Welcome to a Wednesday edition of NHL Rumours! We are less than 48 hours away from the NHL Trade Deadline. The Seattle Kraken have made one significant trade already, but they may not be done. Our rumour today looks at the Kraken, who are willing to eat a substantial portion of a player’s salary in order to trade him.
NHL Predictions
Seattle Kraken Willing to Eat More Salary to Trade Forward
Rumour: According to Pierre LeBrun of TSN and the Athletic, the Seattle Kraken are looking to trade forward Branden Tanev. To attract more suitors, the Kraken are willing to retain 50% of Tanev’s $3.5 million cap hit.
Analysis: The Kraken are focused on the 2025-26 season. Despite trading Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand to the Tampa Bay Lightning, the organization is not yet done making deals. The Tanev situation is shocking because the Kraken are willing to retain half his salary, which is the maximum a team is allowed to retain in a trade.
The 10-year veteran has 17 points for the Kraken this season. By retaining 50% of the cap hit, whoever trades for Tanev will only be paying him $1.75 million for the remainder of the season. The 33-year old is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Interested Buyers?
Tanev provides a nice bottom-six option on any team’s forward lines. He is someone who can light the lamp, but his last season with 10+ goals was in 2022-23, so it has been a bit since then.
A team that trades for Tanev will be looking to add some depth to their forward group. A team that comes to mind is the St. Louis Blues. The Blues could be looking to improve the roster as opposed to selling. General manager Doug Armstrong is looking to add a depth forward to the roster. At $1.75 million, the Blues could afford that.
Of course, the next question is, who would the Kraken ask for in return? They may ask for a draft pick. Even if they want a player, Tanev will not get the Kraken a prospect like Jimmy Snuggerud or Dalibor Dvorsky. Predicting a trade is practically impossible, so we will not dive too much into those waters.
If the Blues are not interested, there are plenty of other teams who are looking for forward depth.
Kraken Have Chosen Their Path
The Kraken should be commended for their decision to sell and for sticking to it. It may be tempting to try to fix things without selling as a team fresh into the league and with a playoff series victory under their belt; however, the Kraken is simply not good enough to compete in a talented Western Conference.
However, brighter days are ahead for the Kraken. Shane Wright is blooming into an NHL player. Vince Dunn continues to show he is a two-way defenceman in this league. Furthermore, the team has acquired a 28-year-old in the Gourde trade who can help the team move forward. The draft picks will help as well, of course.
Have no fear, Kraken fans. Brighter days are ahead.
Main Photo: Stephen Brashear- Imagn Images
The post NHL Rumours: Seattle Kraken Willing to Eat Salary to Trade Forward appeared first on Last Word On Hockey.