The road to Shane Wright’s current place in the NHL with the Seattle Kraken has had its ups and downs. Some of the worst downs came quite recently when he was a healthy scratch for three games from Nov. 17 through Nov. 23. He has since returned to the lineup and played better, but how has his season gone? What kind of a player is Wright? How much can being a healthy scratch help? Let’s discuss.
Wright, the Kraken’s 2022 First-Round Draft Pick
Ah, the summer of 2022. What a time. The NHL held its Draft in Montreal at the Bell Centre that year. The best and brightest young hockey players converged in La Belle Province, as did each NHL club’s overseers and scouts.
There is a wonderful picture taken by The Hockey Writers’ resident photographer Amy Irvin of Juraj Slafkovsky, Shane Wright, and Logan Cooley close together on a rooftop in the Old Port of Montreal. They looked chuffed to be in town and enjoying the sun.
Slafkovsky would be the first overall selection of the entire class, staying in town to represent the Montreal Canadiens. Cooley’s name would be called by the then-Arizona Coyotes (now Utah Hockey Club) as the third overall pick. Wright wasn’t far behind. The relatively new Kraken, prepping their sophomore season of existence, opted for the Ontario native with the fourth overall pick.
But it would take time for Wright to transition to the big league. He was present at rookie camps in 2022 and 2023. However, the organization felt his place was in the American Hockey League (AHL) with Seattle’s affiliate franchise there, the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
AHL Training Ground, NHL Baby Steps
Through the 2022-23 and 2023-24 NHL seasons, Wright adorned Kraken colors only 16 times (eight games in each campaign). He barely saw any action in the first of those two seasons, averaging no more than 8:29 of ice time. Still, he notched his first NHL goal and assist for two points. The minutes in the following season were higher, averaging 13:32, as was the productivity. He potted four goals to go along with an assist.
His effort in the AHL with the Firebirds impressed more, especially in 2023-24 when he accrued 47 points in 59 matches (22 goals, 25 assists).
There are a few key elements to this part of the story. Number one, he was a high draft selection….
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