Shane Wright is heading into Seattle Kraken training camp with the spotlight turned all the way up.
For much of the summer, it looked like that spotlight might be aimed somewhere else. NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reported that Wright’s agent, Kurt Overhardt, had positive conversations with Kraken general manager Jason Botterill and that Seattle had agreed to move the 22-year-old center to a team in need of a young center. But that deal never came together, and Wright is still in Seattle as camp draws near.
That leaves him in a very different spot than he was in a few weeks ago. Instead of waiting on a move, he’s now walking into camp with something to prove.
The timing matters, too. Seattle opens rookie camp Sept. 11, then heads to Abbotsford, British Columbia, for a rookie prospect showcase against the Vancouver Canucks on Sept. 12 and 13. The full roster follows on Sept. 17 when the Kraken begin training camp and start sorting out the group for the 2026-27 season.
There should be real competition in the bottom six, and with only four preseason games to sort things out, every rep will count. Seattle opens exhibition play at home against Vancouver on Sept. 19, visits Calgary the next night, hosts the Canucks again on Sept. 24, and closes the preseason in Vancouver on Sept. 26.
Wright’s name sits right in the middle of all of it.
The former No. 4 overall pick is coming off the toughest full season of his NHL career, finishing with 27 points in 74 games after putting up a career-high 44 points the year before. For a player who once entered the league with No. 1 overall pick buzz heading into the 2022 NHL Draft, the production has not come close to matching the hype.
It may be too early to stamp him with a label like “bust,” especially with Wright still just 22. But there’s no escaping the fact that his NHL track has not gone the way he or the Kraken expected.
Across four seasons, Wright has 78 points in 169 NHL games. More troubling for Seattle, his trade value seems to have taken a hit. If the Kraken spent the offseason trying to move him and couldn’t land a deal they liked, that sends a clear message: reputation alone isn’t going to fix this.
He has to do it on the ice now.
That’s what makes camp such a big stage for him. Wright can either use it to show that last season was the exception, or let the questions around his future get louder. Those four preseason games may be small in the bigger picture, but for Wright, they could be a major chance to remind Seattle - and the rest of the league - that there’s more here than the 27-point version from last season.
The NHL’s expanded 84-game schedule begins Oct. 1, giving Kraken fans two extra regular-season games and bringing the offseason to a close. Before that, though, there’s a short runway of rookie camp, training camp and preseason action that will reveal who’s ready, who’s fighting for a spot and what this Kraken roster is going to look like.
For Wright, the message is straightforward.
The trade never happened. The opportunity is still there.
Now he has to take it.
In Other News...
Kraken's Division Climb Depends On One Problem They Still Haven't Fixed
Seattle has put itself in the mix for a climb up the division ladder heading into the Olympic break, with the next stretch likely to decide whether this team can keep pushing toward a finish as high as fourth. The Kraken have gotten enough from their overall structure to stay within striking distance, and the depth additions of Mackie Samoskevich and Bobby McMann only add to the sense that there is a workable path if the roster keeps coming together.
The catch is that the margin for error remains thin, especially with the divisions bigger names still carrying their own issues and opportunities. Seattle can talk about race position all it wants, but the real question is whether the parts that have lagged most can be lifted soon enough to matter when the standings tighten, because that is the area that could decide whether this surge is real or just a pause before the pack pulls away. [Read more 🡒]
Kraken Pipeline Just Got More Interesting Down In Coachella
The Krakens development pipeline in the desert is starting to take clearer shape, and Coachella Valley is making it easier for fans to keep tabs on it. Single-game tickets for the Firebirds are now on sale starting at $22, giving Seattle followers another reason to circle visits to the AHL affiliate as the roster continues to come together for another season.
Logan Terness is the newest name worth watching after turning a professional tryout into a contract with the Firebirds, while Charlie Wright is back on a one-year deal after another season in the organization. Both players spent time between Coachella Valley and the Kansas City Mavericks last year, which makes the next step in their development worth tracking as the Firebirds keep building depth for the Kraken system. [Read more 🡒]