Kraken general manager Ron Francis said rookie centerman Shane Wright being named Team Canada’s captain for the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships can only help his development.
“I was talking to some Hockey Canada people the other day and they told me his attitude has been great, his work ethic has been great and just been really good for them all around,” Francis said in an interview after the announcement Sunday. “So, he went there with a great attitude, ready to put in the work and this will be another big step for him in the weeks ahead.”
The tournament – running Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick — is the world’s premier Under-20 hockey event and has featured dozens of players who went on to become future NHL stars and Hall of Famers. Canada usually is a pretournament favorite and won gold at a rescheduled version of the event back in August after it was postponed a year ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wright, 18, played two games for Canada last December before the tournament’s postponement but could not participate in the rescheduled version because the Kraken had by then drafted him No. 4 overall and invited him to their training camp. He’s appeared in eight games for the Kraken thus far, scoring a goal in his most recent contest along with a prior assist.
The Kraken also used an NHL loophole to get Wright a two-week AHL conditioning stint and he scored four goals in five games for the Coachella Valley Firebirds. This world juniors assignment is part of the team’s plan to get Wright as much playing time as possible against pros and top junior players before needing to decide on his future.
Wright can appear in one more NHL game and then anything after that would count as a full season played on his three-year entry level contract and bring him closer to restricted free agency. If the Kraken opted not to keep him all season, he would need to be sent back to junior hockey and cannot play in the AHL; a rule that applies to all 18- and 19-year-old players drafted out of major junior hockey until they turn 20.
Wright was on hand for a Team Canada selection camp last weekend and chosen to wear the “C” while Ethan Del Mastro, Nathan Gaucher, Dylan Guenther and Logan Stankoven will serve as alternate captains. He’s been paired in practices on a line with Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats, widely expected to be the No. 1 overall NHL draft choice next summer.
Francis said some of the things mentioned to him about Wright’s leadership at the camp were him being the first player on the ice at practice and among the last to leave. In an interview given to TSN 1050 radio Friday, Wright said he’s happy with the momentum he’s built with the Kraken heading into the tournament.
“I think I’m really kind of gaining my stride right now,” Wright said in answering a question about his usage by co-host and former NHL player Carlo Colaiacovo, a former junior star and first-round draft choice who also broke in slowly with the Toronto Maple Leafs two decades ago. “Obviously the two (AHL) weeks with Coachella really helped me out. I really gained a lot of confidence from that. I gained a lot of confidence in my abilities and my game.
“And then obviously coming back and scoring my first NHL goal as well definitely gives you a big boost of confidence as well. And then coming back here to the world juniors, I want to make sure I can bring all of these experiences to the players here as well. I’ve had the experience of playing at the NHL level this year and I want to make sure that I can be a role model for the players here and hopefully I can help lead the team – I’m going to do everything I can to help the team win a gold medal.”
Firebirds’ arena opens
Francis was among Kraken representatives in Coachella Valley on Sunday for the AHL debut of Acrisure Arena, a multi-purpose 10,000-seat arena built by the Los Angeles-based Oak View Group – co-founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff – to serve as the Firebirds’ home. Leiweke and his brother, Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke, were also on hand, as were team co-owners Samantha Holloway and David Bonderman.
“The place looks fantastic,” Francis said. “I think the players are going to love it and the fans will certainly be in for a treat.”
The arena opened for a pair of concerts earlier in the week. The Firebirds spent the preseason and first 22 regular-season games on the road and playing “home” games at various venues in Washington and elsewhere before taking on the Tucson Roadrunners at their actual home rink Sunday night.
Nonetheless, they’d started off 14-5-3, good for third place in the Pacific Division.
Key Kraken players return
The Kraken got a needed boost Sunday with the return of their second defensive pairing after multi-game absences for both Jamie Oleksiak and Justin Schultz. Oleksiak was coming off a three-game suspension for delivering a check to an opponent’s head while Schultz missed two contests after being slammed into the glass from behind by Ryan Lomberg of the Florida Panthers.
Lomberg was ejected for his actions but did not receive further NHL punishment.
Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said after Sunday’s win that his team, which yielded at least 30 shots in each of two defeats last week to Tampa Bay and Carolina, tightened up considerably upon the duo’s return. They outshot the Jets 34-17 overall and held them to just two in the final period — the final one of those coming with 14:06 to play.
Oleksiak logging 20:33 of ice time and Schultz another 19:35 — trailing only top-pairing Adam Larsson and Vince Dunn. Schultz also pinched along the boards and got the puck to Jared McCann for the winning goal.
“I mean, you guys saw it out there tonight,” Hakstol said . “I mean, those two are good players. They’re veteran players in this league. One has a huge impact on our power play. The other one has a big impact on our penalty kill. But 5-on-5, I don’t know what they logged for minutes tonight…those are important minutes for our team and stability on the back end to be able to defend and move pucks is really important.”