Latest news with #KaapoKakko
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Kaapo Kakko, Seattle Kraken's $12.75m gamble: Who is the NHL's Finnish enigma?
NHL-Seattle Kraken right wing Kaapo Kakko looks on during an NHL hockey game against the San Jose Sharks, Jan. 30, 2025, in Seattle (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File) Kaapo Kärki Kakko was born on February 13, 2001, in Turku, Finland; his hockey roots run deep' raised by a businessman father and an educator mother. Kakko was taught the value of dedication early on. He joined TPS Turku's youth system and quickly outshined his peers. His breakout season in the Finnish Liiga came in 2018–19, where he tallied 22 goals in 45 games an astonishing feat for a teenager. Kaapo Kakko Scores Off The Faceoff For First Goal With Kraken Draft day glory and growing pains in New York The New York Rangers selected Kakko second overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. He entered the NHL as a generational talent, but despite his sky-high potential. But he never fully took off during his five and a half seasons in New York. His play was often solid but inconsistent; he showed flashes of elite skill. But struggled with role definition and offensive production. In his final season with the Rangers, he scored 14 goals a number many felt fell short of expectations. Kaapo Kakko Is Proving the Rangers WRONG! Seattle Kraken place a bold bet on Kakko In a mid-season trade during 2024–25, Kakko landed in Seattle. The move seemed like a quiet reset until the Kraken stunned the NHL world by signing him to a three-year, $12.75 million contract in July 2025. Critics called it a gamble. Supporters saw it as an investment. Seattle's front office clearly believes Kakko can still become the star he was projected to be. With more responsibility and a fresh environment, the Kraken are hoping he'll thrive under pressure. The quiet life of Kaapo Kakko off the rink Despite the NHL spotlight, Kakko remains down-to-earth;he is currently single and values privacy. But maintains strong ties with his family in Finland; fluent in Finnish and English, he's also learning Swedish. His estimated net worth is $3 million, coming from his NHL salaries, endorsement deals. And small investments, and off the ice, he's known for supporting children's charities. And youth sports programs, particularly in his home country. FAQs How old is Kaapo Kakko in 2025? He is 24 years old. He's born on February 13, 2001. What team does Kaapo Kakko play for in the NHL? He currently plays for the Seattle Kraken, having been traded from the New York Rangers. What position does Kaapo Kakko play? He is a right winger. Why did the Kraken sign Kaapo Kakko to a $12.75 million contract? Seattle believes in his untapped potential and is giving him a fresh chance to break out as a top forward. With the Kraken backing him fully, Kakko now faces the biggest test of his career. Also Read: Edmonton Oilers linked to $27m veteran Jonathan Marchessault, pressure mounts as Oilers eye scoring boost for NHL 2025-26 season For real-time updates, scores, and highlights, follow our live coverage of the India vs England Test match here. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
Forbes
6 days ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Kaapo Kakko Continues Trend, Avoids NHL Arbitration With 3-Year Deal
Kaapo Kakko, 24, avoided salary arbitration by signing a new three-year contract with the Seattle ... More Kraken on Wednesday. (Photo by) With plenty of money in the system thanks to a rising salary cap, restricted free agents are coming to terms on new contracts with their teams rather than face potentially contentious NHL arbitration hearings. On July 5, 11 qualifying players filed for arbitration and one day later, the Buffalo Sabres filed for team-elected arbitration with defenseman Bowen Byram while the Utah Mammoth did the same with forward Jack McBain. By the time PuckPedia published its list of arbitration hearing dates on July 22, six of the 13 cases had been settled with new deals. Kaapo Kakko, who was up first on Friday, July 25, followed suit on Wednesday. One year away from potential unrestricted free agency, the second-overall pick from 2019 inked a new three-year deal with an average annual value of $4.525 million per season. That's up from $2.4 million on the one-year deal that he signed with the New York Rangers in June of 2024 — and is the kind of money that the cap-strapped Rangers would have had trouble fitting into their budget, which is a big part of the reason why GM Chris Drury dealt Kakko to the Seattle Kraken last December in exchange for defenseman Will Borgen and a pair of draft picks. Though he's seen as a bit of an underperformer for a player who was drafted second overall in 2019, Kakko is first in games played in his draft class (379), fifth in goals (71) and seventh in points (161). He's also trending up. Given more of an opportunity to contribute offensively in the top six, Kakko thrived in Seattle. He saw increases in ice time at even strength, on the power play and in overtime which led to 30 points in 49 games, the best rate of production in his NHL career, and he ended last season skating on the Kraken's top line with Matty Beniers and Jaden Schwartz. With the new contract, Kakko gets stability as well as a raise. New Kraken GM Jason Botterill locks him in with a deal that goes one year longer than what would have been available through arbitration. Gabriel Vilardi has inked a new six-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets. (Photo by Jonathan ... More Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images) The biggest contract to date for arbitration-eligible players was announced on July 18, when Gabriel Vilardi re-upped for six years with the Winnipeg Jets at an AAV of $7.5 million. That more than doubles his previous deal, which paid $3.6 million over the last two years, and the longer terms boosts the cap hit higher than AFP Analytics' projection of $6.8 million over four years. The Jets also ponied up a bit more than AFP Analytics' $1.56 million projection for arbitration-eligible forward Morgan Barron, locking him up for two yeas at $1.86 million. That leaves defenseman Dylan Samberg on the to-do list for GM Kevin Cheveldayoff, who's sitting comfortably with more than $10 million in cap space available. Samberg will likely pull in the largest AAV of the remaining arbitration-eligible players. His hearing is scheduled for July 30. Lukas Dostal is carving out a place among the NHL's elite goaltenders. (Photo by Ronald ...) Lukas Dostal also got a nice raise as he officially moves into the role of No. 1 goaltender for the Anaheim Ducks. The 25-year-old was barely making league minimum at $812,500 for the last two seasons but has now cashed in with a five-year deal at a cap hit of $6.5 million. That buys the Ducks three free-agent years from the rising star, and Dostal slides in just above his old partner on the goalie pay scale — $100,000 higher than the $6.4 million a year that John Gibson will make over the next two years with his new team, the Detroit Red Wings. On July 18, the Ducks also settled their other potential arbitration case by inking 24-year-old defender Drew Helleson to a two-year deal at $1.1 million. When teams elect to file for arbitration, they run the risk of allowing the player to choose a contract term that will take him straight to unrestricted free agency, where the team would lose the player for nothing. Jack McBain brings size to the center position for the Utah Mammoth. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NHLI via ... More Getty Images) That did not turn out to be the case with the Utah Mammoth and Jack McBain. Though he was two years out from free agency, McBain elected to sign a five-year deal with the Mammoth at a cap hit of $4.25 million on July 8. That's a bump from just $1.6 million on the 25-year-old's last deal, and buys three years of free agency from the big center who is a valued member of the expansion squad. In Buffalo, however, Bowen Byram did elect to walk himself to free agency when he signed a two-year deal at a cap hit of $6.25 million. The 24-year-old is an important member of the Sabres' blue-line corps but has been the subject of frequent trade rumors. And while GM Kevyn Adams may have wanted to lock Byram in on a longer-term pact, he still has at least one more year of service coming in 2025-26 before he needs to look long and hard at whether he can extend Byram or if he'll need to be moved. If the Sabres can finally take that long-awaited step toward erasing their league-high playoff drought that's now at 14 years and counting, perhaps Byram can be convinced to stick around. As of July 23, Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Arvid Soderblom is now the first player up for an NHL arbitration hearing. His date is set for Monday, July 28.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Kaapo Kakko Signs Three-Year Contract Extention With Kraken, Avoiding Arbitration Hearing
Former New York Rangers forward Kaapo Kakko has signed a three-year, $14.25 million contract extension with the Seattle Kraken.
Reuters
7 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Kraken, RW Kaapo Kakko agree to three-year deal
July 23 - The Seattle Kraken liked what they saw in the 49 games that right winger Kaapo Kakko played for them last season. On Tuesday, the franchise and the 24-year-old Finnish forward agreed to a three-year contract featuring an average annual value of $4,525,000. The team will avoid arbitration with the restricted free agent. Kakko, the No. 2 overall pick by the Rangers in the 2019 draft, was dealt by New York to Seattle on Dec. 18 for defenseman Will Borgen and a pair of 2025 draft picks. He made an immediate impact, scoring 10 goals and adding 20 assists in 49 games. Kakko averaged a career-best 17:03 of ice time per game with Seattle. Combined between the Rangers and Kraken, he totaled 44 points (14 goals, 30 assists), also a career best for the six-year veteran. "Getting a contract done with Kaapo was a top priority this summer," Seattle general manager Jason Botterill said in a statement. "We knew quickly he'd be a big part of our team moving forward. He's got size, skill and tremendous playmaking ability, and isn't afraid of going to the net. He fit in immediately with our group, and we're thrilled to have him under contract." Kakko has played in 379 NHL games, amassing 71 goals and 90 assists. He was used more extensively on the power play for Seattle and responded with three goals on that unit after tallying seven in five-plus years for New York. --Field Level Media
Al Arabiya
23-07-2025
- Sport
- Al Arabiya
Kraken sign forward Kaapo Kakko to three-year contract
Forward Kaapo Kakko signed a three-year contract with the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday with an average annual value of 4.525 million. The Kraken acquired the 24-year-old Kakko from the New York Rangers on Dec. 18 in exchange for defenseman Will Borgen, a 2025 third-round pick, and a 2025 sixth-round pick. The Finland native was the No. 2 overall pick by the Rangers in the 2019 NHL Draft. Kakko had a career-high 44 points with 14 goals and 30 assists in 79 games with the Rangers and Kraken last season. His 30 assists were also a career-best. 'Getting a contract done with Kaapo was a top priority this summer,' general manager Jason Botterill said in a statement. 'We knew quickly he'd be a big part of our team moving forward. He's got size, skill, and tremendous playmaking ability and isn't afraid of going to the net. He fit in immediately with our group and we're thrilled to have him under contract.' With the Kraken he had 10 goals and 20 assists in 49 games. He also tied his career-high for points in a game with three assists in Seattle's 4-2 victory against the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 18. Kakko was tied for second in points, third in assists and power-play goals, and sixth in goals for Seattle.
