Welcome to “Down on the Farm,” your weekly Seattle Kraken prospects update. This week, we’ll pass along some Kraken-related takeaways from our preliminary 2026 NHL Draft work, along with a couple notable injury updates. Beyond that, we’ll have other news, weekly and season-to-date data updates, all-shifts videos, the Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week, and a preview of the week ahead, as always.
If you have a Seattle Kraken prospect–related question you’d like to see featured in a future column, drop us a note below or on X or BlueSky at @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey.
Way-too-early 2026 NHL Draft thoughts
Yesterday, we posted the mid-season Sound Of Hockey Big Board, which ranked 411 draft prospects based on nine public draft analyst and scouting sources. Personally, I’m still deep in the weeds sorting through the early-round candidates in an effort to form comparative thoughts. I’d say I’m about halfway there, hoping to complete enough viewings by the end of the CHL season, when we at Sound Of Hockey tend to publish our final “Data Score” watchlist. (You can find the preseason version here.)
A complicating factor this early is that there is still significant uncertainty about where Seattle will be drafting. By the time you read this, Seattle’s first-round pick could sit anywhere between No. 8 and No. 18 in a hypothetical draft order (without even considering the added variable of the draft lottery). And it’s not outlandish to think that the pick could be outside this range when all is said and done. We can be a bit more confident with the Tampa Bay first-round pick Seattle holds due to the Yanni Gourde/Oliver Bjorkstrand trade. That pick will very likely fall in the 26-to-32 range.
In attempting to project the pick, there is yet one further variable: The Seattle Kraken shuffled responsibilities among their assistant general managers after hiring Ryan Jankowski. Alexandra Mandrycky, who has more of an analytics bent, moved to the pro scouting side, and Jankowski, who is a bit more of a traditional scout and player-development executive, took over the top spot in managing the amateur side. Of course, the Kraken still have Jason Botterill (and Ron Francis) at the top. It’s hard to know how much this management change will matter, if at all, when it comes to the players considered and selected in June. But it’s a point to track.
With all of that said, here are the top 35 on the mid-season Big Board:
At first blush, this draft presents Seattle with a prime opportunity to select a “Grade A” top-four defenseman. I’d put Keaton Verhoeff (No. 3), Chase Reid (No. 4), Carson Carels (No. 7), Daxon Rudolph (No. 12), and Alberts Smits (No. 6) in this category. Each is worthy of a high first-round pick and would justify departing from my general inclination toward drafting forwards high. I’d put Xavier Villeneuve (No. 9) and Ryan Lin (No. 16) in a second tier as intriguing smaller, offense-forward options as well.
The last time we had a defense-heavy top of the draft (2024), we saw a few of those players fall down the board a bit as teams prioritized big forwards and centers in particular. If history were to repeat here, it is not difficult to imagine one or more of Ethan Belchetz, Caleb Malholtra, or Oliver Suvanto getting drafted before Reid or Carels, for example.
My way-too-early thought is that Reid or Carels at a pick like No. 8, or Rudolph at a pick like No. 17, would be a solid win for the Kraken. When it comes to Tampa Bay’s pick, I’d just be spitballing at this point, but assuming you go back to the forward ranks, Pierce Mbuyi is a junior scorer who should stack up well both based on the data and the tape at that point in the draft. (Plus, his last name is pronounced like “Buoy,” so…) Ryan Roobroeck could be a worthy second-pick, high-risk flier. Nikita Klepov is an easy player to like if he were still on the board. (More on him below.)
In reality, all I can say with conviction given Seattle’s track record is that we should keep tabs on goalies playing junior hockey in Finland, including Frantisek Poletin (No. 99 on the Big Board) and Juuso Ainasto (No. 81). After taking a year off from the goalie market in 2025, they’re “due” to return to the Finnish well in 2026.
Notes on four Kraken prospects
Alexis Bernier | D | Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
Alexis Bernier has been taking part in on-ice activities with the Chicoutimi Saguenéens, his new QMJHL team, for a couple of weeks now, and it appears his return to play is imminent following offseason ACL reconstruction surgery. Local reports indicate he should be in the lineup Friday, Jan. 23, when the Saguenéens drop the puck at 4:00 pm PT against the Val-d’Or Foreurs. Coming into the season, I was uncertain Bernier would see significant time, but now he has a couple dozen regular-season games, as well as a probable playoff run, to make an impact before the 2025-26 season concludes.
Jake O’Brien | F | Brantford Bulldogs (OHL)
In other good injury news, top prospect Jake O’Brien returned to the ice last Sunday. He missed almost a month following a lower-body injury that was initially deemed minor. O’Brien got back to his point-producing ways in a hurry, scoring three goals and adding an assist in two games last week. It put him in the running for Prospect of the Week, but he came up just a bit short compared with the next two players we’ll mention.
Carson Rehkopf | F | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)
Carson Rehkopf has spent the majority of this season on the Firebirds’ fourth line, seeing relatively little ice time. The lesson—that Rehkopf needs to round out his game and grind his way up from the bottom—is a valuable one, but there have been long stretches of negligible impact for the skilled forward. Personally, I reached a nadir in my view of his development while watching last Sunday’s game against Abbotsford. He was scoreless and did not accomplish much at all that night.
Then came Wednesday’s game against San Jose, and he flipped the script. Rehkopf scored on all three of his shots on goal, registering his first professional hat trick. The skill is there, and hopefully a performance like this allows him to unlock it with a bit more frequency moving forward.
🧢 CARSON REHKOPF WITH HIS FIRST PRO HAT TRICK!!!!! 🧢 4-2 FIIIIREEEEBIRDDSSSSS! pic.twitter.com/pIktElzQdC
— Coachella Valley Firebirds (@Firebirds) January 22, 2026
Victor Ostman | G | Coachella Valley Firebirds (AHL)
With top goalie prospect Nikke Kokko out week to week, there was concern that the Firebirds could be in for a rough stretch. The opposite has happened. The Firebirds have rattled off six straight wins, and that is due in large part to the strong play of goalie Victor Ostman, who has stepped into the “starter” role with Kokko out. In Ostman’s two starts this past week, he posted a .950 save percentage and earned two wins, one via shutout. That effort earned him Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week status.
Kraken prospects data update
Logan Morrison’s season has flown under the radar a bit, but he has quietly led the offensive attack for the Firebirds. He reached the 20-goal plateau for the first time in his professional career last week. Morrison, 23, is currently on pace to amass 38 goals and 30 assists in 72 AHL games this year.
AHL All-Star Tyson Jugnauth, 21, is third among all AHL defensemen in scoring.
Kim Saarinen, 19, continues to post strong numbers back in Finland’s top professional league after the WJC break. As of Friday, his .917 save percentage is tied for the best mark in Liiga.
Though not included in these updates typically because he is on an AHL deal, goalie Jack LaFontaine’s performance to date warrants some mention. He’s (an almost ludicrous) 17-2-1 in the ECHL this season, with a .921 save percentage and a 2.21 goals-against average. In his two AHL starts since Nikke Kokko’s injury, he has two wins, a .945 save percentage, and a shutout. Terrific stuff.
Sound Of Hockey Prospect of the Week tracker
3: Jagger Firkus, Kim Saarinen
2: Julius Miettinen, Nathan Villeneuve
1: Barrett Hall, Ollie Josephson, Tyson Jugnauth, Nikke Kokko, Jake O’Brien, Victor Ostman, Semyon Vyazovoi, Zaccharya Wisdom
Previewing the week ahead
Bernier’s projected return to the ice is our Deep Sea Hockey Game of the Week. The matchup with the Val-d’Or Foreurs is available to stream for those with a FloHockey subscription.
Tracking 2026 NHL Draft prospects: Nikita Klepov
Nikita Klepov is a high-pace, physically engaged, and defensive-minded winger. He has offensive skill to dream on too, even if it’s a rung below the truly elite players in the draft. The 6-foot forward has 59 points in 43 OHL games, which is third in the OHL and most among undrafted players. He is also a relatively young draft-eligible player. There’s a lot to like in this profile.
Recent prospect updates
January 16, 2026: Jacob Melanson is speeding toward an NHL future despite the demotion
January 9, 2026: World Juniors reports, CHL trades
January 2, 2026: Mid-season Kraken prospect ranking
December 26, 2025: Watching Kraken prospects at the 2026 World Junior Championship
December 20, 2025: Resetting Seattle Kraken draft capital after the Mason Marchment trade
December 13, 2025: Ryan Jankowski talks Kraken prospects
December 5, 2025: World Juniors Announcements, Kokko saving the day for the Firebirds
Curtis Isacke
Curtis is a Sound Of Hockey contributor and member of the Kraken press corps. Curtis is an attorney by day, and he has read the NHL collective bargaining agreement and bylaws so you don’t have to. He can be found analyzing the Kraken, NHL Draft, and other hockey topics on Twitter and Bluesky @deepseahockey.
