The Seattle Kraken have signed forward Ryan Donato to a one-year contract.
The Seattle Kraken officially brought back a new face on Wednesday, agreeing to terms with forward Ryan Donato on a one-year contract worth $1.2 million.
Donato is quite familiar with the Kraken despite the franchise only entering its second year of existence, coming to Seattle in last summer's expansion draft and playing in the organization's inaugural game. The 26-year-old had a respectable season for himself in 2021-22, racking up 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 74 games while logging a little under 14 minutes in ice time per night.
It's been a rocky road for Donato since bursting onto the scene as a rookie in Boston. The former second-round pick showed promise before getting dealt to the Minnesota Wild midway through his first full NHL season, performing well following the trade despite the location change but never quite putting up the offensive numbers that many expected of him.
It was those struggles that led the Kraken to opt against offering Donato a qualifying offer this offseason, thrusting him onto the open market as an unrestricted free agent before the two sides reunited with today's deal.
At a price tag of just $1.2 million, though, there are certainly worse depth options out there at forward than Donato. If able to stay healthy for a full season, Donato is likely to give the Kraken something in the range of 10-15 goals next year while filling a spot on the third or fourth line and adding speed to the bottom six. What more could you want?
After making big swings in both the draft and free agency, the Kraken are clearly focused on competing in their sophomore season.