Scratched for weeks, like several before him, Kraken’s Ryker Evans savors latest chance

Ryker Evans is back, though he never really left.

The Kraken’s top defensive prospect was only on the ice with his teammates during daylight hours for the better part of the past month. He took part in the American Hockey League All-Star Classic, was recalled to the NHL again, played three games and then was a healthy scratch for three weeks. Even though he wasn’t playing, he wasn’t reassigned to the minors, stuck at four assists in 16 NHL games.

“We talk about that and evaluate it every day,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “Two things kept in mind – his development and growth and what’s best for our team.”

From the outside, it sometimes looks like those two factors are at odds. But there are plans for the team’s young talent, alluded to but kept secret, and other such strategies have yielded results.

Evans is part of a short Kraken tradition. The circumstances varied, but every year a young and touted prospect has spent weeks or even months as a healthy scratch. They’ll go for broke in practice, working twice as long as everyone else, then drift between the press box and locker room at game time.

Not a bad gig if you can get it, but they’d certainly rather be playing. By all accounts, there are complicated emotions.

“It definitely is really weird. It’s a tough thing to do,” Evans, 22, said. “You just have to stay ready because you never really know when the opportunity’s going to come. It is tough, mentally, but you just have to stay ready.”

There were clear-cut reasons in the previous two instances. With Evans, it was assumed a trade for veteran defenseman and soon-to-be unrestricted free-agent Justin Schultz was imminent, though no destination ever leaked. Schultz ultimately wasn’t moved at the deadline.

Evans re-entered the lineup a different way – Vince Dunn suffered an upper-body injury against the Calgary Flames on a hit that triggered a three-game suspension. That, along with a recent rally from wild-card hopeful Seattle, complicated any plan to move Schultz, who is now Evans’ defensive partner. It could also be that the deal just wasn’t there in the end. Defensemen weren’t the hot commodity this trade deadline. With the notable exception of a three-team deal that sent Noah Hanifin to the Vegas Golden Knights, the going rate was a third-round draft pick or lower.

Now Evans and Schultz get to help the Kraken push for the playoffs together for a while. In his limited action, Evans has played well, general manager Ron Francis said.

“We want to keep him playing so we’ll see how things go here,” Francis added. “We think he’s ready to play. He can step into a lineup and play, as he’s shown.”

However when Dunn returns, they’re reserving the option to send Evans down again. He was reassigned Friday, then immediately recalled, seemingly a formality or “paper transaction.” A player had to be on the AHL roster by a noon deadline in order to be sent down at any point through the remainder of the season. Evans still played for the Kraken in Friday night’s 3-0 loss to the Winnipeg Jets.

“The key for him is keeping him playing. If we’re not (here), get him into (Coachella Valley) and keep him playing,” Francis said.

Evans was able to rejoin the action Tuesday in Winnipeg fairly seamlessly. He credited that in part to drills arranged by Kraken assistant coach Jay Leach to touch up certain aspects of his game and build his confidence.

“It’s tough to jump back in and be at tiptop shape, but he’s done a good job of keeping me ready,” Evans said.

Defenseman Will Borgen has been logging around 17 minutes a night for the Kraken for so long it’s hard to remember he was once the odd man out. Acquired in the expansion draft, Borgen didn’t play the first 20 games of the 2021-22 season and only appeared in seven before Jan. 1. It wasn’t until then that he started seeing regular game action. He’s been half of the Kraken’s second defensive pairing alongside Jamie Oleksiak for about a year now.

Borgen also spent many cumulative hours working with Leach, a former NHL defenseman himself, while kept in reserve. He might have been grabbed by another team if he hit the waiver wires. That experience was tough on him, he said later.

Last year with fourth-overall pick Shane Wright, a forward, there was no ideal place for him to go. Wright was too young for the AHL and there was little left for him to do in juniors. So he hung around the Kraken, playing sparingly and getting world-class coaching. He didn’t hit the 10-game mark, when the first year of his entry-level contract would officially be burned. Signing his first Kraken contract at 18, Wright was eligible for the so-called “slide” rule – by playing only eight games, the number of years on his contract were automatically extended one year.

A quick conditioning stint in the AHL did Wright some good and allowed Climate Pledge Arena a quick glimpse at what he was capable of. He scored four times in five games with the Coachella Valley Firebirds of the AHL and was more assertive when recalled to the Kraken for his last NHL game of the season, nabbing his first goal. The conditioning stint also provided a taste of hockey with the Kraken’s top affiliate in Palm Springs, where he would return for the playoffs and where he has 35 points in 48 games this season.

Before his NHL rookie-of-the-year campaign, the Kraken had Matty Beniers come in for 10 games at the end of the inaugural season, when Seattle was well beyond playoff contention, to get some big-league experience. That plan was widely touted as a success. They could do the same for Wright this spring. Center Alex Wennberg was traded away at the deadline, and the Kraken are in real danger of missing the playoffs for the second time in their three-year history, so there could soon be both motive and opportunity.

“Our focus on Shane is making sure he’s 100% ready to go when next season starts and he’s in our lineup,” Francis said. “That doesn’t mean we won’t see him before the end of the year, but there’s no guarantee we will see him.”

Wright saw three NHL games this year as an injury replacement. If he plays seven more, the contract countdown begins. Francis brushed off those concerns Friday.

“If we end up burning (a year), so be it,” he said.

Eventually, the Kraken might decide to turn their focus to the future. For now, it’s on the long-shot playoff chase.

“There is value in being part of this, being part of the challenge of this run,” Hakstol said. “Seeing what the level of the league is like at this time of year. Being mentally and physically ready to go in and help us win when called upon. All of those experiences are valuable.

“We weigh that against consistent playing time, and the value of that.”

Meanwhile, as the saying goes, Evans will control what he can control.

“I’m always staying ready for my chance,” Evans said.