In the leadup to the Seattle Kraken’s Tuesday (April 9) home game versus the Arizona Coyotes, there was a notable change in the lineups. Head coach Dave Hakstol bumped 22-year-old defenseman Ryker Evans up to the top pairing alongside Adam Larsson. Evans could be a big part of Seattle’s future and merits some ice time on the top pairing, especially since the Kraken are officially in the season of test driving new strategies and building for next year.
Ryker Evans’ Growth in WHL and AHL
The Calgary native was selected 35th overall by the Kraken in 2021, the very first year the Seattle franchise partook in the NHL Entry Draft. At the time he competed in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Regina Pats. If that team name rings a bell, it’s because a certain Connor Bedard was also part of the roster, and we all know how that turned out. With the creation of the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Coachella Firebirds for the 2022-23 campaign to be the Kraken’s affiliate, Evans continued his minor-league career with them.
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Although the first few seasons in the WHL were rough at times, he played terrific hockey in 2021-22 — his final year with the Pats — and carried his production with him to the Firebirds for 2022-23. A bit like with 2022 first-round pick Shane Wright, the Kraken deemed it best the young Evans develop his game as much as possible in the AHL before making the leap to the big league.
Evans Becomes a Kraken Regular
Similarly to Wright, Evans has finally been given ice time with the Kraken this season. The 5-foot-11 defenseman did not play a second of NHL hockey in 2022-23, although his time with the Firebirds was well spent as the club reached the Calder Cup final and he recorded 44 points in 71 regular season games and 26 points in 2026 playoff games. However, when last December rolled around and the Kraken’s season hung in the balance, management deemed it prudent to call the Albertan up to bolster an underperforming lineup.
Despite a little bit of bouncing between the NHL and AHL since December, he has mostly stuck with the pro team since then. The more the season progressed, the more he was called into action. As with any transition to the professional level, it hasn’t always been easy. Not helping matters is the fact that, at least as per pre-season expectations, the Kraken have largely disappointed in 2023-24. This author attended the team’s December visit to the Montreal Canadiens – just before Evans was called up – and can attest to how sloppy the blue liners looked.
But even knowing Evans was thrown into the fire that was a mediocre squad, he’s played relatively well all things considered. He even scored his first goal on March 28 in a 2-1 overtime defeat to the Arizona Coyotes. Through 31 games he has tallied eight total points courtesy of one goal and seven helpers.
Defensive Changes and Evans’ Future in Seattle
It wouldn’t do to only toot Evans’ horn and sing his praises. The reality is that he is minus-7, which is nothing to write home about, even for a rookie. Then again, most players on the roster are hampered by negative goal differentials, some much starker than Evans’ figure.
There is also the matter that Evans has often been paired with Justin Schultz, who has not had a particularly memorable campaign. We even discussed the matter in a recent article about the contract and free agency situations the Kraken will have to reckon with this summer. That said, Hakstol switched things up a bit on Tuesday for the game versus the Coyotes. As mentioned earlier, Evans was paired with Larsson, another defensive veteran who has been much more solid.
It wasn’t a perfect outing despite the convincing 5-0 final score. Arizona outplayed Seattle for large portions of the game, and even outshot the hosts 39-25. Were it not for a superb performance by Philipp Grubauer, the outcome might have differed. Nevertheless, considering the Kraken can not make the postseason, this is the time to try new things and see what could translate to success next season, like with Wright.
It’s time for the Kraken to give Evans a shot by having him play on the top pairing. There are only five matches left on the calendar, with four of them away from home. One can argue there is less pressure to perform when away from the bright lights of the home arena. If things develop as they have with Wright, Evans could very well be a major cog in Seattle’s machine going forward.