A few Kraken prospects still have a chance to advance from their junior league postseasons to play for the coveted Memorial Cup, which goes to the champion of the Canadian Hockey League. Several more players in the pipeline will start a daunting second-round series Friday in the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup Playoffs. Let’s skate some laps:
Firebirds Face Tough Foe in First AHL 2024 Playoffs Matchup
AHL affiliate Coachella Valley just completed a mirror version of last year’s inaugural season as an expansion franchise. The Firebirds and head coach Dan Bylsma posted a 48-17-7 record during the 2022-23 regular season, good for second best among 32 AHL teams. This year? CVF won the Pacific Division championship and yet again finished with the second-best record in the league at 46-15-11, two fewer wins but also two fewer regulation losses. The standings point total in both years was 103, and goals for (257 in ’22-’23 and 252 this season) and goals against (192, 184) were highly similar.
The Firebirds received a first-round bye by virtue of winning the Pacific Division but now facing a rising Calgary Wranglers squad that swept higher-seeded Tucson in a best-of-three first-round series behind strong play by goaltender Dustin Wolf. That upset presents an encore of last spring’s thriller of a playoff series that Coachella Valley won in a clinching Game 5 overtime and also prevailed in a triple-OT Game 3. Wolf was 20-12-3 for the Wranglers and 7-7-1 for the parent club Flames, including four straight victories to finish his NHL season. Games 1 and 2 will be in Calgary, then move to Acrisure Arena for Game 3, plus Games 4 and 5 if necessary.
Coachella Valley dominated Calgary early this season, winning five of six games. But the squads have only played twice since Feb. 1, splitting a series in Calgary during late Match. The Firebirds have been practicing and scrimmaging over an 11-day break between games. The roster has been measurably fortified with the return of top-pair defenseman and two-time AHL all-star defenseman Ryker Evans, who impressed in 31 appearances for the Kraken and prompted Seattle GM Ron Francis to say he has “no reason” to believe Evans won’t in the NHL lineup come October. Evans will partner with veteran Connor Carrick, 30, who has played in 242 NHL games and worked the blue line for the AHL Providence Bruins last season.
Center Shane Wright, who scored four goals in five games during his late-season call-up to the Kraken, will man second-line duties between linemates Ryan Winterton (22 goals in his rookie AHL season) and third-leading CVF scorer Cameron Hughes (25 goals, 37 assists). Wright, still 20, was the Firebirds’ fifth-leading scorer and also scored 22 goals in his rookie campaign (only Hughes and team captain Max McCormick had more).
New arrival Jani Nyman, who just broke a 40-year-old record for most goals scored by an under-20 player (26 this season) in Liiga, Finland’s top pro league, will be working on the third line with veteran Devin Shore at center and John Hayden. The Firebirds coaching staff has been wowed by Nyman’s elite-level shot and physical presence (being 6-foot-3, 212 pounds helps with that). Nyman (second round, scored a pair of goals in five AHL regular-season contests, including a game-winner in just his second game.
The Firebirds' fourth line will be worth watching for Kraken sizing up the team’s pipeline. Undrafted center Logan Morrison (16G, 25A) will work alongside 2021 fifth-rounder Jacob Melanson and off-season acquisition Marian Studenic, a veteran of 46 NHL games.
On defense, another Finn, 2021 fourth-rounder Ville Ottavainen,21, has translated past strong work in Liiga defending against opponents up to 10 to 15 years older into a formidable rookie year in the California desert. He notched eight goals and added 26 assists, and improved steadily as a reliable teammate in the Kraken defensive zone. Ottavainen will pair with AHL veteran Jimmy Schuldt to open the series Friday in Calgary.
Going Western (Hockey League), Young Men
The Eastern Conference final in the Western Hockey League features the WHL’s top overall team, Saskatoon, taking on No. 3 seed Moose Jaw and the league’s leading scorer and Kraken 2022 second-round pick (35th overall), Jagger Firkus. After splitting a pair of games in Saskatoon, the series is now tied at two games apiece and heading back to Saskatoon.
In Game 3, Firkus helped his squad take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series by notching two assists Tuesday night in a 3-1 win that was closer than that, iced late by Moose Jaw on an empty-net goal.
Saskatoon scored first, but Moose Jaw tied matters mid-second period with Firkus getting a secondary assist. The home-squad Warriors then scored the winning goal seven-plus minutes into the final period, with Firkus providing the playmaking. He took a pass in the offensive zone, then deked a Saskatoon defender near-net left and backhanded the puck back to teammate Martin Rysavy. Firkus's high-speed, high-level move resulted in a less-than-direct pass with the puck bouncing a bit, but getting to the scoring area proved what Moose Jaw needed to get a leg up in what will be a challenging series.
Game 4 featured a lot of early scoring, including a goal and two primary assists from Firkus that vaulted Moose Jaw into a 4-4 tie game after two periods. No one scored in the third period, but Saskatoon evened the series with an overtime goal to disappoint the raucous Moose Jaw faithful.
Firkus has 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 13 postseason contests. Game 5 is Friday in Moose Jaw.
Jugnauth, WHL Portland on the Cusp
In the WHL Western Conference final, the Portland Winterhawks entered Wednesday’s Game 4 with a 2-1 lead in the series, with defenseman and Kraken prospect Tyson Jugnauth (4th round, 2022) continuing his strong work for Portland. He earned an assist in a 4-1 win Monday over top seed Prince George, which was one standings point ahead of Portland during the regular season.
Wednesday night was another big night for Jugnauth as the Winterhawks seized a firm grip on earning a spot in the WHL Final. The Kraken d-man notched a primary assist on the game-winning goal in the 5-2 win and added another assist to boost his playoff numbers to 13 total points (4 G, 9 A) in a dozen games. Portland has a chance to win the series on the road in Game 5 at Prince George.
Euro Titles Decided with Forsfjall a Champion
Finland’s Liiga was won by Tappara for the third season in a row. Kraken 2022 second-rounder Niklas Kokko starred for Pelicans, which fell in the championship final four games to one. Kokko was in net all five games, keeping his teammates in contention, including a Game 3 double overtime win. Kokko finished the playoffs with a .927 save percentage, 1.49 goals-average and four shutouts in 17 games.
In Sweden’s top pro league, Skelleftea won the championship earlier this week with Kraken 2023 sixth-rounder Zeb Forsfjall in the lineup as one of the team’s top defensive-oriented forwards. He was particularly effective in a Game 7 clincher game in the semifinals. He notched one goal in 16 games.
Look for “Depth of the Sea/Playoffs Editon” stories every Thursday during the postseason for all Kraken prospects still on the ice, plus occasional news updates on Mondays.
