SEATTLE, Wash. – Dec. 18, 2024 — Seattle Kraken General Manager Ron Francis announced today that the team has acquired forward Kaapo Kakko from the New York Rangers in exchange for defenseman Will Borgen, a 2025 third-round pick and a 2025 sixth-round pick.
"Kaapo is a young dynamic forward who brings skill and offense to our club," said Francis. "We're excited to have him join us. I also want to thank Will for everything he's done for our franchise. As an original member of the Kraken, we wish him all the best in New York."
Selected by the Rangers with the second overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, Kakko has amassed 131 points (61g/70a) in 330 career regular-season games. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound forward made his NHL debut on Oct. 3, 2019 vs. Winnipeg and concluded his rookie campaign with 10 goals and 23 points (10g/13a) in 66 regular-season games. Kakko's 10 goals were the second-most by an NHL teenager (trailing only Andrei Svechnikov), and his 23 points were tied for the third-most by a teenager behind Svechnikov and Rasmus Dahlin.
Kakko set career highs in goals (18), assists (22), points (40) and plus-minus (+12) during the 2022-23 campaign (82 GP). He shared fourth on the Rangers in even-strength goals (18) and was one of eight skaters with 40 or more points on the season.
He has also appeared in 44 Stanley Cup Playoff games with New York, recording nine points (4g/5a).
The Turku, Finland native will represent his home country at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off from Feb. 12-20, 2025 in Montreal and Boston. The 4 Nations Face-Off is the first best-on-best tournament featuring only NHL players since the World Cup of Hockey 2016.
Kakko is the youngest player in hockey history to win gold in all three IIHF world championship tournaments: World U18 Championships (2018), World Junior Championships (2019) and World Championships (2019).
An original member of the Kraken, Borgen was selected from the Buffalo Sabres in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. The 27-year-old defenseman went on to appear in 233 career regular-season games for Seattle, amassing 55 points (9g/46a) in that span, including a career year in 2023-24 setting personal bests in assists (22), points (25), even-strength points (25), blocked shots (111) and time-on-ice per game (17:35). His 535 hits rank second in the franchise among all Kraken skaters, and he was the only player in franchise history to play in all regular-season games with the team.
To date, Borgen has played in 216 consecutive regular-season games, which is the 17th-longest active Iron Man streak in the NHL and the sixth-longest such streak by a defenseman. Borgen also appeared in all 14 games of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the club adding one goal and two assists.
