One former Vancouver Canucks draft pick who found his way to the Seattle Kraken, Jared McCann, has worked out rather well. The Canucks 1st-round pick, 24th-overall in 2014, led the Kraken in scoring its inaugural season and is four points off the lead this season with 35 in 46 games.
Of course, McCann took more of a circuitous route to get here, playing for the Florida Panthers and Pittsburgh Penguins after Vancouver and before being snapped up by the Seattle Kraken in the expansion draft from the Toronto Maple Leafs, who traded for him for the purpose of having him picked.
Kole Lind took a more direct route. The 33rd-overall pick of the Canucks in 2017 played two full seasons in the American Hockey League, saw a cup of coffee with Vancouver two seasons ago, no points in seven games, before Seattle grabbed him in that same expansion draft in July of 2021.
He played 23 games last season for Seattle, tallying two goals and six assists.
Right now the 24-year-old right winger is a point-a-game player for the AHL leading Coachella Valley Firebirds, the top farm team of the Kraken. He has 40 points, just two less than the team leaders.
It bodes the simple question: Is he still a prospect, a late bloomer of sorts, or is his NHL window closing?
Highlights
Not a high end skater, Lind was described as a “jack of all trades” forward in his early scouting reports. He can play both wings, he’s not at all afraid to mix it up physically, and he’s added about twenty pounds since his NHL Draft. He’s known for his shooting ability.
The feisty factor would fit in well with the Seattle Kraken, the lack of flat out foot speed might not. He is agile on his edges.
Lind picked up a dramatic taste of the ‘big show’ when he scored his first NHL goal back April 1st, 2022 against Logan Thompson of the Vegas Golden Knights. It came as he circled into the slot, late in the third period of a 5-2 loss at Climate Pledge Arena. Almost three weeks later he tallied the second of his two NHL goals on April 20th, opening the scoring in a 3-2 win over the eventual Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche and goalie Pavel Francouz.
Lind is presently on a one-year, two-way contract that would pay him an annual rate of $850,000 if he’s with the Seattle Kraken, and $150,000 when he’s with the firebirds. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent this summer if not re-signed.
Pros and Cons
“If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it.” That’s a problem, a good one, for the Seattle Kraken as they cruise into the NHL All-Star week in first place in the Pacific Division. It’s a bad one for a twenty-something winger playing in the minors looking to crack the big league line-up again.
Of course, as we’ve seen more recently with the big club, injuries happen. Even though Max McCormick and John Hayden earned the call-ups ahead of Lind this last go around, opportunities change.
Plus, there’s the ‘black aces’ squad, the extra players Seattle will have around should they continue on to make the postseason. Lind would be a strong candidate based on his physicality and his maturity level.
Maybe he’ll get a taste ahead of time. There’s 33 games remaining in which to do so.
In this case, patience is indeed the greatest virtue.
