As another disappointing season nears its end, the Seattle Kraken announced Wednesday that president of hockey operations Ron Francis is stepping down. Francis has been with the Kraken since their inception in 2021-22, spending the first four seasons as Seattle’s general manager before moving to his current role last summer.

Kraken president Ron Francis stepping down at end of season

It marks a crossroads for the Kraken, who have gone just 174-187-44 over their five seasons. They made a run to Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinal in Year 2, but are on the brink of missing the playoffs for the fourth time in five years.

This season, the Kraken were in playoff position heading into February’s Olympic break. But they’ve been on a free fall since returning to the ice, going just 6-14-2 over their past 22 games. They currently have the fourth-fewest standings points in the NHL.

It’s all a sharp contrast from the Vegas Golden Knights, who began play as an NHL expansion franchise four years prior to Seattle. The Golden Knights have been a perennial championship contender, reaching the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural 2017-18 season and winning the Cup in 2022-23.

“(The Kraken) weren’t helped by the expansion draft in the same way that Vegas was, because it was the same rules, but everyone caught wise as to what they needed to do to not get fleeced (this time),” ESPN senior NHL writer Greg Wyshynski told Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk on Thursday. “And unfortunately, that hindered Seattle’s opportunity to get off the blocks in a big way.

“But in the next five years after the expansion draft, it’s just been middle-of-the-road moves and a lack of discernible personality for the team – a lack of direction for the team, no real star player to kind of hitch your wagon to.”

That lack of star power is what stands out most to Wyshynski.

“The Kraken do have good players, but I think they’re complementary players,” Wyshynski said. “Like, throw Jordan Eberle or Jaden Schwartz on a contending team and I think they can really contribute.

“But I don’t think that necessarily they’re the ones you want their names on the marquee, or that you expect them to move heaven and earth to make the playoffs for your team.”

Where do Kraken go from here?

So, how do the Kraken acquire those cornerstone stars to build their franchise around?

According to Wyshynski, the only realistic path is through the NHL Draft.

“The only way you get that kind of player is through the draft – especially now in the NHL where the (salary) cap is exponentially going up every season to the point where these teams are no longer pressured to trade a good young player, because they can’t afford them,” Wyshynski said.

“Everybody can afford their guys now, so there’s no pressure points for trying to get one of those players from another team, because ultimately the teams will just keep them around. So, the only way you can get these impact players is through the draft. And the only way that you can get them in the draft is to be terrible. That’s just the way of the world in the National Hockey League.”

The Kraken had the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and the No. 4 overall pick in 2022. But since then, their first-round picks came at No. 20 in 2023 and then each of the past two years at No. 8.

With one of the worst records in the NHL, the Kraken are in good position for one of the top picks in this year’s draft lottery. They even have an outside shot at the No. 1 overall pick, with their odds currently sitting at 8.5%, according to Tankathon.

“I’ve said for the last couple of years: the right path for this team is to tear it down, be bad for a few years and cycle back,” Wyshynski said. “When you really look at how teams build winners and sustain winners and create excitement and create star players, it’s the same cycle,” he added. “Whether it’s Edmonton getting (Connor) McDavid, whether it’s Toronto getting (Auston) Matthews, or the Devils getting (Jack) Hughes, like, you’ve gotta be bad and then you get good. That’s just how it is in the NHL.

“And I think the problem for Seattle is that they’ve been not bad enough. And they certainly haven’t been good enough.”

Listen to the full conversation with ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune into Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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