The Seattle Kraken used the 7th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft on defender Chase Reid, and GM Jason Botterill didn't hesitate.
It's a blue-line bet, and a big one.
Seattle finished 34-37-11 this past season, 27th overall in the league. They allowed 263 goals against, the kind of number that tells you exactly where the rebuild has to start.
Defense.
Botterill's first draft at the helm sends a clear message about what this franchise needs to become.
Reid goes in at 7th overall as a defender, which in 2026 draft terms puts him in elite prospect territory. That's not a depth selection. That's a cornerstone pick.
Seattle's blue line bled goals all season, and Reid is the long-term answer
The Kraken's defensive corps this season was a study in contracts that didn't deliver. Vince Dunn posted 44 points in 81 games but went a -24. Brandon Montour finished at -21 in 64 games. Two of the top-paid defenders on the roster combined for a -45 rating. That's a problem you can't paper over.
Reid isn't walking in next October and fixing all that. Nobody expects him to.
But the direction is unmistakable. You don't spend the 7th pick on a blueliner when you're happy with what you have back there.
Head coach Lane Lambert inherits a back-end that gave up 3.2 goals per game last season. Reid is the kind of high-end talent you build around, not the kind you plug in as a short-term fix.
The Kraken scored 226 goals against 263 allowed, a -37 differential. Any path back to relevance in the Pacific runs straight through fixing that gap.
The Seattle Kraken made it official tonight:
-
Seattle had the 27th-ranked offense in goals-per-game at 2.8. Even if Reid develops into everything the Kraken are betting on, the forward group still needs work. Botterill has more decisions to make.
For now, though, the pick is in. The direction is set. Whether this front office can build a complete team around one high-end defensive prospect in time to make the pick matter, that's the question that doesn't get answered tonight.
Is Chase Reid the right pick for Seattle at 7th overall, or should the Kraken have taken the best forward available?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Blockbuster trade developing just before the draft, per Elliotte Friedman
