Devin Shore Clears Waivers
1/30: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Shore has cleared waivers, and can be safely reassigned to AHL Coachella Valley.
1/29: The Seattle Kraken have placed forward Devin Shore on waivers with the intention of assigning him to the AHL. Shore has appeared in 21 games with the Kraken this season, netting one goal and four points. He’s also played nine AHL games, scoring six points.
Shore is in his first season with the Kraken, signing a one-year, two-way, $775K contract with the team this summer. The deal marked his move away from the Edmonton Oilers, who he spent three seasons and 134 games with from 2020 to 2023. This move becomes the fifth time that Shore has been placed on waivers, with the Oilers waiving him twice in each of the last two seasons. He’s passed through unclaimed every time, though he only played five games with Edmonton’s AHL affiliate during his time in the organization.
Shore was originally drafted by the Dallas Stars in the second round of the 2012 NHL Draft – the same round that produced Damon Severson, Chris Tierney, Jordan Martinook, and Jake McCabe. It was an impressive round in what was a very deep 2012 Draft and Shore has certainly contributed, managing 443 career NHL games and 139 points. He made his professional debut after the end of the University of Maine’s 2014-15 season, playing in 19 AHL games and scoring six points. His NHL rookie season came in 2016-17, with Shore playing in 82 games and scoring 13 goals and 33 points with Dallas – all career-highs.
Pacific Notes: Kraken, Greer, Thrun
The Seattle Kraken have activated Matthew Beniers off of injured reserve. The former second-overall pick is expected to make his return to the Kraken lineup on Friday, after missing the team’s last five games. Jaden Schwartz and Eeli Tolvanen are expected to be game-time decisions, per Mike Benton of Kraken Audio Network.
Getting this trio of players back will be substantial for Seattle, as each ranks inside the team’s top seven scorers. Tolvanen leads the pack with 12 goals and 29 points through 47 games, while Schwartz has managed 20 points, split evenly, in 31 games, and Beniers has 19 points in 42. The former Calder Trophy-winning Beniers was in a bit of a lull before his injury, with just one goal through his last seven games. He’ll look to catch up to Tolvanen and Schwartz in the scoring column with a return against the St. Louis Blues on Friday.
Other notes from the Pacific Division:
- The Calgary Flames are not yet sure if A.J. Greer will require surgery after his ankle went awkwardly into the boards in the team’s Thursday night game. The forward is expected to miss, “considerable time”, though, per Sportsnet’s Eric Francis. Francis speculated that Greer’s injury could lead to Clark Bishop getting recalled from the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, though former first-round pick Jakob Pelletier is making his AHL season debut this weekend and could also be considered for a recall soon.
- San Jose Sharks defenseman Henry Thrun will be out until after the All-Star Break, per team reporter Curtis Pashelka. The 22-year-old is working his way back from a shoulder injury, with Pashelka adding that nothing seemed structurally wrong, insinuating that Thrun might have dodged the worst outcome. With Thrun out, San Jose will give top defensive prospect Shakir Mukhamadullin his first NHL game. Mukhamadullin has managed 26 points in 39 games with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda this season.
Seattle Kraken Send Down John Hayden
- Having been recalled a few days ago on January 19th, the Seattle Kraken have returned forward John Hayden to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, per a team announcement. Over the callup, Hayden went scoreless in two games for Seattle, and will now return to a Firebirds team where he has four goals and 10 points in 33 games. In a similar role this season within the Kraken organization, with a relatively clean bill of health down the middle of the ice this year, Seattle has not needed to utilize Hayden down the middle of the ice in the bottom of the lineup.
[SOURCE LINK]
Vince Dunn Returns, Matthew Beniers and Philipp Grubauer Questionable On Wednesday
Vince Dunn is slated to return to the Seattle Kraken lineup on Wednesday, while Matthew Beniers is expected to remain out, team radio host Mike Benton relays. Both players have missed the last four games, and their absences have been felt – with Seattle losing all four and getting outscored 15-5.
Oliver Bjorkstrand Out For Personal Reasons
- Kate Shefte of Seattle Times Sports reported that Seattle Kraken forward Oliver Bjorkstrand had missed the team’s practice today due to personal reasons. With a game tomorrow night against the Chicago Blackhawks, it is unclear if Bjorkstrand will be in the lineup or not. As the Kraken’s lone All-Star representative, Bjorkstrand is putting together quite the season, scoring 12 goals and 36 points in all 46 games for the team.
[SOURCE LINK]
Seattle Kraken Activate Philipp Grubauer, Reassign Chris Driedger
After being out with injury for nearly two months, Philipp Grubauer will make his return to the ice for the Seattle Kraken, as the team announced they had activated the netminder off injured reserve. In a corresponding roster move, the team has reassigned goaltender Chris Driedger to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
For most teams across the league, seeing the return of a goaltender only three years removed from being a Vezina Trophy finalist would be a tremendous boon to the organization. However, in the case of the Kraken, Grubauer’s access to the starting netminder position has exponentially lowered in his absence, as the emergence of Joey Daccord has kept the team afloat in the Western Conference playoff race.
Before Grubauer went down with injury in early December, he had played in a total of 17 games for Seattle, securing a 5-9-1 record, while producing a dismal .884 SV%. Since then, Daccord has confidently taken over the starting job for the Kraken, producing a 10-4-2 record in Grubauer’s absence, posting a remarkable .942 SV%.
Unfortunately for Seattle, they will now be spending a touch over $7MM on goaltending alone, with 83% of that cap space going to their projected backup goaltender. With only four points separating the organization from the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, the salary cap hit from Grubauer’s contract will limit the team’s buying capacity when the trade deadline rolls around in early March.
In the case of Driedger, he was extremely underutilized by Seattle in Grubauer’s absence, only appearing in two games for the team along that stretch. He will now return to a Firebird team where he has seen a solid level of success this season, posting a 9-5-1 record in 15 games played, coupled with a .916 SV% and a 2.20 GAA.
Seattle Kraken’s Yanni Gourde Suspended Two Games For Charging
Seattle Kraken centerman Yanni Gourde has been suspended for a charging penalty against Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm. The play in question occurred in the final few minutes of the Thursday night matchup, with the NHL Department of Player Safety saying that Gourde unnecessarily elevated himself into Ekholm’s head on the hit. The league also cited Gourde’s one previous career suspension – a two-game punishment for a hit to the head of Jordan Staal in the 2018-19 season.
Gourde has appeared in all 45 of Seattle’s games this season, boasting seven goals and 19 points. He’s also added 48 penalty minutes, a mark that’s tied with Vince Dunn for team lead. Gourde is in his third season with the Kraken, serving as the selection from the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. He’s served in a prominent role for the Kraken, averaging over 17 minutes of ice time in each season since. That includes the 17:48 he’s averaging this year, operating as a middle-six centerman and go-to penalty killer.
Gourde went unselected in the NHL Draft, instead beginning his pro career with the AHL’s Worcester Sharks at the end of the 2011-12 season. He scored three points in four games in his first taste of pros but struggled to maintain that production in his official rookie year – scoring just 14 points in 54 games during the 2012-13 season. He found his way back on draft in the following year, though, and was able to work his way into more prominent roles each season before eventually making his NHL debut in 2015-16 and playing his first full pro season in 2017-18. Gourde made a splash when he finally joined the Tampa lineup, netting an impressive 25 goals and 64 points in 82 games. That remains a career-high in goals and points, though Gourde has nonetheless remained consistent, scoring 48 points in three separate seasons since, including last year.
Kraken Transfer Grubauer To LTIR
- The Kraken moved goaltender Philipp Grubauer to LTIR before last night’s late recall of John Hayden, PuckPedia reports (Twitter link). Grubauer has been out for more than a month already so he’s eligible to be activated as soon as he’s cleared to return from his lower-body injury. The 32-year-old has a 3.25 GAA and a .884 SV% in 17 starts so far this season.
Seattle Kraken Loan Niklas Kokko To Liiga
- In a confirmed transaction according to EliteProspects, the Seattle Kraken have loaned goaltender Niklas Kokko to the Lahti Pelicans of the Finnish Liiga. Kokko was originally a second-round selection of the Kraken in the 2022 NHL Draft and suited up for Team Finland U20 in the 2023-24 World Junior Championships only a few weeks ago.
[SOURCE LINK]
Kraken Without Burakovsky, Beniers, Dunn On Monday
- The Seattle Times’ Kate Shefte relays that the Kraken are without three major players for today’s tilt against the Penguins: winger André Burakovsky, center Matthew Beniers and star defenseman Vince Dunn. Burakovsky, 28, is out with a lower-body injury sustained early in Saturday’s 7-4 win over the Blue Jackets. It continues an extremely injury-plagued season for the Swedish winger, whose previous upper-body injury had limited him to 13 games on the year. He has one goal and five points after finishing second on the Kraken in points per game last year with 39 points in 49 appearances. The 21-year-old Beniers, meanwhile, sustained an upper-body injury against Columbus after appearing in all 42 Kraken games thus far this season. His sophomore campaign has been rocky after taking home the Calder Trophy last season, posting just six goals and 19 points after notching 57 points last season. His possession numbers remain strong, however, a positive sign that his decline in production likely isn’t permanent. Dunn is out with an undisclosed injury after logging 22 minutes against Columbus on Saturday. The 27-year-old should earn himself a few Norris votes at season’s end, leading the team in scoring with 35 points while playing over 23 minutes per game. He’s in the first season of a four-year, $7.35MM extension.