THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: After falling short of playoffs, Kraken need to get tougher

The Kraken season ends on Thursday night.

That’s not the same as the NHL season, you understand, with 16 other teams moving in their quest for the Stanley Cup.

Not being among that group has been, yes, a bummer for Seattle — who not only made the playoffs last year in just their second season, but upset the defending Cup champs Avalanche and took Dallas to seven games in the second round.

It was a hell of a ride, and it gave the Northwest a real hockey boost.

There’s always been some puck craziness in the area, but having an NHL team (and having it win) really jolted the neighborhood.

Unfortunately, all that excitement led to disappointment this season, as the Kraken have essentially been a .500 team that never managed to put together a hot streak that would keep them someplace close to a postseason spot.

The struggles came despite the surprise emergence of goalie Joey Daccord, who stepped in for the injured Philipp Grubauer and gave the Kraken a string of impressive performances.

Daccord stole a few close games, but a season-long struggle to score kept Seattle from making some kind of run like that 2022-23 dash to the playoffs.

SO, HOW might this goal drought be fixed before next season?

Well, this seems crazy, but the Kraken need a goon as much as they need a sharpshooter.

OK, the league is trying to push the word “goon” out of pro hockey vocabulary, and in fact, there are less fights now than at any time in NHL history.

That doesn’t mean, though, that most clubs don’t have two or three ruffians around to make sure that opponents aren’t taking liberties with their high-scoring stars.

It’s never been a secret, either.

Marty McSorley’s fists ought to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame, considering all the bloodshed he dealt out (and absorbed) while defending Wayne Gretzky.

McSorley was “The Great One’s” bodyguard, both in Edmonton and Los Angeles, and he probably threw a punch for each of Gretzky’s 2,857 points.

Sure, there have been Hall of Fame players who needed no help with the physical side of the game. 

Even now, there is a common phrase called “The Gordie Howe Hat Trick” — referring to a goal, an assist and a fight, the classic evening’s work for Howe.

There have even been entire teams who were happy to dish it out, most notably Philadelphia’s “Broad Street Bullies” of the 1970s.

That gang featured captain and star Bobby Clarke and one of the all-time “cement heads,” Dave Schultz.

Philly won two Stanley Cups in that reign of terror and Schultz — known throughout the game as “The Hammer” — set an NHL record that still stands with 476 penalty minutes in a single season.

Now, what do all these fisticuffs have to do with the current Seattle Kraken?

Bottom line: The Kraken don’t have an enforcer, and it’s led to their skilled forwards being shoved around far more than necessary.

WE ONLY have to check in on left winger Andre Burakovsky, who was Seattle’s spotlight free-agent signing prior to the team’s inaugural season in 2022-23.

He got a good start, too.

In fact, he was the team’s leading scorer (39 points in 49 games) when he suffered a season-ending groin injury on Feb. 7, 2023.

Fit but rusty by opening day this season, Burakovsky has suffered four different injuries that have ruined his year, and a couple were not exactly accidents.

Andre had barely broken a sweat before he was back on injured reserve, after getting thrown into the end boards by New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba in the sixth game of the season.

When he returned from that injury on Dec. 7, Burakovsky played only six minutes before slamming into the same end boards after a hit by New Jersey Devils defenseman Kevin Bahl.

Kraken coach Dave Hakstol made no secret of the fact that his scorers were being targeted, and it was pretty plain Hakstol wanted someone to protect them — dealing out what might be called old-fashioned hockey justice.

The Kraken actually do intend to add some muscle to next year’s team, two or three players who can drop the gloves when necessary, and “play tough” to keep their scorers and goalies a little bit safer.

Hockey’s a rough game, but there’s no use sending your stars on the ice with pea shooters when the other guys are bringing bazookas.

Yep, the Kraken plan to meet goons early and often next season.

Seattle has good goaltending and decent defense.

Maybe fighting back will add goals to that mix.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”