Seattle Kraken clinch first playoff berth in franchise history

The Vegas Golden Knights impossibly raised the bar for future expansion teams by winning the Pacific Division title and reaching the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural 2017-18 season.

But the Seattle Kraken restored the belief that expansion teams will struggle in their first season when they finished at the bottom of the Pacific Division last season with 60 points.

One year later, the Kraken have 96 points and are heading to the postseason after clinching a playoff berth Thursday night with a 4-2 victory against the Arizona Coyotes.   

So how did the Kraken manage to turn it around in one season?

GM Ron Francis made good use of cap space

Vegas had thrived because then-general manager George McPhee made many side deals to bring in players with better potential. Seattle’s Ron Francis didn’t have that luxury because rival GMs had wised up. He ended up dealing away many veterans before the 2022 trade deadline.

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