Tod Leiweke on Kraken's Nosedive: "Something Is Out of Alignment and We're Going to Get It Fixed"

The Seattle Kraken are staring down mathematical elimination from the Stanley Cup playoffs again, and co-owner Tod Leiweke is not mincing words about it. "It's not acceptable," he said bluntly, "and we're committed to fixing it."

Coming into Thursday's game, the Kraken sit at 32-34-11 after dropping 10 of their last 11. That record ties them with the New York Rangers for the fourth-fewest points in the entire NHL at 75. This is not the trajectory anybody expected when the season started.

The Front Office Shakeup

Wednesday brought the official announcement that Ron Francis is out as president of hockey operations at season's end. The Kraken called it a mutual decision, but Leiweke offered some real insight into what happened. He said it would be "fair" to say the Hall of Famer was fatigued by the front office role. After everything Francis built in his first few seasons with the organization, the grind clearly took its toll.

Now general manager Jason Botterill has the reins. And here's the thing that actually matters: Seattle is projected to have over $29 million in cap space this summer. Leiweke wants Botterill leading what he calls a "prolific" offseason of free agent signings to finally build something sustainable in the Pacific Northwest. The Kraken have had some success bringing in proven vets like Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour, both locked in through 2030-31. But attracting elite talent to Seattle has been tough. The organization has leaned hard on the farm system, and the Coachella Valley Firebirds are making their own playoff push in the AHL.

Building Something Real, Not Just Sneaking In

Leiweke made something crystal clear about the direction forward. "What we want to build is not a team that just sneaks into the playoffs," he said. "We think what we should be building here is a team that's a perennial playoff team."

That's the goal. And honestly, it's not totally unreasonable. The Kraken made the playoffs in their second season, 2022-23, and actually advanced to the second round before losing to Dallas in seven games. Leiweke called that run "incredible" and said he saw the potential. But year two magic doesn't guarantee year four success, especially when you're on your third head coach in five seasons.

"Something is out of alignment here," Leiweke said, "and we're going to get it fixed."

That's the promise. Now we wait to see if the front office can actually deliver it.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.