Seattle Kraken Sign Julius Miettinen To Entry-Level Contract
The Seattle Kraken have announced that forward Julius Miettinen has been signed to a three-year entry-level contract. Per the team release, Miettinen’s new contract will carry a $975K AAV.
Miettinen, 19, was a second-round pick of Seattle in the 2024 draft, selected 40th overall. Ranked as high as 22nd in the public sphere (TSN’s Craig Button) Miettinen drew appreciation from scouts for his combination of size (he stands 6’4, 207 pounds) and offensive ability. In his draft season with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips, Miettinen scored 31 goals and 67 points in 66 regular-season games, and four points in nine postseason contests.
Last season was an up-and-down affair for Miettinen, as he managed to continue his steady production and earn a silver medal at the World Junior Championships, but did miss some time due to a lower-body injury. Miettinen is currently back in the WHL and has started off well, scoring two goals and four points in his first two games.
It is overwhelmingly likely Miettinen will not factor into the pro hockey equation for Seattle until his final junior campaign ends, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that he enters training camp one year from now looking to steal an NHL role. Miettinen was recently ranked as the Kraken’s tenth-best prospect by EliteProspects, with their team noting how it’s “easy to see” Miettinen having an NHL career due to his projectable pro-ready qualities.
He’ll have to step forward and be a top WHL player with the Silvertips for that to be the likely short-term outcome, but regardless of his production, today’s contract signing paves the way for Miettinen to eventually push for a spot in Seattle down the line.
Prospect Notes: Frondell, Kraken, Pickford
The Blackhawks were originally hoping to have Anton Frondell with them for rookie camp as well as main training camp this month, relays Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription link). However, when the center indicated that he felt his development would be best served by staying in Sweden with SHL Djurgarden instead of an early-season interruption, they agreed to that plan instead. Frondell was the third-overall pick back in June on the heels of an impressive showing with Djurgarden in the second-tier Allsvenskan when he had 25 points in 29 games. That team earned a promotion to the SHL this season, which will give Frondell tougher competition to play against. GM Kyle Davidson noted that the expectation is that no matter what, this will be Frondell’s final year in Sweden.
More prospect news from around the NHL:
- The Kraken are without a pair of prospects as their rookie camp begins. The team announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Alexis Bernier is out as he continues to recover from ACL surgery while center Julius Miettinen is dealing with an upper-body injury sustained in training camp with WHL Everett. Bernier had a strong post-draft season with QMJHL Baie-Comeau, collecting 14 goals and 32 assists in 59 games but isn’t eligible to play in the minors this season. As for Miettinen, he notched 39 points in 36 games with the Silvertips and briefly spent time as a reserve with AHL Coachella Valley in the playoffs. However, he also isn’t eligible to play in the minors this season.
- The Canadiens announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Bryce Pickford is dealing with a lower-body injury and didn’t take part in practice today. The 19-year-old wasn’t drafted in his first year of eligibility last year but went in the third round back in June, going 81st overall. Pickford had a breakout year offensively in 2024-25, notching 20 goals and 27 assists in 48 regular season games with WHL Medicine Hat before adding 24 more points in 18 postseason contests.
Snapshots: Protas, DeMelo, Lightning, Miettinen
5:30 PM: Protas will not play in Game 3 on Friday, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. He will target a Game 4 return, while the Capitals will continue forward with Taylor Raddysh in the lineup.
4:00 PM: The Washington Capitals could be in store for a major addition to their postseason lineup, as top forward Aliaksei Protas continues to work his way back from a foot injury. Protas returned to full-contact practice on Friday morning and could step back into the lineup in Game 3, per Sammi Silber of The Hockey News. He has missed Washington’s last eight games after being cut by a skate on April 4th.
Protas was on the tail end of a loud breakout season at the time of his injury. He ranked third on the Capitals in scoring at the time, with 30 goals and 66 points in 75 games. He’s confidently lapped the six goals and 29 points he scored in 78 games last season. That rise in scoring has been largely helped along by Protas’ shooting percentage rising from 5.3 percent to 21.1 percent this season. But despite the inflated shooting percentage, Protas looked perfectly at home in the Capitals’ top-six and should return to a major role as soon as he’s back to full health. Protas recorded two assists in four playoff games last season – and will look to carry his booming shooting percentage into must-win games.
Other quick notes from around the league:
- It has been revealed that Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo missed Game 3 due to illness per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The Jets were bullied by the St. Louis Blues in DeMelo’s absence, dropping their first game of the postseason with a 7-3 loss. DeMelo was a major part of the Jets gameplan through Game 1 and 2. He averaged over 20 minutes of ice time between the two games and recorded one assist and a plus-two. DeMelo appeared in all 82 games of the Jets’ regular season. He scored 19 points and averaged 21:31 in ice time. Veteran defenseman Colin Miller stepped into the lineup for DeMelo and recorded one assist. But the Jets weren’t able to make up for the booming physical presence DeMelo brings. They’ll hope for a quick return to health before Game 4 on Sunday.
- Tampa Bay Lightning fans can breathe a sigh of relief after head coach Jon Cooper shared that both Yanni Gourde and Anthony Cirelli are expected to stay in the lineup, per NHL.com’s Benjamin Pierce. Both players missed Friday morning’s practice for undisclosed reasons. Neither player has found any scoring through two playoff games so far, though they’ve continued to serve physical roles from the team’s second-line. The band could be without their third in Tampa Bay’s next matchup, with left-winger Brandon Hagel facing a suspension after a dirty hit on Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov.
- Seattle Kraken prospect Julius Miettinen has signed an amateur try-out with the Coachella Valley Firebirds for the remainder of the season per the AHL Transactions Log. Miettinen sustained a lower-body injury at the World Junior Championship that held him out of a handful of games. Even through the injury, he managed a strong 11 goals and 39 points in 36 WHL game this season – a 0.06 point-per-game increase over his 67 points in 66 games last season. The six-foot-three Finn will bring a boost of heft and instinctive offense to the Firebirds lineup as they prepare for a series against the Calgary Wranglers.
Finland Announces Roster For 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup
With just two days before the beginning of the tournament and exhibition games already underway, Finland has announced their roster for the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, as reported by Elite Prospects’ Lassi Alanen. The yearly summer tournament is the first major event on the calendar for draft-eligible prospects, and this year’s eight-team tourney will showcase some of the best players available in next summer’s 2024 NHL Draft.
Finland is always one of the favorites to make some noise in international events, but as Alanen notes, they’ll be without a few crucial pieces at this year’s event, which significantly handicaps their chances of medalling at the event. Defenseman Aron Kiviharju and center Konsta Helenius are both potential top-ten choices come next June, but they’re currently at another summer event for the higher-level U20 team at the World Junior Summer Showcase. They’ll also be missing 2006-born defenseman Veeti Väisänen, who participated with last year’s Hlinka Gretzky squad but dropped out of this year’s edition at the last minute, per Alanen.
That being said, there are some other names worth watching. Center Julius Miettinen is 2024-eligible and is the only member of Finland’s roster slated to play in North America next season. After the WHL’s Everett Silvertips selected him 30th overall in this year’s CHL Import Draft, he’s slated to head to the Washington-based team after recording 10 goals, 12 assists and 22 points in 38 games with HIFK Helsinki’s U20 squad last season in the U20 SM-sarja. 6-foot-2 forward Emil Hemming of Liiga club TPS is also regarded as a potential first-round talent next summer and currently stands as the country’s fourth-best offering among the 2024 class behind Kiviharju, Helenius, and Väisänen.
With that being said, here’s Finland’s full roster for the tournament, set to run from Monday, July 31, through Saturday, August 5:
G Petteri Rimpinen
G Kim Saarinen
D Onni Amhamdi
D Daniel Nieminen
D Mitja Jokinen
D Bruno Jalasti
D Niilopekka Muhonen
D Eelis Marila
D Atte Vikla
D Arttu Välilä *not NHL draft-eligible until 2025
F Emil Hemming
F Joonas Paqvalin
F Markus Loponen
F Akseli Pulkkanen
F Tuomas Suoniemi
F Julius Miettinen
F Heikki Ruohonen
F Juho Keinänen
F Natan Teshome
F Roope Vesterinen
F Ville Väärälä
F Joona Saarelainen
F Aatu Heinänen
F Lauri Sinivuori