The 2024 NHL Entry Draft will be hosted in Las Vegas on June 28-29 and the Seattle Kraken will have the 8th overall pick.
The Kraken have made three first-round picks in their history and all three have been forwards. Matty Beniers was their first-ever draft pick in 2021, followed by Shane Wright in 2022 and Eduard Sale last year in 2023. This year's draft might be a different story.
The Kraken's prospect pool is littered with offensive talents but but lacks high-end defensive prospects outside of Ryker Evans, Ty Nelson, Caden Price and Lukas Dragicevic.
Good thing for the Kraken, this year's draft has a lot of high-end defensemen.
Zeev Buium
Smooth skating and offensively dynamic, Buium is everything an NHL franchise wants in a top-pairing defenseman. In his freshmen year at the University of Denver, he scored 11 goals and 50 points in 42 games en route to an NCAA championship. His 50 points were 10th among all NCAA players and fourth among freshman.
His game was on full display when at the World Championship where he played a critical role in Team USA winning Gold. Despite his offensive game being his standout element, Buium is extremely effective defensively. He can skate backwards as fast as anyone in the draft and maintains great gaps which allows him to make smart stick checks.
Born on Dec. 7, 2005, the 6'0 and 183 lbs left-handed defenseman would be a great option for the Kraken.
Sam Dickinson
Dickinson is a big, smooth-skating defenseman with a great all-around game. He played big minutes on a London Knights team that won the OHL championship and made it to the Memorial Cup. In 68 regular season games, the 18-year-old scored 18 goals and 70 points. In the playoffs, he added another four goals and 13 points.
Dickinson is a physical force defensively and isn't afraid to use his big frame. His ability to defend the rush is one of the best in the entire draft class. He forces his opponents wide and uses his long reach to knock the puck off his opponent's stick. His puck skills make him an effective puck mover and a great play starter from his own end.
Listed at 6'3 and 203 lbs, the Toronto native has everything a team wants in a modern defenseman. He'll play big minutes every night and his play style will win hockey games.
Zayne Parekh
The most gifted and offensively dynamic defenseman in the draft, Parekh finished the OHL season with 33 goals and 96 points in 66 games. His team, the Saginaw Spirit won the Memorial Cup
Gaining comparisons to Quinn Hughes, the 18-year-old has no questions about his offensive game but there are some worries about his defensive game. He can lose focus and sometimes get out-muscled in front of the net but with time and training those areas of his game can be fixed. The winner of the OHL and CHL defenseman of the year award could one day be one of the best defensemen in the NHL.
All three defensemen could be franchising altering picks. They've won numerous awards in their junior leagues and have multiple traits and skill sets that will one day make them among the league's best.
If any of the three are available for the Kraken by pick eight, it'll make their decision much easier.
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