10/4/26
By Marcus Sledge
There are home openers, and then there are nights when a building seems to announce that a new season has arrived.
Sunday night at Climate Pledge Arena was one of those nights.
With the Seattle Kraken returning home for the first time in the 2026–27 season, the building was buzzing before the puck even dropped. The familiar sights, sounds and traditions of Kraken hockey were back, including the unmistakable voice of Tommie Burton, whose rendition of the national anthem once again gave the crowd a moment to share together. Burton has become one of the defining voices of Kraken game nights, often turning the anthem into a crowd experience rather than simply a performance.
Then the lights went down, the introductions began and the Kraken put the rest of the evening in motion.
And what followed was almost exactly what a home crowd could have hoped for.
Three goals. Seven minutes. Game over?
Seattle didn’t waste any time making itself comfortable.
Just 2:22 into the game, Berkly Catton opened the scoring, converting a three-on-two rush and firing a wrist shot over Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf’s glove.
Barely two minutes later, the building erupted again.
Mackie Samoskevich—one of Seattle’s most intriguing new additions—showed exactly why the Kraken acquired him. Brandon Montour lifted the puck toward the Calgary blue line, Samoskevich won the race, and suddenly he was alone.
He finished the breakaway with a backhand and gave Seattle a 2–0 lead.
Then came Bobby McMann.
At 7:40, McMann settled a bouncing puck and snapped it past Wolf.
Three goals in the opening 7:40.
Climate Pledge Arena was rocking.
And Seattle was just getting started.
Samoskevich announces himself
The home opener provided Kraken fans with their first extended look at Samoskevich in a Seattle uniform, and he wasted little time making an impression.
His first goal showcased his speed.
His second showed his finishing ability.
Late in the second period, Samoskevich joined Matty Beniers and Jared McCann on a three-on-three rush. Beniers found him in the right circle, and Samoskevich snapped the puck over Wolf’s blocker and under the crossbar.
Two goals in his home debut.
Just like that, the newest Kraken forward had become one of the stories of the night.
Samoskevich was acquired from Florida during the offseason, and Seattle clearly believes his combination of speed and skill can add another dimension to the club. On Sunday, Kraken fans got their first real taste of what that dimension can look like.
The young Kraken keep growing
Catton wasn’t finished after his opening goal, either.
The young forward added an assist on Shane Wright’s second-period goal, helping Seattle build a 4–0 advantage.
For Wright, the goal was another encouraging moment in what Seattle hopes will be an important season for the former No. 4 overall pick.
The Kraken have talked throughout the offseason about the importance of their young core growing alongside an experienced group of veterans. Sunday provided a glimpse of what that combination can look like.
Catton scored.
Wright scored.
Beniers helped create Samoskevich’s second goal.
And captain Jordan Eberle eventually put the finishing touch on the night.
The future was on display, but so were the players who have helped establish the identity of the franchise. (NHL)
Daccord stands tall
While Seattle’s offense grabbed the headlines, Joey Daccord quietly put together another excellent performance.
The Kraken goaltender stopped 32 of 33 shots, coming within 5:35 of recording a shutout before Calgary’s Morgan Frost redirected a power-play opportunity past him.
Daccord’s performance was particularly important because the Kraken had played the night before in Edmonton, where they suffered a 3–1 loss to the Oilers.
Rather than looking tired, Seattle came out Sunday with energy.
And Daccord was there whenever Calgary threatened to change the momentum. (NHL)
Eberle puts the exclamation point on the night
Calgary finally broke through with Frost’s third-period goal, but any thoughts of a comeback disappeared only 39 seconds later.
Jordan Eberle took a pass and fired a snapshot from the top of the right circle.
Goal.
6–1.
The captain had provided the final punctuation on a night that belonged to Seattle from beginning to end.
More than just a win
The final score told only part of the story.
The Kraken had opened the season with a 6–1 victory in Calgary, traveled to Edmonton and lost 3–1, then returned home and beat the Flames by the exact same 6–1 score.
But Sunday’s game felt different.
This was the first opportunity for Seattle fans to see this version of the Kraken on their own ice.
The new players.
The emerging young stars.
The veterans.
The speed.
The goaltending.
The traditions.
And the voice of Tommie Burton helping bring the building together before the puck ever dropped.
Burton has described his role with the Kraken as being about more than simply singing the anthem. His goal is to create connection and common ground among people from different backgrounds. On a night when more than 17,000 fans came together under one roof, that message seemed particularly fitting.
By the time the final horn sounded, the message from the ice was just as clear.
The Kraken are fast. They’re deep. They’re young. They’re entertaining. And they’re ready to put this season in motion.
Seattle improved to 2–1–0 with the victory, while Calgary fell to 0–3–0. Samoskevich finished with two goals, Catton had a goal and an assist, Daccord made 32 saves, and the Kraken sent their home fans into the night with a performance they’ll remember.
The 2026–27 season is only three games old.
But if Sunday night was any indication, Climate Pledge Arena is going to be a very loud place this year.