Revisiting the Pending Big 2024 Offseason Decisions

With just over a month left the regular season and the Kraken 9 points out of a playoff spot thanks to the loss to Vegas, I wanted to revisit my early offseason preview post from a few months ago and check in on what what's happened since then.

Starting Basics. Seattle has 16 current NHLers under contract next season and $22M in cap space to fill the remaining 7 roster spots. https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/kraken

NHL RFAs: Beniers, Tolvanen, Yamamoto

NHL UFAs: Tatar, Bellemare, Schultz, Driedger

Big Name Pending UFAs.

Wennberg traded (2024 2nd, 2025 4th), Eberle extended ($4.75M x2), and Schultz TBD. My assumption is Schultz walks to open up a roster spot for Ryker Evans.

Let the Kids Play?

I'd be shocked if Wright and Evans were not slotted in on the opening night roster in October based on how both have performed this season. Winterton might get consideration as 4C but I'd prefer a cheap vet there so Winterton can get more AHL minutes.

RFA Pay Bumps.

Beniers' disappointing 2nd season offensively should keep the price down on his extension, whether bridge or long-term. I could see a 2-3 year bridge in the $6-7M AAV neighborhood. A long-term deal feels less likely, but possible. Tolvanen at ~$4M for 3-4 years feels right. Yamamoto might get 1-2 years at about what he makes now if we have the spare money. Look out for the qualifying offer on Yams – Francis might not offer one and if offered, Yamamoto might sign it.

Is It Time For a Major Trade? and Free Agent Opportunities.

With $22M in cap space and most of the top of the roster already locked up, Francis has lots of options this summer. Even after extending Beniers and Tolvanen he should have $10M+ left over. He should look hard at both the free agent and trade markets to bring in an impact player or 2 into our forward corps.

Unsurprisingly, Toronto did extend Nylander. The 2024 free agent forward group is, as usual, lacking top-end skill but there are a few intriguing options. Sam Reinhart and Jake Guentzel jump off the page as being young enough to be part of the core for many years and talented enough to move the needle. Tuevo Teravainen would be more of a side-upgrade on the type of guys we already have but would still be good. Jake DeBrusk is interesting as he's just 27 and has good underlying numbers, but his career high was 50 points in 64 games last season.

That said, I think Francis may look at a splashy trade in order to get a younger player whose prime years line up better with Beniers and Wright and can be part of the long-term core. I would have loved to get a player like Kirby Dach had he been available this summer instead of 2 seasons ago (Chicago -> Montreal for a 1st and a 3rd). This kind of trade is what I'd be looking for – a young, high-upside player who may no longer be in the plans of his current team but who could flourish in a new spot.

• 2019 33nd overall pick Arthur Kaliyev – I've read LA may be open to moving him after some disappointing seasons.
• 2020 12th overall pick Anton Lundell – Also in a couple of trade proposals though the price would be higher than Kaliyev. Florida would need impact NHLers back as they are all-in to win now.
• 2021 5th overall pick Kent Johnson – Had some trade rumors earlier in this season due to issues with his usage in Columbus.
• 2019 53rd overall pick Nick Robertson – He's been in and out of Toronto's lineup and is coming off his ELC. Might the perpetually cap-strapped Leafs be priced out of retaining him?
• 2019 2nd overall pick Kaapo Kakko hasn't produced offensively like the Rangers need and expected based on draft position. They're also in it to win while Panarin is still elite.