Kraken Activate Brandon Montour
The Kraken announced Thursday that they activated defenseman Brandon Montour from injured reserve. To open a roster spot, they reassigned forward Jacob Melanson to AHL Coachella Valley.
It’s an ahead-of-schedule return for the puck-mover, who underwent hand surgery shortly before Christmas. He was initially expected to miss at least four weeks, but returns with several days to spare.
Last year, Montour led Seattle’s defense with 41 points in 82 games after cashing in with the Kraken on a seven-year, $50MM deal in free agency. He’s been overtaken again now by Vince Dunn, but is still having a reasonably productive year with six goals and 16 points in 27 outings. He’s averaging 21:56 of ice time per game and is having a great year in the possession department, leading Seattle rearguards with a 51.3 CF%.
That possession control makes Montour an increasingly important factor on a Seattle team that is abysmal at generating quality scoring chances but has been propped up by semi-sound defense and elite goaltending. They control just 41.4% of high-danger chances at 5-on-5, but have nevertheless cashed in on them by a score of 31-24.
Melanson had seen consistent ice time as of late, temporarily leapfrogging Tye Kartye on the depth chart, but his waiver-exempt status made him the logical odd man out. After making a one-game NHL debut last year, he’s scored a goal and four points in 15 games this time around. The 22-year-old was a fifth-round pick in 2021 and has 14 points in 23 AHL games.
Kraken Activate Chandler Stephenson, Reassign Oscar Fisker Molgaard
The Seattle Kraken have returned to a fully healthy forward core. The Kraken announced that they’ve activated Chandler Stephenson from the non-roster list and have reassigned Oscar Fisker Molgaard in a corresponding roster move.
Stephenson was placed on the non-roster list only three days ago, as he and his wife were expecting the birth of their child. He missed two games for Seattle, and the team earned a split decision, losing to the Carolina Hurricanes before beating the New York Rangers.
He’s expected to reprise his role as the team’s second-line center, where he’s played relatively well this season. He’s third on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 27 points in 42 games, averaging nearly 20 minutes of ice time per game. Additionally, he’s been the best faceoff taker on the team, winning 52.4% of his draws.
Still, there is reason to believe that his production may dip relatively soon. Stephenson is averaging a 38.6% CorsiFor% at even strength, far and away the worst output of his career. However, it’s not an issue unique to Stephenson, as the Kraken themselves are 31st in the league in terms of possession quality, ahead of only the San Jose Sharks.
Meanwhile, Fisker Molgaard returns to AHL Coachella Valley after failing to appear in a game with Seattle throughout the duration of his recall. He’s skated in two games for the team this season, registering an assist while averaging 6:00 of ice time per game. He’s understandably been far more productive with the Firebirds, scoring six goals and 18 points in 30 games with a -5 rating.
Kraken Activate Jaden Schwartz, Move Chandler Stephenson To Non-Roster Status
The Kraken will get a key offensive contributor back in their lineup tonight as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated winger Jaden Schwartz off injured reserve. To make room on the roster, center Chandler Stephenson has been granted non-roster status.
Schwartz has been out since late November with a lower-body injury, one that derailed what had been a solid start to his season. The 33-year-old had eight goals and seven assists through his first 23 appearances before being sidelined while averaging over 17 minutes per night of ice time. That came on the heels of a 49-point effort last season, his highest point total since the 2019-20 campaign when he was still with St. Louis.
Schwartz is in the final season of a five-year, $27.5MM contract signed for Seattle’s inaugural campaign but he has dealt with injury issues in four of those give seasons. Still, he remains one of their more intriguing potential trade chips heading toward the deadline in March. That is, if the Kraken wind up being sellers. They’ve won eight of their last ten games to get into a playoff spot and getting Schwartz back should only bolster their attack, one that sits 27th in goals scored heading into today’s action. If they stay in the mix, he’s unlikely to move but if they fall out of the race, he’s a strong candidate to be dealt.
However, they won’t have their full lineup available just yet with Stephenson’s removal from the roster. The 31-year-old is tied for second on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 16 assists in 42 games while he’s averaging 19:58 per game of ice time, a career high. However, it appears his removal from the roster is for a good reason, as Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times relays (Twitter link) that his wife is expecting to give birth shortly. That suggests Stephenson’s absence should be a short-term one which is important given his role as their top middleman.
Latest On Jordan Eberle
The Philadelphia Flyers announced mid-game that star Travis Konecny would not return due to an upper-body injury.
Konecny has yet to miss a game this season, recording 37 points in 41 games, and notching the team’s only tally of the night as they lost in overtime to Toronto. Although he did not return for the third period, the forward was seen doing a television interview at the intermission beforehand, which hopefully indicates that his injury is not serious, and the decision was for more precautionary reasons.
Philadelphia has continued their winning ways of late, impressively second in the Metropolitan, and they will cross their fingers that their second-leading scorer will not miss any time. The team is right back in action on Saturday, hosting Tampa Bay.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Shortly before their home tilt against Minnesota, the Seattle Kraken shared that forward Jordan Eberle will not play, with an upper-body ailment. The team will be missing their captain for the first time this season, who somewhat surprisingly has turned back the clock in 2025-26, on pace for his best season with the Kraken. The 35-year-old has 15 goals in 41 games, after finding the back of the net just 26 times in the last two seasons combined. Eberle could return as soon as Saturday in Carolina, as the team hopes to fend off competitors in the Pacific Division and earn their second-ever playoff appearance.
- Zayne Parekh’s return to the Flames lineup will be delayed, as the defenseman has been listed as day-to-day with an upper body injury, as reported by Eric Francis of Sportsnet. Although not immediately clear, it is most likely that the ailment comes from Parekh’s time leading Team Canada in the World Junior Championship. With just one point in 11 games so far in the NHL, Calgary is in no rush with their 19-year-old prized prospect, and in the meantime, Hunter Brzustewicz will hold his spot in the lineup. Parekh could return Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh.
Kraken Recall Oscar Fisker Molgaard
Fresh off being named to Denmark’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, center Oscar Fisker Molgaard has been recalled by the Kraken, the team announced. They’ve been operating with an open roster spot for quite some time, so no corresponding move is required.
Molgaard, 21 next month, was a second-round pick in 2023. Just two years on from being drafted, he’s already got NHL games under his belt. Seattle recalled Molgaard for a pair of games in November, recording an assist and going 5-for-7 on faceoffs in the process, before being swiftly returned to AHL Coachella Valley when Jared McCann returned from a lower-body injury.
Now, with Jaden Schwartz on injured reserve and Eeli Tolvanen dealing with an illness, Fisker Molgaard will get another crack at entering the lineup. Even if he’s just around for a few games as an extra forward, it’s an indication of how pleased the organization has been with his development. The lanky 6’0″ pivot had a pair of strong seasons in Sweden’s top league with HV71 after being drafted, notching 40 points in 88 games before coming to North America.
In his first season of pro hockey stateside, Molgaard ranks fourth on Coachella Valley in scoring with a 6-12–18 line in 30 games. A good skater with a great shot, he’s been the centerpiece of Denmark’s national junior teams for several years and already has three World Championship appearances with the senior team under his belt, including a great showing in 2025 with seven points in 10 games. He figures to slot into the Danes’ top-six forward group at the Olympics alongside fellow NHLers Oliver Bjorkstrand, Nikolaj Ehlers, Lars Eller, and Jonas Rondbjerg.
Latest On Jaden Schwartz
Schwartz suffered a lower-body injury against Dallas on November 26. Despite struggling to create offense, currently last in the league in that category, Seattle holds a Wild Card spot, and has stayed afloat without their key forward. A pending UFA in the final year of his five year deal worth $5.5MM per season, on paper the 33-year-old could be a trade candidate. However, especially given their status in the playoff mix, it is thought that the Kraken would like to retain Schwartz into the twilight years of his career as a leader on a young forward core, with a Stanley Cup under his belt.
Kraken Reassign Jani Nyman
The Kraken announced they’ve reassigned left winger Jani Nyman to AHL Coachella Valley. With no immediate need for a roster spot, it looks to be a performance-based demotion for the 21-year-old. Matt Murray and Jaden Schwartz are due for IR returns at some point soon, though, so they won’t need to open a roster spot for one of them when it happens.
Nyman, 21, has had a relatively quick ascension since being selected in the second round of the 2022 draft. While the 6’4″, 220-lb winger may look like a power forward on paper, he’s not all that physical. It’s his goal-scoring ability that led to his pickup, recording over a point per game in Finland’s second pro division in his draft year.
After two successful campaigns in Finland’s top flight post-draft, Nyman arrived in North America for the 2024-25 campaign. He led Coachella Valley with 28 goals in 58 games, earning a late-season call-up to Seattle. He didn’t look out of place at all with the Kraken, putting up three goals and six points in 12 games down the stretch.
That led to Nyman capturing an opening night job with Seattle in the fall as he entered year two of his three-year entry-level deal. However, ice time has been harder to come by compared to last year’s recall, averaging 10:42 per game with a spattering of different linemates, although he’s seen most of his time with Shane Wright down the middle. The production hasn’t been there as a result, limited to four goals and six points through 24 games.
Nyman had also been a healthy scratch for the last three games, not a great use of development time for a player who still profiles as a potential long-term top-nine piece. Instead of 10 minutes per game in the NHL, he’ll now be ticketed for closer to 20 in the minors.
Kraken Activate Jared McCann
The Kraken will see Jared McCann return to the lineup against the Flyers tonight, teammate Matty Beniers told reporters (including Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times). The team subsequently announced he’s been activated from injured reserve. With an open roster spot, there’s no need for a corresponding move.
McCann’s return comes a few days ahead of schedule. The 29-year-old sustained a lower-body injury against the Kings on Dec. 10 that was expected to keep him out for three weeks. That would have put his return late next week.
Lower-body issues have kept McCann on the sidelines for much of this season. His latest seven-game absence teamed up with a weeks-long one earlier in the year. All told, he’s been limited to 11 appearances but has kept up his longstanding role as the Kraken’s top offensive weapon, totaling five goals and eight points.
Seattle’s woeful offense, 31st in the league at 2.54 goals per game, now gets back its franchise-leading scorer on the heels of a three-game win streak leading into the holiday break. The Kraken were 11-5-5 through their first 21 games, putting themselves in the playoff conversation, before undoing all that work with a 1-9-1 run over their next 11. That win streak has them back above .500 and three points back of the Sharks for the wild-card cutoff with three games in hand, though.
For a group that’s been without Jaden Schwartz for several weeks due to a lower-body injury and lost Mason Marchment when he was traded to the Blue Jackets earlier this month, getting McCann back in on the wing is a true needle-mover. Seattle has gone 4-5-2 with McCann in the lineup this season.
The Kraken will also be getting top-pair staple Vince Dunn back in the lineup on the back end, head coach Lane Lambert said (via Alison Lukan of NHL.com). He missed Seattle’s last game before the break with an upper-body injury but, along with McCann, was a full participant in yesterday’s practice. With 19 points in 34 games this season, he leads Kraken defenders in scoring and is fifth on the team overall but has a team-worst -15 rating.
Image courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.
Jared McCann, Vince Dunn Return To Practice
The Seattle Kraken, who have been bitten by the injury bug as of late, may be returning a few high-end players soon. Earlier today, team producer Scott Malone reported that forward Jared McCann and defenseman Vince Dunn had returned to practice in regular jerseys.
There’s no indication either will return to the Kraken’s game tomorrow against the Philadelphia Flyers, though it is encouraging. McCann has been limited to 11 games with Seattle this season, scoring five goals and three points, with his last contest coming on December 10th.
Still, Dunn only missed the Kraken’s game on Tuesday due to an upper-body injury, and he’s not on the team’s injured reserve, unlike McCann. If there’s any silver lining to what’s shaping up to be another disappointing season for the Kraken, is that Dunn has been healthy for much of the season. Over the last two years, he had played in less than 75% of Seattle’s games due to injury. He has scored five goals and 19 points in 34 games this season.
Assessing The Kraken’s Goaltending Situation
The Kraken entered the break on a strong note with three straight wins, but they’ve only won four of their last 14 games. Thanks to many of their tweener companions in the West struggling, they’re only three points out of a playoff spot with four games in hand on the Mammoth.
Seattle isn’t a surefire playoff team by any stretch at a record of 15-14-6, but given the level of goaltending they’ve received thus far from Joey Daccord, Philipp Grubauer and Matt Murray, they should be able to at least stay in the mix until the trade deadline. Seattle’s issue has clearly been its offense this year, which ranks third-last in the league at 2.54 goals per game. On the defensive side, Seattle’s 2.97 goals against per game rank 13th.
Earlier in 2025, two NHL contracts that seemed unmovable were those of Grubauer and Tristan Jarry. Jarry was dealt to the Oilers earlier this month after passing through waivers a year ago. However, his play this year opened the door for the Penguins to move him and his entire $5.375MM cap hit, even though it had another two years after this one.
Something that seemed impossible a year ago happened, and the Penguins netted two roster players and a second-round pick. The trade highlighted the limited goaltending options available across the NHL, which brings us to the Kraken and, specifically, Grubauer.
The 34-year-old has been a disaster since signing with Seattle as a free agent in 2021. The Stanley Cup winner signed a six-year deal worth $5.9MM annually, and he has never been able to give the Kraken anything close to the goaltending he provided to the Avalanche in his few seasons as their starter.
Grubauer was a Vezina Trophy finalist in his platform season, finishing third, and posted a 30-9-1 record with a .922 SV% and a 1.95 GAA. As impressive as those numbers were, his underlying numbers painted a clearer picture, minimizing Grubauer’s overall impact and suggesting a goaltender playing behind an excellent team. Grubauer still had to stop the saveable pucks and avoid the bad goals, and that’s precisely what he did, but he only registered 5.2 goals saved above expected (as per MoneyPuck), 11th in the league.
Fast-forward to that summer, when Seattle thought they were getting a netminder capable of backstopping them on deep playoff runs. Now, his contract has become one of, if not the, least movable agreements in the NHL, until perhaps this season.
Grubauer has started the season well, even though traditional metrics don’t necessarily reflect it. He has played 11 games this season, going 5-3-1 with a .911 SV% and a 2.59 GAA. Those numbers are nothing to write home about, but a deeper dive shows that Grubauer has 7.1 goals saved above expected on the year – the best figure on the Kraken.
That great start to the season could give Seattle the chance to move him, if he agrees. Grubauer has a modified no-trade clause in his contract, which further complicates a trade even if Seattle were able to find a dance partner.
To add to an already complicated dynamic, the third-string Murray is injured. Unfortunately, injuries have derailed a career that once looked incredibly bright. That said, when Murray returns to the lineup, the Kraken will presumably have three capable NHL goaltenders and will need to move one or assign one to the AHL.
This is where it gets really complicated. Losing Grubauer for Murray is a lateral move at this point, but is Seattle really willing to roll the dice with Murray as the backup? Hard to say, but talent-wise, Murray is more than capable, and the risk of moving Grubauer might just be worth it if it means shedding his massive contract, especially if the Kraken remain out of the playoff picture.
It’s not dissimilar to what the Penguins had to do to shed Jarry’s contract. They took back Stuart Skinner and are rolling with him and Arturs Silovs, but the big win is not having Jarry’s money on the books, which opens the door for Pittsburgh to do a lot next summer. Seattle could put itself in a similar spot if it moved all of Grubauer’s deal, which would bring it to $40MM in available cap room for 2026-27 with just six players to sign (as per PuckPedia)
Seattle has already begun selling off free agents, as evidenced by the Mason Marchment trade to the Blue Jackets, and is signalling that it plans to punt on this season. Murray is a pending free agent, but even if Seattle were to trade the two-time Stanley Cup Champion, it wouldn’t get much for him given his play in previous seasons and his long injury history. The Kraken’s best course of action is to try to move Grubauer for something, anything really, to clear the books and make some bigger moves next summer.
Now, teams are obviously desperate for goaltending, but that doesn’t mean Seattle can move all of Grubauer’s contract. They should be able to move half or more, but they have to do it soon, so his play doesn’t fall back to the level it was at in the last few seasons. They also need to be concerned that a team like Pittsburgh tries to move Skinner, which would further diminish Seattle’s trading partners.