Kraken Re-Assign Ty Nelson To AHL
In recent weeks, Seattle has been busy sending several of their top prospects to the minors to keep them skating while Coachella Valley is in the playoffs. The latest to do so is Ty Nelson as he has been assigned to the Firebirds, per the AHL’s transactions log.
The 20-year-old was a third-round pick two years ago, going 68th overall. Since then, he has been one of the top-scoring blueliners in the OHL. In 2022-23, Nelson finished third in points among all OHL rearguards, collecting 24 goals and 52 assists in 67 games with North Bay before adding 25 points in 20 playoff contests.
This season, Nelson’s numbers dipped a bit but he was still close to the point-per-game mark. He notched 16 goals and 36 helpers for the Battalion in 54 regular season games and chipped in 14 points in 16 postseason contests before being eliminated by Oshawa earlier in the week. Nelson also suited up for Canada at the World Juniors, picking up three assists in five games.
Nelson signed his entry-level deal last May and since he didn’t play in ten games with the Kraken, that contract will slide and will still have three years left on it heading into next season.
World Junior Notes: Donovan, Nelson, Molendyk, Luneau, Lindstein
Senators prospect Jorian Donovan was cut by Team Canada at their World Juniors selection camp earlier this month but Hockey Canada announced (Twitter link) that the defenseman has been added to their roster along with Kraken defense prospect Ty Nelson, another player originally cut from their selection camp.
Donovan was a fifth-round pick of the Sens in 2022 and has eight goals and 26 points in 31 games with OHL Brantford so far this season. He was notified of his addition on Friday and arrived in time for today’s 6-5 overtime loss to the United States in pre-tournament action and was named their Player of the Game.
As for Nelson, he was a third-round pick by the Kraken in 2022 and has been a prolific point producer with OHL North Bay. Last season, he finished third in the league for points by a defenseman with 76 in 67 regular season games while adding 25 more in 20 playoff contests. He’s producing at a similar rate this season with 31 points in his first 28 appearances.
Other news from the World Juniors:
- Those two being added to the roster means that two players have to come off. Those are Predators blueliner Tanner Molendyk and Ducks defenseman Tristan Luneau who are both out due to injury. Molendyk was dealing with a wrist issue while Luneau had missed pre-tournament games due to illness which has turned out to be a viral infection. Molendyk was off to a nice start with WHL Saskatoon before making the team as he already has 28 points on his season in just 24 games. Luneau, meanwhile, cracked Anaheim’s roster in training camp although playing time has been limited; he has played in seven games for the Ducks and six more while on a conditioning loan with AHL San Diego.
- Team Sweden has also made a roster move for the upcoming World Juniors. They announced (Twitter link) that Blues defenseman Theo Lindstein has been added to their roster for the event, replacing Jakob Noren who was injured in pre-tournament action. The 18-year-old was the 29th pick back in June and has spent the majority of this season in Sweden’s second-tier Allsvenskan level, recording 11 points in 27 games so far. Louis now has seven prospects at the tournament, tied for the most among NHL teams with Arizona and Buffalo.
Seattle Kraken Sign Ty Nelson To Entry-Level Contract
The Seattle Kraken have locked in their best unsigned defense prospect, signing Ty Nelson to a three-year, entry-level contract. Per the team, the contract carries a $925,000 cap hit.
Seattle selected the 19-year-old Nelson with the 68th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Most public draft analysts didn’t have Nelson falling that far, with some having the right-shot defender ranked in the mid-to-late first round. Concerns about his size, as he stands at 5-foot-10, dropped him to the third round on draft day.
It’s looking like quite the pick for Seattle, though, as Nelson had another terrific season in juniors with the OHL’s North Bay Battalion in 2022-23. With his team losing in the third round of the OHL’s postseason to the Peterborough Petes, however, Nelson has now opted to get under contract with the team that drafted him.
Nelson, serving as an alternate captain for North Bay, led a team loaded with NHL-drafted forwards in postseason scoring, posting six goals and 25 points in 20 games (along with a team-leading +15 rating). He silenced a lot of doubts about his NHL ceiling this season, employing his confident puck-moving style of play to the max.
How much that production translates to the NHL remains to be seen, but he does remain one of the better prospects in the Seattle system as a whole. He’s ineligible to play in the AHL next season for Coachella Valley, however, meaning he’s likely destined for another season of juniors with North Bay.