Chris Driedger To Be Taken And Signed By The Seattle Kraken

Chris Driedger is going to be the Seattle Kraken's first goalie. According to Pierre LeBrun, he is expected to be taken in the Expansion Draft and sign a contract with the team.

All signs point to the Seattle Kraken signing and selecting pending UFA goalie Chris Driedger from the Florida Panthers as part of the expansion draft process, sources say. @TSNHockey @TheAthletic
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 17, 2021

Driedger is coming off a fantastic season with the Florida Panthers and they likely wanted to keep him. Yet, due to the fact that Sergei Bobrovsky has a no-movement clause, Driedger had to be the out man odd. The Panthers will now have to move forward with Bobrovsky and rookie Spencer Knight as their goalies.

In 23 games played this season, Driedger had a 14-6-3 record and .927 save percentage. He really did come out of nowhere, as he was essentially a career AHLer before joining the Panthers in 2019-20. Yet, now he is a true NHL starting goalie and will likely be paid well because of it.

If Driedger can continue to play this well in Seattle, this should be a complete steal for the team. The 27-year-old should have a lot of people rooting for him, as everybody loves a good ol' underdog story.

Once the Expansion Draft happens, Driedger will officially be a member of the Kraken.