The Seattle Kraken picks its team tonight: What to know, how to watch

The Seattle Kraken will pick its roster Wednesday night in the NHL’s second expansion draft in just four years.

The Kraken will draft players by picking one from each of the teams subject to the draft. Those teams turned in lists of protected players Saturday. Only the Vegas Golden Knights, the league’s second-newest franchise, is exempt from having its players poached.

 

It was reported early Wednesday that the Kraken agreed to a four-year, $16 million deal with defenceman Adam Larsson of the Edmonton Oilers and a three-year, $10.5 million deal with goalie Chris Driedger from the Florida Panthers.  Reports suggest the team is also closing in on a deal with defenceman Jamie Oleksiak from the Dallas Stars.

Those players’ contracts expired at the end of last season, and they were left off their respective teams’ protected players lists. The Kraken was given an exclusive three-day window to draft free agents before the league’s unrestricted free agency opens next week.

The Kraken will not be able to pick another player from the Oilers or the Panthers during Wednesday’s draft. The team won’t be able to pick another player from the Stars, either, should it reach an agreement with Oleksiak beforehand.  

The draft starts Wednesday at 5 p.m.

If you weren’t lucky enough to score one of the roughly 4,000 tickets to the in-person draft event at Gas Works Park — the team gave them away in a variety of contests and drawings — you’re encouraged to bring paddleboards, kayaks, or boats and “sail-gate” with the team on Lake Union. A giant screen will broadcast the show from the center of the lake to those on the water. Fans can tune into 104.2 FM for event audio while on the water.

You can also watch it live on ESPN2 at home, or attend one of the other in-person events being held around Washington (there’s also an in-person event happening in Anchorage, Alaska). A list of in-person event locations can be found on the Kraken’s website.