Kraken Re-Up with Kuhlman

The Kraken have reached agreement with forward Karson Kuhlman on a new one-year contract with a $825,000 annual average value (AAV) or salary cap hit.
The NHL-tested forward, claimed off waivers from Boston during the inaugural season, scored two goals and added six assists in 25 games with Seattle and then played for Team USA in the men's world championships, appearing in 10 games, playing top-six forward line minutes and notching two goals and two assists.
"Karson is a versatile forward who can play up and down our lineup," said Kraken General Manager Ron Francis. "He's a hard-working player and we are glad that we re-signed him."

Perhaps most relevant, Kuhlman and veteran center Yanni Gourde formed an impressive pairing as penalty-killing forwards, plus the two played on the same line together toward season's end, logging 159:88 minutes together. Kuhlman's forechecking prowess and skating speed was apparent from his first shift with Seattle and amplified when playing alongside Gourde.
"(Kuhlman) is very good," Gourde said to Kraken colleague Alison Lukan during end-of-season exit interviews. "His energy, his drive, [his ability] to play the game north-south, his reliability in the defensive zone.
"He helped our line, he helped me as a linemate. I knew what I was getting out of him every single night. He works really hard. We had that chemistry where I knew what he was going to do with the puck, and it makes us look faster."
Kuhlman, 26, has appeared in 100 NHL regular-season games (9G, 14A) and 16 playoff contests (1G, 3A) over four seasons. He is highly regarded by pro scouts for his defensive prowess. According to HockeyViz.com, when Kuhlman was on the ice for Seattle last season, offense against the Kraken drops nearly 10 percent below league average.
Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol appreciates the defensive effort and equally values Kuhlman's offensive instincts to exit his team's defensive zone.
"You can play him in a lot of different situations," said Hakstol. "He's very reliable defensively but not just because he's defending. He's a guy that can get you out of your zone and make the other guys on the other side have to defend. If he can make the others teams' good players defend, more often than not, that's a real plus."