Seattle Kraken: 2022 Top 5 Under 25
1. Matty Beniers – C (19)
The Seattle Kraken selected Matty Beniers with their first-ever entry draft pick (second overall). It was a wise selection. He is multi-talented, and his strong two-way game should keep him in the NHL for a long time.
Currently, Beniers plays on a stacked Wolverines team. Aside from him, Michigan has last year’s first fourth, and fifth overall picks, Owen Power, Luke Hughes, and Kent Johnson, respectively. They also have Mackie Samoskevich (24th), Johnnie Beacher (30th, 2019), and Brendon Brisson (29th, 2020). Not to mention a few later-round picks on the roster.
One of the best ways to improve is playing alongside the best, and It doesn’t get much better than his college teammates. Even better, Beniers is the team’s leading scorer with 36 points in 28 games. He was thought highly enough of to be one of a handful of college players on the recent United States Olympic hockey team.
Beniers is a multi-talented two-way forward who excels in all three zones. Before the draft, Matthew Zator of the Hockey Writers described the center as follows:
Beniers’ skills go beyond offense, that’s why he’s going to be such a find for whatever team drafts him this year. He does almost everything at a high level, including smart and effective defense. He’s basically the ultimate two-way threat in every sense of the word.
He forechecks like a madman, plays a creative game in all three zones, and has a hockey IQ that rivals the greats. Combine that with his exceptional mobility, playmaking, work ethic, and goal-scoring instincts, and the NHL might just have the next Jonathan Toews on their hands.
This heralded center Matty Beniers is coming to the Emerald City, eventually. It won’t be this year. The beginning of 2022-23 is iffy, but by October 2023, he should be a mainstay of the Seattle Kraken lineup.
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Seattle Kraken fans should expect to see this list change drastically a year from now.