Seattle Kraken 2022 NHL Entry Draft
It was a magical 2022-23 season for the Seattle Kraken. They scored 100 points, made the playoffs, and knocked out the defending Stanley Cup Champions before losing in the Western Conference SemiFinals.
As a result of their strong performance, Seattle has the 20th pick at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft beginning Wednesday, June 28. General Manager Ron Francis, his staff, and scouts are working hard to add to the Kraken’s young core.
Pacific Northwest Sports has monitored the top NHL mock drafts. Our staff did the background work so our readers won’t have to search the web to determine who the Seattle Kraken will select when they are on the clock.
We audited 35 different mock drafts this year. Eleven of them went through two rounds.
For accuracy and varying viewpoints, we used a wide variety of sources. They include The Athletic, Sportsnet, ESPN, NHL.com, Bleacher Report, TSN, and more.
2023 is the Kraken’s third year at the Entry Draft. The team kicked off what will be a long tradition of adding quality amateur talent by taking Matty Beniers with the second overall pick in 2021.
Playing his first full season in the NHL last year Beniers put up 24 goals and 33 assists. His efforts won him the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s 2023 Rookie of the Year.
Seattle followed up by selecting Shane Wright with their first pick in 2022. The uber-talented forward didn’t quite find his footing as a pro but captained Canada’s Gold Medal team at the World Junior Championships.
Despite their 2022-23 success, as a third-year team, the Seattle Kraken can use help everywhere. Defense is likely at the top of their list of positions they need to address.
Defense is at the top of their list of all the issues they should address. That doesn’t take away from other needs. With three second round picks, Francis can either continue building organizational depth, trade up to get another first round selection, or use his excess to acquire a quality veteran.
As mentioned earlier, Seattle has the 20th overall pick. Their own pick in Round 2 is 52nd overall.
The Kraken also own number 50, acquired by sending goalie Vitek Vanicek to Washington as well as pick 57 from the trade that sent Mark Giordano to Toronto at the 2022 trade deadline. They also pick once in the third, fourth, fifth, and seventh rounds and twice in Round 6.
The 2023 NHL Entry Draft takes place in Nashville, Tennessee, beginning on Wednesday, June 28, at 4:00 PM PDT with the first round. It continues on Thursday, June 29, at 8:00 AM PDT with Rounds 2-7.
It might as well be renamed the “All Things Connor Beddard Draft.” The explosive Regina Pats star scored an incredible 274 points in 134 WHL games. He is a generational talent and one of the most hyped prospects since Connor McDavid (2015) and Auston Matthews (2016).
This year, Day 1 will be televised in the United States on ESPN. Day 2 Coverage can be found on the NHL Network. Streaming coverage of both days is on ESPN+.
According to the mock drafts, there is a favorite to go to the Seattle Kraken with the 20th overall pick. Sudbury Wolves left wing Quenton Musty was the choice on eight of them.
Age: 18
Height: 6”1 3/4”
Weight: 200-pounds
2022-23 Stats: Regular Season – 53 games, 26 goals, 52 assists, +16, 71 PIM. Playoffs – 4 games, 1 goal, 3 assists, -5, 6 PIM. At the Gretzky-Halinka Cup, Musty scored 5 points in 4 games for the USA U-18 squad.
Central Scouting Rank: 14th-ranked North American Skater, 7th-ranked North American Wing.
Musty is the kind of power forward NHL teams covet and certainly a talent the Seattle Kraken needs. He’s not afraid to drive the net or play in the dirty areas. Additionally, his hard shot makes him a threat to score outside the crease. It’s easy to envision Musty playing on Beniers’ wing.
He brings a little bit of everything to the table and does so in a projectable, imposing 6-foot- 2 frame. Better still, he’s not shy about leveraging every part of it to dispossess opponents of the puck, wreak havoc along the boards and at the net-front, and to barrel down the wing off the rush. His vision is top-notch, and he’s equipped with the cunning and passing skill necessary to connect with layered feeds around skates and sticks.
EliteProspects 2023 NHL Draft Guide
With six selections, defenseman Dmitri Simashev from the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl is the next most popular selection among mock drafters.
Age: 19
Height: 6”4”
Weight: 201-pounds
Central Scouting Rank: 19th-ranked International Skater, 7th-ranked International Defenseman
A stay-at-home, cover defenseman isn’t sexy, but it is necessary. Simashev has the physical tools and skating ability to be a top-notch shutdown defenseman. He could be the Seattle Kraken’s top defender for years.
At only 19 years old, he is still filling out his 6-4 frame. Simashev will get bigger and faster over the next few years.
He’s a monster defensively at every level, brings some spectacular skating, and though he might not be as dynamic offensively as some of the other top d-men in this draft, he’s always making good things happen for his team at both ends of the ice, even if the points don’t show it. He’s got some really promising play creation ability, and I believe that he could end up as a good #1 defenseman in the NHL, if everything goes right.
Smaht Scouting
These are the other players projected to the Seattle Kraken in Round 1:
3 selections – Colby Barlow, LW, Owen Sound.
2 selections – Brayden Yager, C, Moose Jaw; Calum Ritchie, C/RW, Oshawa Generals; Eduard Sale, LW, Kometa Brno (Czech); Oliver Bonk, D, London Knights.
1 selection – Andrew Cristal, W, Kelowna Rockets; Gavin Brindley, RW , Michigan; Jaden Perron, RW, Chicago Steel; Lukas Dragicevic, D, Tri-City Americans; Nate Danielson, C, Brandon Wheat Kings; Nick Lardis, LW, Hamilton Bulldogs; Otto Stenberg, C, Frolunda Jr. (Sweden); Tom Willander, D, Rogle BK (Sweden); and Oliver Moore, C, USNTDP.
In Round 2, the Seattle Kraken have three picks between 50-57. Since the picks are so close together, the 11 mocks that went into this round are, for lack of a better word, jumbled.
To make it easier, three players were selected three or more times, so they are the favorites.
Trey Augustine, G, USNTDP – 4 selections
Just because the Seattle Kraken drafted goalies the past two years, they would certainly take another if the situation presents itself. NHL organizations can never have too many goalies.
A technically sound goaltender with great composure in his crease, Augustine has put up great numbers with the NTDP so far in his draft year. He is quiet in the net, limiting unnecessary movements to keep himself in prime position to react to oncoming shots. He will have to improve his tracking abilities as he progresses, but Augustine has an incredibly strong base of skills to build on.
Dobber Prospects
Nico Myatovic, LW, Seattle Thunderbirds – 3 selections
Taking this hometown product would be good for the Seattle Kraken on an off the ice.
One of the biggest risers of this year’s draft, going from 47th at the midterm mark to 26th on the NHL Central Scouting North American Skaters final list, Nico Myatovic enters the draft with a ton of momentum. He is a prospect who continually improved his game throughout the season and was one of the most trusted forwards on the Seattle Thunderbirds this season. A strong two-way forward who is great on the forecheck, he would be a solid addition to any team looking to improve their depth on the wing.
Adam Kierszenblat, the Hockey Writers
Koehn Ziemmer, RW, Prince George Cougars – 3 selections
Another forward with some scoring flair.
Ziemmer has a great shot. He gets the puck off his stick quickly without advertising when it’s going to happen. He can fool defenders and goaltenders with how sudden the puck gets on net.
Ziemmer isn’t a good technical skater, and that affects his ability to escape from opponents in his own zone and start breakouts. However, once he’s shuffled up to his top speed, his deft hands come alive and he can deke his way around anyone standing in his way to get in on offence.
Justin Blades, Eyes on the Prize
Two other players had two sections each, Carson Rehkopf, C/LW, Kitchener Rangers, and Andrew Gibson, D, Soo Greyhounds.