Seattle's 2022 1st Round Draft Pick Has Been Putting In The Miles, On The Road Back To The NHL
Seattle Kraken prospect Shane Wright deserves support, not scorn, from impatient fans and media members.
Unintentionally, fellow young center Matty Beniers raised expectation for Wright. Beniers, the 2nd-overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft, joined the Kraken for the final nine games of the Kraken's 2021-22 season.
His scoring touch, wise-beyond-his-years playmaking, and infectious smile made Matty an instant fan darling. One year later, he's a finalist for the Calder Trophy, given to the NHL rookie of the year.
That instant impact left more than a few Kraken-watchers wondering why Wright - like Beniers, not yet old enough to legally order a beer - couldn't duplicate Matty's success. After all, Wright was at one time a consensus top pick, before falling to Seattle with the 4th choice in last summer's draft.
During his brief return to the Seattle Kraken, Shane Wright scored his first NHL goal.Shane's Been Everywhere, Man, Shane's Been Everywhere
Imagine you're a musician. Starting last September, you sit in with the Seattle Symphony, then with a California jazz group, a couple of Canadian garage bands, and perform at a music festival. Not only do each of the five groups play a distinct kind of music, you're expected to use multiple instruments.
Or, suppose you're a software engineer. You're assigned a gig at Microsoft, then at a couple of Silicon Valley startups... well, you get the idea.
And, oh by the way, you have to fit in and perform all these diverse tasks in diverse places while still a teenager. Wright won't turn 20 years old until next January 5.
Here's a capsule of Wright's 2022-23 season, an itinerary only a travel agent could love.
- Wright starts in Seattle, playing limited minutes in 8 games, a healthy scratch for 11 games.
- He's sent to AHL Coachella Valley on a conditioning stint, scoring 4 goals in 5 games.
- He returns to the Kraken for one game on Dec. 6, scoring his first NHL goal against Montreal.
- He's loaned to Team Canada for the World Junior Championships in Nova Scotia, captaining Canada to the gold medal.
- He's reassigned to his former major junior Canadian team, the OHL Kingston Frontenacs.
- He's traded to the OHL Windsor Spitfires, a junior team with a better chance of reaching the Memorial Cup (the tournament in which the Seattle Thunderbirds are currently competing). In 20 games, he scores 15 goals, plus 22 assists.
- When Windsor's season ends, he rejoins AHL Coachella Valley for 3 regular season games and the Firebirds' current playoff run.
Shane Wright (51) skates with the AHL Coachella Valley Firebirds.Shane has been scratched from multiple playoff games by the Firebirds, leading observers to wonder why. Hint: check above itinerary for one reason.
Another is that NHL farm teams walk simultaneous paths between player development and obligation to win. Wright apparently isn't viewed as giving the Firebirds the best chance to do the latter.
No Guarantee Wright Cracks Kraken '23-'24 Roster
Kraken general manager Ron Francis recently gave a realistic, if not entirely encouraging, assessment of Shane's chances of starting next season in the NHL.
"It's going to come down to Shane and how hard he works in the summertime. This is not an easy league. We've got a good team, and he's going to have to earn it like everyone else around here. There's parts of his game he needs to continue to work on."
As the GM then mentioned, the right spot for Shane may be where he already is. "In a perfect world, if he can't make us, you put him in the AHL."
Technical legal language might obstruct Shane's path back to the Firebirds, just as it complicated matters last season. But the guess here is that the NHL and Ontario Hockey League will grant an exemption, because Wright lost a junior season to the pandemic.
In this scenario, Wright starts the season with Coachella Valley. He returns to Seattle when (1) his play warrants, (2) an injury makes it necessary, or (3) a trade opens up a roster spot.
Let's be clear: this appeal for patience isn't soliciting sympathy for Wright, a talented young man who has the opportunity for wealth, fame, and success at a level most of us can only dream.
If attitude or work-ethic issues end up slowing his progress, that would be entirely on him. If he's salty about more changes of direction than a ping-pong ball, or if he's reluctant to do the tedious but essential bulking up in the gym, he needs to get his mind, pardon the word, right.
Short of that, we'd all be well-advised to heed the wise words of Diana Ross and the Supremes. I think they went like this:
"You can't hurry Shane.
No, you just have to wait.
You gotta trust, give it time.
No matter how long it takes."
It's possible Diana was referring to love, not Shane Wright, but you get the idea.