The Seattle Kraken have been one of NHL’s biggest surprises at the quarter poll of the 2025-26 season.

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After a disappointing 2024-25 campaign led to the firing of head coach Dan Bylsma following his first season, the Kraken have turned things around early on under new bench boss Lane Lambert.

Seattle entered Saturday in fourth place in the Pacific Division with a 10-5-5 and 25 points, just two points behind first-place Anaheim in a crowded race.

Kraken play-by-play voice John Forslund shared his insight on how the team has taken a step forward this year when he joined Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy on Friday.

“Lane Lambert has done a remarkable job from day one of training camp just coming in and letting everybody know I’m the new sheriff, this is how we need to play, it’s not that complicated, I need a buy-in from the players,” Forslund said. “And as you know, that’s the most important thing in pro sports. You have to have a buy-in no matter what the game is, and they have (bought in).”

An identity that fits

One look at the stat sheet gives a pretty clear indicator as to why the Kraken have taken a step forward early on. Seattle’s 56 goals allowed are tied for the lowest mark in the Pacific Division and the fourth-lowest across the NHL. It’s held opponents to two goals or fewer nine times.

Last year the Kraken allowed the 10th-most goals (265) in the league.

“It gets back to where they were last year. So last season, for me – and I said it over and over again, wasn’t afraid to say it  – but it was their lack of defensive recognition, their lack of awareness in the defensive zone, the (lack of) trust they had in each other as a five-man group in front of the goalie,” Forslund said. “That’s hockey. That’s how you play the game. And Lane had to come in and lay down a system that would get to those basics. (It’s) like building a house. You don’t start with the roof. You start with the foundation and you work up.

“So if you do that, you can awaken a team. You can provide more energy.”

While their defense has been among the league’s best, the Kraken have struggled to score this year. Their 54 goals are tied for the third-lowest mark in the league, and they’ve been held to two or fewer goals in eight games.

The lack of firepower on offense has been a troubling sign for Seattle, but it also illustrates why a shift to a more defensive identity under Lambert is a better fit for this group, according to Forslund.

“The Kraken do not have high-end offensive talent. That’s the one thing they need,” Forslund said. “… They don’t have guys who can break the game open on their own talent. Other teams do. (Other teams) can get away with playing a game that maybe isn’t as based in a work ethic but more or less based on talent, and they can win and they can outscore their chances or outscore their problems. The Kraken don’t have that.

“So you had to get back to that (defensive identity) and he did it, and he did it in short order. And because he did, they started to gain momentum, and momentum leads to energy, leads to a new way of playing.”

Forslund highlighted how Seattle’s attempt to get more scoring out of its group a year ago ultimately led to exposing its defense.

“If you stretch out your game, take risks, try to do what they attempted to do last year and score, you’re gonna get victimized,” Forslund said. “So for me, I think this is a great starting point (this year). And I think if they just continue to play this way, it’ll get better and better and better. And who knows as you get into the second half of the year? The league is asleep on them, no one expected them to be very good. So that’s where they’re at right now, but people will become more aware of their style as we move forward with the season. It’ll get tougher and we’ll see where it goes.”

Why Forslund likes Seattle Kraken’s chances in Pacific

The race in the Pacific Division is very crowded early on with just four points separating its first- and sixth-place teams.

Forslund views Vegas, which is currently tied for second with 26 points, as the team to beat in the Pacific Division. He also highlighted a rising Anaheim squad as another contender.

But Forslund likes Seattle’s chances to continue surprising thanks the identity it’s taken on so far this season.

“I like the fact that they can compete with all of these teams, including Vegas, based on their style,” Forslund said. “And that’s gonna put them in a good position, because of all the teams that we talked about in the Pacific Division, the team that, to me, has the most grit and the ability to grind and make it tough to play against are the Kraken. They don’t have the talent level of Vegas, and they don’t have the talent level certainly of Edmonton and … even (Los Angeles), but they have the ability to grind games.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Listen to Bump and Stacy weekdays form 10 a.m.-2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app. 

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