensive game the same. Adding on offensively is just something I’ve been working on this year.”
That payoff showed up in the numbers. He jumped from eight assists that season to 36 with Cedar Rapids in 2025-26.
After going undrafted the year before, the 19-year-old heard his name called on Saturday. Huff, whose first name is Luken, will play college hockey in Minnesota at St.
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