Seattle, WA
Ship’s Log, Feb. 16: Rolling with Initiative
Preseason power rankings are nearly useless, except when they tell us that the Seattle Sounders are at the top – then they are very important. If we are to assume that the teams expected to be contenders for best in the West are accurate, the Sounders are again near the top with the LAs and maybe a team like Colorado or Salt Lake.
The rosters of the other squads have been decimated. Portland lost Evander and added someone late enough he hasn’t practiced with the team. Galaxy will tell every single national writer they meet how unfair it is to have to play within the salary cap, despite Toronto and Seattle figuring out how to maintain a roster for more than two months after a championship.
LAFC sold some dudes, might be taking one on short term loan, but they seem to be prepping for a massive summer. That could prove foolish as the season will be 70% done by the time that window opens.
Sounders chose a different path – preparing for the whole season, not just part of it.
The roster as it sits right now is much better than the one that performed well in the second half of 2024, making runs in tournaments. There’s still space to do more, but what’s already done is good.
Plus, Waibel & Co. acted early enough that the assemblage practiced together, played together. The minor injuries to key players during preseason even helped tune the XI to respond when two of the current/former six DPs aren’t around.
Other teams are looking at a window that closes April 23 thinking maybe we can find a DP to push us “over the top”. Sounders will have played nine MLS matches and at least two Concacaf Champions Cup matches by then.
By taking the initiative that more passive teams have offered them, the Seattle Sounders are set to reach the quarter pole with a roster already seen as Championship caliber. They aren’t praying that some relegation fodder squad will gift them massive talent late in a foreign season.
Seattle is set to do the opposite of 2024, instead mimicking their histories of 2023 and 2022 and 2021 and 2019. Those seasons started with Seattle looking like a Shield-winning quality team.
Since we know that fatigue and fixture congestion will be a problem the passivity of other rosters would be foolish.
The solution was to build for a fast start, then respond via the open roster slots (now 3 U22s plus some cap space) to adjust for what’s lost due to injury or sale. When the initiative is eventually lost Waibel will have to solve a different problem then the ones that the Galaxy, Salt Lake, Portland, Houston, Colorado, LAFC have all found for themselves – an intentionally slower start by not have a complete roster by the middle of preseason.
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Catching up on Sounder at Heart
Here’s what you missed on the site this week.
Sounders
Next match: Wednesday night at 5 pm PT Antigua GFC host the Seattle Sounders in Concacaf Champions Cup play. This match was originally to air on FS2, but that may be changing after Sporting KC v. Inter Messi was moved to the same time.
Concacaf Champions Cup previews
Season previews
Other news
Reign
Next match: Saturday March 15th at 7 pm PT Reign host Gotham on iON television.
Defiance
Next match: Ventura County (Galaxy) host Defiance on March 7 at 7 pm PT on MLS Season Pass.
Looking back at the news
Everything else you need to know
No Nico isn’t going to be a Sounder again. He’s probably heading to Houston, who lost two of their three DPs after losing to Seattle in the playoffs.
The only club to win a Concacaf Champions League/Cup that is played in foreign lands aren’t the favorites to win this year’s contest because they aren’t in the bracket with all the MLS sides.
Braudilio Rodrigues found an opportunity in the USL Championship, playing for former Sounder Terry Boss in Lexington.
Will Paul Rothrock have a double-breakout? Backheeled suggests yes.
Everyone loves the new Salish Sea Kit – ESPN, SI, 615.
Kim Little is staying at Arsenal.
The USL is launching a D1 men’s league, in 2027. This is what that might mean.
Android users now have an Apple TV app, which should improve their MLS Season Pass experience.
Schmetz hints at a schedule format change. If you want to know how I feel head to the SaH Discord.
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Seattle, WA
Seattle Kraken beat San Jose Sharks 4-2 to snap 4-game skid
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Lindgren had the tiebreaking goal early in the third period for his first score with the Seattle Kraken, and they went on to beat the San Jose Sharks 4-2 on Saturday night to snap a four-game losing streak.
Seattle Kraken 4, San Jose Sharks 2: Box score
Chandler Stephenson had a goal and an assist, and Eeli Tolvanen and Ryker Evans also scored for the Kraken, who won for just the second time in 12 games (2-9-1). Joey Daccord finished with 34 saves.
Adam Gaudette and Colin Graf scored for the Sharks, and Yaroslav Askarov had 28 saves.
Graf gave the Sharks a 2-1 lead 36 seconds into the third period with some help from the Kraken.
Seattle’s Adam Dunn lofted a clearing attempt from behind the net that Igor Chernyshov intercepted in the left circle and sent a pass in front to Graf. Graf tried to lift it over Daccord down on the ice, but the puck deflected off the left post and in front as the goalie, on his back, tried to pull it in. However, Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson skated into the goalie and knocked the puck in.
Evans tied it again at 1:55 with a long shot from the left point through traffic.
Lindgren put the Kraken ahead 3-2 at 4:27, beating Askarov from the left point for the defenseman’s first goal in 33 games since signing with with Seattle in the offseason. Stephenson had an assist on the play to extend his point streak to eight games.
Stephenson then scored with 1:24 remaining to push Seattle’s lead to two goals and extend his goal-scoring streak to four games.
Tolvanen gave the Kraken a 1-0 lead at 6:52 of the second period, picking up a loose puck, skating into the right circle and firing a shot past Askarov.
Gaudette tied it with a power-play goal with 8:38 left in the middle period. Celebrini fired a shot at the net from the left point that deflected off teammate Igor Chernyshov in front of Daccord and off Gaudette down onto the ice for an easy backhand poke from the right doorstep.
Celebrini extended his point streak to five games on the play with eight assists and 11 points in the stretch.
Up next
Seattle Kraken: At Anaheim on Monday night.
San Jose Sharks: At Vegas on Tuesday night.
Seattle Kraken trade away their big offseason acquisition
Seattle, WA
Three West Seattle schools’ teams advance in FIRST Lego League competition
(Photos courtesy Brenda Hatley)
By Hayden Yu Andersen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Dozens of youth robotics teams from elementary and middle schools across the district gathered on December 6 at Robert Eagle Staff Middle School for this year’s FIRST Lego League qualifier. By the end of the day, three teams from West Seattle – Madison Middle School, Lafayette Elementary School, and Alki Elementary School – emerged triumphant, with their sights set on the next round of the tournament.
Of the schools who competed that day, nine were from West Seattle, including Genesee Hill Elementary, Fairmount Park Elementary, Gatewood Elementary, Arbor Heights Elementary, West Seattle Elementary, and the aforementioned teams that are moving up to the next round.
A local parent tipped us about the students’ achievement, so we set out to get details. We spoke with Brenda Hatley, a coach for Madison Middle School, the only West Seattle middle-school team to advance to the next round, and she says the turnout at the qualifiers was impressive. Hatley first became a coach for her son’s 4th-grade team and was one of the founding parents for Lafayette Elementary’s Lego Robotics team.
She says the program, which pairs engineering with LEGO, coding, and real-world projects, is a fantastic program for students who are less interested in athletics but still want to capture the excitement of a pep rally.
“It’s not a sports team, but they’re still getting so hyped up. The kids were cheering for each other, and the pressure was there; coaching through that was an incredible experience,” Hatley said.

Madison’s team, the Madbots, will play their next match on December 26th, at a to-be-determined location. The teams that do well this month will move on to the city-wide competition in Downtown Seattle, before moving to the regionals at Washington State University, and beyond to the international finals. Regardless of how they perform, Hatley says she and the other parents are planning to travel with their team to the city-wide and regional competitions.
“I’m really proud of the team,” Hatley said. “Last year, the fifth graders didn’t move on, and we had lower expectations; we just went in to learn more and get better. This year, we get to move on and see what the next level looks like.”
Seattle, WA
Redhawks Upset Huskies 70-66, Win Second Straight ‘Battle for Seattle’ — Emerald City Spectrum
With neither team shooting well from the outside at Climate Pledge Arena, the Redhawks outperformed the favored Huskies driving the ball to the paint in the second half, making more plays down the stretch to beat their city rivals for a second straight year.
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