The first month of 2022 is in the books, and with it goes another month of development for Seattle Kraken prospects. While some prospects have been jumping between the taxi squad and their shared minor league affiliate, prospects in junior hockey have continued to play well.
The fourth edition of Kraken Prospect Report will discuss four prospects who’ve seen both NHL and American Hockey League (AHL) ice, and four playing collegiately or in various junior hockey leagues — one of them is an Olympian. Let’s dive in.
Bubble, Minor League Kraken Prospects See Minimal NHL Ice Time
Cale Fleury
This past month, Fleury made his Kraken debut, and played in two games. He’s been pointless, and holds a minus-1 rating. He averaged just under 13 minutes per game, and had three hits and four blocks in games against the Boston Bruins and New York Islanders.
Fleury has spent most of this season, and all of last season, in the AHL. This year for the Charlotte Checkers, he has five goals and 17 points in 36 games. He’s played with his brother Haydn, which has been a nice storyline. The Kraken have reached the All-Star break, and he’s been re-assigned to Charlotte.
Alexander True and Kole Lind
True got into two games with the Kraken in January, and while Lind did get called-up at times, he saw no ice. True’s ice time continued to decline, playing nine shifts and 6:33 against the Los Angeles Kings, and a career-low 4:47 on seven shifts against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Overall, Lind has an assist in four NHL games, and 12 goals and 24 points in 34 AHL games this season. True has no points in eight NHL games, and eight goals and 20 points in 27 AHL contests. It appears that it’ll be more of the same for these two as the season continues.
Joey Daccord
Daccord got into just one game in January and allowed five goals to the St. Louis Blues. He’s still searching for his first Kraken win, and second career win. He’s played five games for the Checkers, and now holds a 2.37 goals-against average (GAA) and a .918 save percentage (SV%) in 15 games on the season.
Related: 3 Good Options for the Kraken to Improve Their Goaltending Depth
It’s tough to find consistency while bouncing between the AHL, the taxi squad and the NHL. There has been some talk of trading backup Chris Driedger, though nothing definitive. If that’s the case, or if they end up bringing in another goaltender, Daccord may finally be able to find some consistency this season and settle into a role that could help him succeed, whether that’s as an NHL backup, or permanent AHL starter.
Kraken Junior Prospects Continue To Impress
Matty Beniers
Beniers continued his remarkable collegiate season, and surged throughout January. In eight games, he scored five goals and 14 points, with six multi-point games. He was only held pointless in one game. The Michigan Wolverines won seven of those eight games. He now leads the team, and is second in college hockey, with 36 points in 28 games.
He’ll be representing the United States in the Olympics, and rightfully so. He’ll likely be a driving force offensively, and if we’d allow for some recency bias, 24 shots on goal in those eight January games is a good indicator of such. The further we go into the season, the more likely it looks that Beniers will be starting next Season in a Kraken jersey.
Ryan Winterton
After missing three months due to a shoulder injury, Winterton has burst onto the scene for the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Hamilton Bulldogs. The Kraken’s inaugural third-round pick has four goals and 13 points in six games, while holding a plus-11 rating.
He scored a goal and five points in his season debut, and has gone on to see four multi-point games, and just one game pointless so far. He rifled off 22 shots over that span, including a six-shot game, which was ironically his only pointless tilt.
It’ll be interesting to see if he’ll fall off from this hot start, but the Bulldogs have a strong offensive team around him. They currently sit third in the Eastern Conference, and are poised to make the playoffs.
Ryker Evans
Evans is still a driving force for the Western Hockey League’s (WHL) Regina Pats. His 39 points in 37 games has him one point behind Connor Bedard for the team-lead. Interestingly, he also has 59 penalty minutes, which ties him for the team-lead.
He’s on pace to keep rolling through this season on the path to turning pro and fully joining the Kraken organization. Those 39 points are tied for the WHL-lead in points among defensemen. The Kraken need more scoring from the blue line, so he’d fit right in when his time comes.
Semyon Vyazovoy
Since we last visited Vyazovoy, he hasn’t slowed down at all. He now holds a 22-7-1 record with a 1.82 GAA and .936 SV%. He’s played the most games of any goaltender for Tolpar Ufa of the Molodyozhnaya Hokkeinaya Liga (MHL), the Russian junior hockey league, and has the best stats among goalies having played more than five games.
Related: Seattle Kraken 2021-22 Half-Season Superlatives
There’s a lot to look forward to for both Kraken brass, and fans. Whether it’s Beniers in the Olympics, or Winterton in the OHL. While the present may not look too bright, there is a lot to be excited about for the future. Stick with The Hockey Writers for more Kraken coverage.
