Most Kraken fans track the Coachella Valley Firebirds because every roster spot there feels like a sneak peek at the future in Seattle. Yet the most electric prospect in the pipeline is skating 300 miles away in Spokane, and he may force the front office into another tough development decision.
Catton’s playoff clinic
The Chiefs lead their Western Hockey League semifinal series two games to none, driven by captain Berkly Catton’s eye-popping production. Through 13 postseason games he has piled up 33 points, a blistering pace that follows a 109-point regular season and last year’s 116-point breakout. Catton is dictating every shift, shredding defenders at five-on-five, and showing the two-way commitment that made him the eighth-overall pick last summer.
A rule that blocks the usual path
Because Catton turned 19 in January, he misses the American Hockey League age cutoff by mere weeks. Under the long-standing NHL–CHL agreement, a player his age must either make an NHL roster out of camp or return to junior for the entire season. There is no middle ground in the AHL the way there is for European or collegiate prospects.
Former General Manager Ron Francis has already hinted that Seattle is open to keeping Catton in October, noting that “we did it with Shane Wright.” Two years ago the Kraken used an inventive split schedule to keep Wright challenged, mixing nine NHL appearances, a brief AHL conditioning stint, the World Juniors, OHL games, and an AHL playoff run. Critics worried the constant travel would stall his growth, but Wright responded with a full AHL campaign last season and now looks like a confident middle-six center in Seattle.
Lessons from the Wright experiment
Wright’s trajectory shows that a creative plan can work when a prospect is too advanced for junior but not quite NHL-ready. He has 38 points this year, nearly matching 2022 top pick Juraj Slafkovsky despite the Slovak winger enjoying uninterrupted AHL seasoning that Canadian juniors do not allow.
That success gives the Kraken staff confidence they can navigate Catton’s unique circumstance. The difference is that the NHL granted Wright a one-time AHL exemption last fall, a courtesy unlikely to be repeated. If Catton cannot secure an NHL job after the nine-game trial window, the club might decide the best move is sending him back to Spokane—even if he’s already lapping that league.
Decision time in September
Catton will arrive at training camp with a real chance to claim an NHL spot, which would give Seattle a tantalizing center spine of Chandler Stephenson, Matty Beniers, Shane Wright, and Catton. The staff wants to see whether his puck protection, skating power, and defensive reads hold up against grown men. If he looks physically ready, the call will be easy. If not, the Chiefs will welcome their captain back for one more run at a Memorial Cup.
Either way, Catton’s playoff heroics have flipped the conversation. Instead of asking if he can handle pro hockey, the question is whether the rules will let him try. For a franchise that preaches patience yet craves offensive punch, his next step could shape the Kraken lineup sooner than anyone expected.