The Seattle Kraken have finished up their sixth preseason and with that prospective players for the season have finished up what could be considered their final audition to make the final roster.

As a relatively newer team, they’re still gaining their footing in the league. The Kraken have only made the playoffs one time and overall have been considered a very middling team. It doesn’t help their reputation that the team that joined at the same time as them — the Vegas Golden Knights — not only made the playoffs for the 2025-26 season but they also reached the Stanley Cup Final, but were bested by the reigning champions, the Carolina Hurricanes.

Their preseason consisted of four quick games against the Vancouver Canucks and the Calgary Flames for a record of 3-1-0. This isn’t too dissimilar from last season when they had a record that would’ve easily gotten them into the playoffs until the Winter Olympics. It’s not uncommon for National Hockey League (NHL) players to participate in the Olympics so the NHL goes on a brief hiatus.

After the hiatus this year, the Kraken nosedived and ended up just barely missing the playoffs. Defenseman Vince Dunn said, “In the first period, we started off hard and then we tapered off. And last season, that became a trend.” He said on the matter of how their seasons tend to go, “We either started that way and didn’t finish it or we didn’t get a start like that and had to come on hot in the third period.”

The new players joining the Kraken this season are: Mackie Samoskevich, who’s a forward from the Florida Panthers; Curtis Douglas, another forward, who has played for Vancouver and Tampa Bay; Ville Ottavainen, a defenseman who earned his spot during the training camps; and Jake O’Brien, a center who has caught everyone’s eyes.

With a new season, and new players on the roster, Dunn has expressed a feeling of togetherness and family amongst the team, providing hope for a successful season.