Beniers 'Perfect Fit'

Since his first official interview as Kraken general manager, Ron Francis has preached three distinct qualities he looks for when evaluating players, whether pros or prospects: Speed on skates, acute hockey IQ and a high level of character.
No. 2 overall pick Matty Beniers checks all of the boxes.

For his part, Beniers simply could not stop smiling during a Zoom call with reporters after Francis announced the pick at the top of the Space Needle.
"There are so many words I could use to describe [being the first-ever Seattle Kraken draft choice]," said Beniers. "Surreal, amazing ... unbelievably excited, thankful."
When asked about making the potential jump from NCAA hockey to the NHL, Beniers referenced his progression even as a freshman at the University of Michigan. He started the NCAA season with the Wolverines, then joined Team USA for the World Junior Championship.
He was a major contributor to the Americans' gold medal run, impressing his teammates and clearly Kraken front office personnel. When the Michigan season ended, Beniers was invited to join a U.S. team of predominantly NHLers at the World Championship.
"It gets even faster at every level," said Beniers. "I got to see where I fit. The men's championship was a good mark to see where I am at. I need to work on getting bigger and stronger."
Francis acknowledged "it's a big jump from any league to the NHL," but he didn't rule out Beniers making a pro-sized impression at the Kraken's first training camp in September.

"We feel with the way Matty skates and how hard he compete each and every night, he certainly has a possibility of making our lineup in the fall," said Francis to NHL Network.
Francis said Beniers's style of play is "a perfect fit to set the tone" for how the Kraken hockey operations intends to develop its prospects.
"Matty is the kind of guy you want to start a franchise with," said Francis at a post-Round 1 media Zoom conference. "He plays hard every night."
"I am comfortable being the guy to set the example on and off the ice and in the locker room," said Beniers. "I plan to do the hard stuff out there and hopefully others will follow."
Beniers discovered his own role models during the World Junior Championship: "When you see Matt Boldy [top Minnesota Wild prospect] block a shot, you want to go out on your next shift to block a shot," said Beniers.
At the men's World Championship tournament, Beniers says the Kraken's Expansion Draft pick from the New York Rangers, Colin Blackwell, "showed him the ropes" about how pros prepare for games and approach the competition shift by shift.
"I look forward to seeking [Blackwell] at training camp," said Beniers. "He mentored me. He was awesome."
Beniers says the Kraken interactions with him were one of his favorite teams, describing the Zoom as "personable, wasn't like interviews and more like conversations." The Boston area native called out Kraken East Coast scout Tom O'Connor as someone who has kept tabs on his development for years.
Robert Kron, director of amateur scouting, called Beniers "very exciting to watch" during the media conference. That's coming from a scout who had the chance to evaluate Beniers both in person and via plenty of video.
"Matty has an ability to read the game than not many kids his age can do," said Kron. "He can read other players so well, especially down low in the defensive zone. He will only get better and better."