The First Sea Monster

It was big news when Reid Duke signed a contract with the Vegas Golden Knights in March 2017. You might be asking who Reid Duke is since his name isn't quite a household name yet, but Duke was the first player to ever sign with the Golden Knights which makes him pretty special. That relates to the jersey shown up in the left corner as the Seattle Kraken have officially signed their first player today!

That jersey in the corner shows "Henman" on the back. While the number isn't accurate, Luke Henman is officially the first player that the Seattle Kraken have signed in franchise history! The former captain of the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in the QMJHL comes to the Kraken after playing five seasons with the Armada, amassing 63 goals and 151 assists in 225 games. Henman's been better than a point-per-game player in his final two seasons with the Armada, and he can now claim a little history with the Kraken.

"He's still a little bit light," Kraken GM Ron Francis told Bob Condor of NHL.com. "But he thinks the game well and has the skating and hockey skills we like when scouting players."

Henman has already had a brush with the NHL when he was drafted 96th-overall in the fourth-round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. You might be thinking that he has a direct tie to Ron Francis with that information, but Francis was dismissed by the Hurricanes in April 2018, meaning he wasn't part of that draft class. Francis likely knew of Henman through meetings he had that season with the scouting staff, but it's clear he has no direct link to Henman's association with the Hurricanes.

However, Seattle scout Mike Dawson, director of amateur scouting Robert Kron, and scouting advisor Tony McDonald all worked for the Hurricanes during that season and entry draft, and they all had high praise for Henman in leading Francis to sign the 21 year-old centerman as the franchise's first player.

It's unclear why the Hurricanes didn't sign Henman. He came in with high praise for his hockey IQ, but it seems there was some concern with his size during his draft year as he was listed at 6'0" and 143lbs. He finished this year at 168lbs so the size is coming, but he's still undersized compared to his peers such as the 6'1", 193-lb Connor McDavid. We'll have to see if there is added bulk put onto his frame in the coming years, but it seems that Seattle is willing to play the long game here and allow Luke Henman to develop physically as he gets closer to an NHL debut.

Congratulations go out to Luke Henman on making a little history today in officially becoming the first player for the Seattle Kraken!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!