The Seattle Kraken are in ‘sell’ mode. With no hopes of nabbing a playoff spot and the NHL trade deadline just two days away, the club moved pending unrestricted free agent (UFA) center Yanni Gourde and veteran winger Oliver Bjorkstrand to the Tampa Bay Lighting in a three-team deal involving the Detroit Red Wings.
Ultimately the Kraken received Tampa’s 1st-round draft pick in 2026 and 2027, a 2nd-rounder this summer, and lefty bottom-six center Michael Eyssimont.
The 1st-round picks are top-10 protected, meaning that the selections would slide back to 2028 and 2029 respectively if the Lightning end up with a top-10 pick either of the next two years.
The Red Wings entered into the picture by first obtaining Gourde and then moving him to Tampa while retaining part of his salary in exchange for a low draft pick. Seattle also sent the Bolts a 5th-round pick in 2026.
Bjorkstrand has one year remaining on a contract that pays him $5.4-million per season. He was the club’s lone representative at the NHL All-Star Game in 2024. This season he had 37 points in 61 games played.
Gourde, who just returned from injury for one game following a long absence, was integral in helping Tampa Bay win Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.
“Decisions like these are never easy, but creating this valuable cap space and draft capital allows us to be active in improving our team moving forward,” Kraken GM Ron Francis stated.
