Matt Calkins: Why Philipp Grubauer was just one part of a bigger Kraken problem

Matt Calkins, The Seattle Times on Jan 29, 2025

Published in Hockey

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SEATTLE — The lowlight of one man’s career highlighted the issue with this team.

Goaltender Philipp Grubauer being waived Wednesday was significant, but it paled in comparison with the Kraken’s core problem.

Yes, the 33-year-old was in the midst of the most horrendous stretch of this trying season. His 5-15-1 record, his NHL-worst (10 starts or more) .866 save percentage, him allowing at least three goals in his past six starts and nine of his past 10 — all wince-inducing numbers for any fan of this team. But he wasn’t the primary concern with this organization — just the most visible symptom.

In short: The Kraken aren’t built to win … and maybe they never were.

The retort to the second part of that sentence, of course, is “what about 2023?” This is when Seattle sprinted to a 15-5-3 record, finished 46-28-8 and made its fairy-tale run to Game 7 of the playoffs’ second round. It invigorated this winter-sports-starved city and seemed to foreshadow years of postseason success — or at least participation. But there were signs that the Kraken fever was about to break.

The Kraken’s shooting percentage that season was an astounding 11.6 — the second-best in the league. Particularly noteworthy was that they had just one player (Jared McCann) among the NHL’s top 80 scorers.

Was that type of efficiency sustainable if they didn’t make a head-turning offensive upgrade? Didn’t seem like it. The next season — after losing key contributors such as Ryan Donato and Morgan Geekie — the Kraken were 29th in the league in shooting percentage and missed the playoffs.

It wasn’t the in-season decline in offense that stood out most, though. It was the offseason stagnation and/or misfires when it came to improving the team. The next season, the Kraken had just one player in the NHL’s top 100 in goals — which was McCann at 48th. The previous season he was 14th. Conspicuously missing from the league leaders was second-year center Matty Beniers, who won the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year the previous season.

Beniers had 24 goals and 33 assists in the ’22-23 season but 15 and 22 in ’23-24. Seattle still signed him to a seven-year, $50 million contract the following August, and though his stats have improved, the production isn’t anywhere near as high as it was when he entered the league.

Even so, that contract still has potential to work in the Kraken’s favor. You know who didn’t?

Grubauer, who was given a six-year, $35.4 million deal in 2021 — only to have four consecutive seasons in which his save percentage was under .900. Perhaps his supernatural playoff run two years ago would justify his signing in many fans’ eyes, but it’s been clear for a while that he is one of the league’s more porous goalies.

How about that trade for left winger Andre Burakovsky, who had 61 points in his last year in Colorado and just 58 over his first two with the Kraken? How about center Chandler Stephenson, who was averaging a goal about every four games with Las Vegas but about one every six in his first year with Seattle?

Right-winger Oliver Bjorkstrand has posted stats similar to the ones he had in Columbus but hasn’t provided that necessary jolt. In fact, that jolt doesn’t exist, as the Kraken now are without a player among the top 50 goal scorers in the league.

So now Seattle (22-27-3) sits eight points behind Calgary for that second wild-card spot with 30 games to go. Moreover, there are four other Western Conference teams between the Kraken and the Flames for said spot. After Tuesday’s 6-4 loss to the Ducks, which all but assured that Grubauer would be waived, moneypuck.com gives Seattle a 0.8% chance to make the playoffs. It’s pretty much over — and you have to start looking at the front office.

Perhaps general manager Ron Francis wasn’t able to build the Kraken up in the expansion draft the way Las Vegas did after other executives learned how to be more protective of their players. Perhaps a lack of star power has prevented other marquee free agents from wanting to sign here. But we’re in Year 4 of this thing, and an upswing doesn’t seem to be on the rise. Do you see it coming?

I’m not sure how much competition there will be between the Kraken and the Sonics if the latter return to Seattle. Perhaps the NHL has its loyalists who won’t flee for another winter-sports team. But that Kraken buzz that swept the town two years ago is on mute right now. That’s because of how this roster was put together.

It’s probably best that Grubauer was waived. He was a problem … just not the problem.

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