What's Kraken: Seattle coming off loss to Wild, host Maple Leafs tonight

Well, the Seattle Kraken coming off a tough 5-1 home loss to the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. But it has been a solid homestand with wins over Detroit and Utah. And tonight, the Kraken return to Climate Pledge to host the Toronto Maple Leafs. And joining us now is Kraken broadcaster Everett Fitzhugh at the office right now watching the morning skate. Everett, good morning. Hey, Bill. Good to talk to you, man. How are things going? Yeah, doing really well. Thanks for joining us. Tough blow for the Kraken with Jared McCann going on IR for the next couple of months with a lower body injury. But we're seeing the team pick up the slack. How has the Kraken's lineup changed with McCann out of the lineup? Well, I think you're going to really see that first hit, that first lineup change tonight against Toronto. They've been working on some new combinations the last couple of days in practice. Yanni Newman was called up from the American Hockey League. He currently leads all AHL skaters with nine goals in the regular season so far. So you're going to see that next man up mentality. There's going to be a lot of opportunity for players to get some increased ice time. Lane Lambert, Kraken head coach Lane Lambert, did put that Capo Kakko-Shane Wright-Berkley Catton line back together, which has had 21 points through their first 12 games of the season. So that line has been playing really well. But when you lose a player like Jared McCann, you're losing that shot. You're losing a big piece of your power play. But you're also losing a player that finds ways to generate offense. He goes hard to the net. He's not afraid to shoot the puck. So trying to replace that is going to be a huge task for Seattle the next 10 weeks. Well, you know, Freddie Gaudreau isn't afraid to take a shot on net. Mackie Samuskevich, you know, and you mentioned Kakko. I mean, they have depth, and they've been really effective, and they've got production up and down the lineup. So who's really standing out for you when you point to one or two guys? You know, I mean, obviously for me, number one is Freddie Gaudreau. When you look at a player who predominantly is in a fourth-line role, he's killing penalties, he might not get a regular shift like your top line. He's only averaging around 18-ish, 15-ish minutes a night, but he's still finding a way to score, and he's generating that offense. The one thing that you've always said about Seattle, the depth is their strength. There really isn't one line or one player that you can key in on. So for Seattle, the likes of Freddie Gaudreau on that fourth line, I already mentioned the Capo Kakko, Shane Wright, and Berkley Catton line. I think Mackie Samuskevich has really found his stride here as of late also as he's been able to score two of his last three games. So he's really been picking up his offense lately. So for Seattle, it really is a scoring by committee. You look at the team right now as it stands. You've got 13 players have multiple points this year. 12 players have multiple goals this season for Seattle. So again, it's hard for teams to really key in on one line when you've got so many options available to you. Now, when I talk to fans, they're really excited about the emergence of Berkley Catton. He is 20 years old, but playing with a lot of poise now. He really does have the makings of a star. What are you seeing out of him? I'm seeing his confidence. And I remember last season watching him play. There were times when he would make a mistake and he would quickly learn from that mistake. And I've said many times, Berkley Catton rarely made the same mistake twice. And if he did, he did make it a third time. So he really has shown a lot of confidence. You mentioned the poise. Him and Shane Wright have played very well together. And I think for him, it's about growing and maturing into an everyday NHL player. A lot of folks want to say that Seattle doesn't have that bona fide star, doesn't have that number one option offensively. But I look at Berkley Catton as a player who, if he continues on the path that he's on this season, I could see a promotion to a higher line, to more ice time for him as the year goes on. And I think you're looking at that superstar in the making. A lot of teams in the NHL, it's very hard to go out and buy or sign that superstar. You have to grow that in-house. You have to draft that player. You have to develop that player. And that's exactly what Seattle is doing with Berkley Catton. So, interesting matchup tonight. The Kraken hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs, and they're in win-now mode, making some splashy moves as they gun for their first cup since 1967. Now, the Leafs are finding their way right now, but they are really good. So what do you think of the Leafs so far, and how did the Kraken match up with them? Yeah, I mean, for Toronto, it's a lot of star power. They just made a massive trade about a month and a half ago where they brought in Kirill Marchenko from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Matthew Nyes and a few other pieces. They've gotten Austin Matthews. They have William Nylander. They have Morgan Riley on defense. They've got Stanley Cup winner Sergei Bobrovsky. They went and got him from Florida in goal this past summer. You're right, they are in win-now mode. I think it was a very disappointing season for them last year, but they were awarded the number one overall pick, and in comes Gavin McKenna, who a lot of folks are heralding him as probably the best prospect in the NHL since Connor McDavid back in the mid-teens. So I do think that Toronto does offer some matchup problems. There's a lot of speed, a lot of skill on that team, But I will say where Seattle, I think, does have a leg up is they're a hardworking team. And we've seen the Kraken this season really slow down a lot of those top offenses, those potent offenses. So I do think that this is a game in which the Kraken will find a way to slow down and key in on some of those stars in Toronto. The Kraken and Maple Leafs drop the puck at 7 at Climate Pledge Arena. Kraken broadcaster Everett Fitzhugh, always good to have you, my friend. Thanks for having me, Bill. Always a pleasure. All right, go Kraken.