It has been a tough season on the injury front for Seattle with several key players missing time already and several players still on injured reserve. That number will be dropping by one, however, as Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic relays (subscription link) that winger Kaapo Kakko is expected to be activated off IR and suit up tonight against the Rangers, his former team. Officially, he’s listed as a game-time decision, per team radio host Mike Benton (Twitter link).
The 24-year-old suffered a broken hand late in training camp that was expected to keep him out for six weeks. Assuming he’s indeed activated for tonight’s game after being a full participant in practice Friday, he’ll come in slightly ahead of that target.
Last season was a mixed bag for Kakko. Re-signed to a one-year, $2.4MM contract before qualifying offers were tendered, it looked like it was shaping up to be his last chance in New York. That turned out to be the case. After putting up just four goals and 10 assists in his first 30 games, the Rangers decided to pull the trigger on a move, sending him to the Kraken for defenseman William Borgen, plus 2025 third and sixth-round picks.
After the swap, Kakko found himself with a more consistent opportunity in Seattle’s top six and he made the most of it. Over the final 49 games, he notched 10 goals and 20 assists while his ATOI jumped by nearly four minutes a night, showing some of the promise that made him the second overall selection back in 2019.
That showing was also good enough to give him enough leverage for a multi-year deal this summer. In his final season of RFA eligibility, Seattle tendered Kakko a qualifying offer and the two sides eventually avoided arbitration with a three-year, $13.575MM contract that gave Kakko the security he was seeking and the Kraken a couple of extra years of club control. Now, after missing the first month of the season, it looks like he’s set to try to get back to the same type of role he had down the stretch.