The Kraken went all out.
In case you missed it, and even if you didn’t, this one is worth recapping. Talk about going the extra mile.
Seven-year-old Jackson Boboth was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia a little over two years ago. It sounds as ugly as it is. He underwent a blood transfusion immediately and began chemotherapy treatments.
Two years later he’s in remission while still taking daily medication.
The younger the person is and the sooner they reach remission, the better the chances for longer term survival, but either way the treatments and the side effects of the recovery process are hell.
Enter the Kraken
After a social worker reached out to the Boboth family early on during Jackson’s treatment and brought up Make-A-Wish Alaska & Washington, Jackson daydreamed about skating with the Kraken, even before they had a team.
A season-and-a-half later, the Kraken actually made him part of the club.
It started with a family visit to the morning skate ahead of last Wednesday’s home game against the Vancouver Canucks. Those mini-practices take place at the Kraken Community Iceplex, where Jackson was fitted with goalie gear with the help of Seattle netminders Philipp Grubauer and Martin Jones.
After head coach Dave Hakstol laced his skates, Jackson took shots from his twin brother Owen, the goalies, and Kraken forward Matty Beniers.
Seattle Hockey Insider missed the media scrum with Jackson that morning in front of his stall inside the practice rink dressing room, but I remember thinking how amazing the whole effort was when Jackson was announced along with the Seattle starters and stepped on to the ice with his new teammates before the game that night against the Vancouver Canucks.
Later, he was named first star of the game following the Kraken win and got to wear the Davey Jones Hat, the item the team passes from player to player, game MVP to game MVP, after each and every victory. Cale Fleury, who earned the lid in the previous win against the New Jersey Devils, passed it on to Jackson.
His speech was simple: “See you Friday!”. Cheers erupted, which meant, no practice on Thursday.
From joining the team and donning goalie gear to being the 1st star of an NHL hockey game, for Jackson Boboth, the Kraken left no stone unturned.
“Above and beyond,” Jackson’s dad Everett said Wednesday night.
— For more details, read Bob Condor’s story on Jackson, his journey, and his family on the Kraken’s website.
