SEATTLE (AP) \u2014 Stanley Cup playoff hockey hasn\u2019t been all that common in Seattle since the Kraken played their first season.<\/p>\n
However, Mason Marchment already knows full well what it looks like. <\/p>\n
Marchment, who was acquired from the Dallas Stars last Thursday for a 2025 fourth-round pick and a 2026 third-rounder<\/a>, played in a few of the Stanley Cup playoff games at Climate Pledge Arena in 2023 when the Kraken and Stars faced off. <\/p>\n Dallas won the second-round series in seven games, but Marchment learned firsthand just how rowdy fans in the Emerald City can get. <\/p>\n \u201cIt was awesome,\u201d Marchment said Tuesday via Zoom. \u201cFor sure, the fan base sticks out instantly. It was rocking in there for three games. It was a hard building to play in, too. So, it\u2019s going to be fun to be on the other side of it.\u201d<\/p>\n The 30-year-old winger tied a career high with 22 goals last season. Marchment is entering the final year of a contract carrying a $4.5 million cap hit, though, which in part prompted the cap-constrained Stars to deal him. <\/p>\n The Uxbridge, Ontario, native played the first half of his six-season NHL career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers. Marchment was hardly slighted by Dallas trading him three seasons into a four-year deal. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a business and I get that. I\u2019ve been in it my whole life,\u201d Marchment said. \u201cSo, there had to be some changes, and it just so happened to be me. I don\u2019t take it as a knock at all. There\u2019s teams out there that want you, so it\u2019s always a good thing. It\u2019s just part of the business. You go with it as it goes, but I\u2019m excited to start in Seattle and get playing.\u201d<\/p>\n Marchment could be a reliable top-six scorer for the Kraken. Under new coach Lane Lambert, the Kraken not only expect to be a playoff team in 2025-26, but also to be a grittier team that makes better use of the players already on the roster after Dan Bylsma was fired after one year as head coach<\/a>. <\/p>\n Marchment enjoys getting involved on the forecheck, defending puck-handlers on the backcheck and looks forward to doing it all for Seattle. <\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s stuff that I take pride in and like to do well,\u201d Marchment said. \u201cSo, if I can help out that way, it\u2019s going to be great. But getting to the net front and getting in the goalie\u2019s eyes, that\u2019s huge. So stuff like that, small things like that are things that help win games and help you get (to) the playoffs.\u201d<\/p>\n Months away from training camp, it isn\u2019t clear yet which line Marchment will slot in for the Kraken. However, he is already starting to learn a good deal about Seattle\u2019s roster through defenseman Brandon Montour, who played with Marchment in Florida. <\/p>\n Marchment is also getting to know Seattle. The Pacific Northwest city will no longer just be an occasional stop on a road trip, but rather a new home for Marchment \u2014 and one in which he is expected to contribute from the jump. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m definitely excited to get down there and meet everyone,\u201d Marchment said. \u201cBut for me, it\u2019s going to be a fresh opportunity and a good start, and that\u2019s always exciting. So, I\u2019m looking forward to that, and hopefully we can get better as a team and make the playoffs.\u201d <\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n