{"id":472640,"date":"2025-07-30T08:00:23","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T12:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=472640"},"modified":"2025-07-22T20:42:25","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T00:42:25","slug":"summer-series-the-defining-moments-of-the-seattle-kraken","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2025\/07\/30\/summer-series-the-defining-moments-of-the-seattle-kraken\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Series: The Defining Moments of the Seattle Kraken"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hockey and sports in general can be broken down into moments. Some moments are bigger than others and chart the course of a franchise and an entire league. These moments can define a team’s destiny for years to come. Last Word on Hockey’s Summer series looks at these defining moments. Today, we feature the defining moments of the Seattle Kraken.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

The Defining Moments of the Kraken<\/span><\/h2>\n

The Kraken are the newest team in the NHL, with their inaugural season being in 2021-22. Although they may not have been around for long, the Kraken have provided their fans with some memorable moments. They may be only four years old, but we were able to identify some defining moments for the franchise.<\/span><\/p>\n

Release the Kraken<\/span><\/h3>\n

Dating back to 1974, Seattle had an interest in bringing the NHL to their city. The city was granted a team in 1974, but the NHL pulled its expansion offer due to unpaid fees. The following year, the city attempted to purchase the <\/span>Pittsburgh Penguins<\/span><\/a>, who had filed for bankruptcy. However, they were unsuccessful in bringing the Pens to Seattle.<\/span><\/p>\n

As fate would have it, things would soon change for the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Run Up<\/span><\/h4>\n

In December of 2017, the Seattle City Council voted in favour of renovating KeyArena. Three days later, the NHL board of governors agreed to consider an expansion application from Seattle. Two months later, the Oak View Group (the group organizing the attempts to bring the NHL to Seattle) paid the expansion fee, ensuring the mistake from 1974 would not be repeated.<\/span><\/p>\n

In March 2018, a ticket drive was launched to gauge fan interest in NHL hockey in the city. The Oak View Group had hoped to reach $10,000 worth of deposits for potential season tickets. That goal was reached within 12 minutes of the drive opening. Another step towards an expansion team was taken in October when the NHL Executive Committee unanimously <\/span>agreed to recommend the expansion bid<\/span><\/a> to a vote of the Board of Governors.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Moment<\/span><\/h4>\n

On December 4, 2018, the NHL Board of Governors unanimously voted to grant <\/span>Seattle an expansion team<\/span><\/a>. Fans immediately had the opportunity to share feedback on the team name, uniform colors, ticket pricing, and seating arrangements. They were consistently kept informed about the latest news from the new franchise.<\/span><\/p>\n

In July 2020, the franchise announced it would be known as the “<\/span>Kraken<\/span><\/a>.” The name was a popular choice among fans, as it referenced the city’s maritime culture.<\/span><\/p>\n