Round & Round: Four More Picks in Top 88

The Kraken go far and wide and, sometimes, nearby to scout prospects every hockey season. With the haul of five players in the top 88 at the 2024 NHL Draft, that travel budget promises to prove worth the effort and dollars. The prospect pickups spanned three major junior leagues across North America and two entries into Finland.

In Saturday’s second round at Sphere in Las Vegas, Seattle picked two more centers, one from the Western Hockey League’s Everett Silvertips, Julius Miettinen, who played his 2023-24 home games just 29 miles via I-5 from Climate Pledge Arena but hails from Finland. The other centerman, Nathan Villeneuve, starred for the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League. Both players join the Kraken alongside 2024 first-rounder Berkly Catton.

Miettinen was selected No. 40 overall, while Villeneuve followed at 63^rd overall via a 2021 trade with Toronto that sent first-ever Kraken captain Mark Giordano and Colin Blackwell to the Maple Leafs.

Mittenen Seeks Net-Front Presence, Grateful to WHL Everett

Miettinen, who prides himself on being a “hard” net front in the offensive zone, made the jump from Finland’s top junior league to the WHL this past season. He was open with scouts about the adjustment to a new continent and country that sometimes gets overlooked when evaluating players, but clearly found his groove on the ice. He notched a point-per-game average for Everett (31 goals, 36 assists for 67 points in 66 games, then added two goals and two assists in nine playoff contests).

Per that adjustment period, the good-sized center (6-foot-3, 205 pounds) scored 12 goals and added 15 assists in his first 37 games, then zoomed to 19 goals and 21 assists in the final 29 games of the regular season. Miettinen credits former Silvertips head coach Dennis Williams (who just left for a role with NCAA Bowling Green) and the coaching/support staff with accelerating his rising play during 2023-24.

“Culturally, they helped me a lot at the start,” he said Saturday at the draft. “I don't know if any other teams could do that for me. They're just awesome. They helped me with everything. gave me time.”

Jam Session: Villeneuve Aims to Be ‘Physically Competitive”

Kraken alternate captain and two-time Stanley Cup champion Yanni Gourde talks regularly about the value of being hard to play against (the guess here is new head coach Dan Bylsma wholeheartedly agrees). From all accounts, Villeneuve fits that bill. Scouts rave about his hard-nosed, fittingly annoying approach at the center position.

“I'm a playoff player. I'm someone that will help the team in the playoffs a lot just be very physically competitive,” said Villeneuve, who attended the draft in Las Vegas with his parents, siblings and a few friends.

The 6-foot, 183-pound center, a plus performer at the faceoff dot, said his on-ice physicality greatly improved from season one to this past season with the Ontario Hockey League’s Sudbury Wolves, now becoming teammates yet again with 2022 Kraken second-rounder David Goyette.

“I was really bad in my first year,” said Villeneuve, a Quebec native, citing taking many ill-advised penalties in 2022-23. “I thought I had to be physical.”

Villeneuve didn’t slow down on the hits or post-whistle feistiness last season but played smarter. Plus, as a third-line center with tough defensive assignments, he still upped his points total to 23 goals and 27 assists for 50 points in 56 games for Sudbury, adding two goals and an assist in nine postseason games. Fun fact: His points-per-minutes average during 5-on-5 play was higher than Oshawa star Beckett Sennecke (who surprised even himself as the No. 3 overall pick this weekend) and other OHL first-rounds in recent NHL drafts.

Kraken Add To Defense, Goaltending Pipeline In Round 3

During the third round, the Kraken completed their busy first 90 minutes at the team draft table by selecting D-man Alexis Bernier at 73^rd overall. Bernier is a shutdown right-handed defenseman with offensive upside who played for powerhouse Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The 6-1, 190-pound Bernier is evaluated as a defense-first player with breakout capabilities that make him an intriguing prospect.

At 88^th overall, Seattle tabbed a Finnish goaltender, Kim Saarinen. If that sounds somewhat familiar, you are getting your draftnik on. For the third straight draft, the Kraken selected a goalie from Finland, with 2022 second-rounder Niklas Kokko and 2023 sixth-rounder Visa Vedenpaa preceding Saarinen.

As Right-Shot Defenseman, Bernier Fills a Need

The Kraken clearly liked Bernier during their meeting with him at the recent NHL Combine and the feeling was mutual for the Kraken third-rounder.

“We had a couple of good conversations,” said Bernier, who said he thought Seattle might pick him but that “you can never be sure.”  “It was a good meeting with them at the Combine.”

Kraken fans are likely to be fond of Bernier’s game, which features shutdown defense and a high ceiling on what he can do on the offensive end. Scouts rave about Bernier’s ability to exit the defensive zone by carrying the puck or passing it with confidence.

Bernier, a right-handed shot, joins a Kraken pipeline that can use D-men playing on their natural side. His offensive potential has a proof case from this past season with Bernier notching four goals and 27 assists in 67 games, plus a goal and eight assists in 17 playoff games.

“Bernier is a stud in this league,” said one scouting service lead scout who closely follows the QMJHL.  “He’s just solid. Good decisions with the puck. You can rely on him.”

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