The 2025 NHL Draft is here. The first round begins at 4:00 p.m. PT Friday. Catch it on ESPN, ESPN+, or NHL Network in the United States. Rounds 2 – 7 begin at 9:00 a.m. PT on Saturday. That will be on NHL Network or ESPN+.
We’ve also reached the culmination of Draft Week at
Sound Of Hockey. Check out all of our draft-related content leading into the 2025 NHL Draft:
Today is our fourth annual, seven-round Seattle Kraken mock draft.
Mock draft rules
As I have done
in the past—with one exception I will explain below—I will presume that players come off the board in the order predicted by the
Sound Of Hockey Big Board. For example, if a player is slotted at No. 37 on the Big Board, I treat that player as unavailable to the Kraken with their first second-round pick at No. 38. While the Big Board is far from infallible, this approach is intended to make the exercise more challenging and closer to reality. In highlighting potential “alternative” picks, I may mention a few players who could be in range if they “fall” to Seattle’s pick.
Typically, I follow a “no trades” rule too, but I’m departing from that once this year as well. Due to Seattle’s recent
wheeling and
dealing, the Kraken have just five draft picks in the 2025 NHL Draft, with none falling between picks 57 and 134. I wonder if they pursue a trade to close that gap. While speculative and unlikely, I project one such trade in the mock draft below.
Following today’s trade, we now have
picks in the 2025
#NHLDraft 
Get up-to-date with where we're picking before the first round kicks off tomorrow in LA →
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— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken)
June 26, 2025
The 2025 Seattle Kraken mock draft
Round 1, Pick 8: Jake O’Brien, C, Brantford Bulldogs (OHL)
Age: 18 | Height: 6-foot-2 | Weight: 170 | Shot: Right
Big Board: 7th | Data Score: 65.88 (4th) |Games Played: 66 | Goals: 32 | Assists: 66 | PPG: 1.48
Scout’s view: “O’Brien displays the high-end patience and vision to hold onto pucks for an extra second to make difficult plays and run an NHL power play. He’s extremely skilled with the puck, showing the soft touch and quick hands to create a lot of scoring chances and improvise on difficult plays often.” –
Corey Pronman, The Athletic ($)
One stat to know: O’Brien is the second-youngest player in the top 25 on the
Sound Of Hockey Big Board, born on June 16, 2007. Only projected top pick Matthew Schaefer is younger. O’Brien was also the second-leading scorer among draft-eligible OHL players.
Notes: As you can tell, I broke the cardinal rule of this mock draft right away by selecting O’Brien (No. 7 on the Big Board) with Seattle’s eighth pick. I did so based on the belief that Brady Martin will go off the board before Seattle’s pick despite being ranked No. 9 on the Big Board. “It just feels like there is no way [Martin] gets out of the top seven,” Good Friend of the Podcast Chris Peters said on
Thursday’s pre-draft episode of Called Up. Martin has been a “late riser” in the public realm as analysts catch up to where teams are on him. I understand the helium. Martin is a cut above in his ability to play with physicality from whistle to whistle without sacrificing speed or skill. He reminds me of another Brady (Tkachuk) in his style of play. I’ll project he comes off the board before Seattle’s pick (taking Roger McQueen’s place in my
post-lottery mock draft).
The Martin pick pushes O’Brien down to Seattle, and the Kraken are happy to grab the 6-foot-2 center that Cam Robinson of
Elite Prospects has called
the most creative playmaker in the draft—a player in the mold of Wyatt Johnston, with legitimate first-line center potential.
Alternatives: If Boston College center James Hagens (No. 4 on the Big Board) or Brampton Steelheads winger Porter Martone (No. 3) fall out of the top seven instead, I suspect Seattle rushes to the stage. Based on historical precedent, I think a trade involving this pick is fairly unlikely, but if a team targeting Martone or O’Brien were willing to offer Seattle an extra first- or second-round pick in 2026 for a moderate trade down, I’d consider it. Despite the organizational redundancy of smaller, skill-first forwards, I don’t think you turn down a chance at Hagens. Looking at defensemen only, I’d probably go with Kashawn Aitcheson.
Round 2, Pick 38: Nathan Behm, LW/RW, Kamloops Blazers (OHL)
Age: 18 | Height: 6-foot-2 | Weight: 198 | Shot: Right
Big Board: 47th | Data Score: 48.60 (21st) |Games Played: 59 | Goals: 31 | Assists: 35 | PPG: 1.12
Scout’s view: “[Behm] combines creative playmaking, deceptive shooting, and above-average puck handling to generate offense. He beats defenders by manipulating them and using his reach to pull pucks through traffic. His soft hands allow him to catch pucks effortlessly and execute quick slot passes and shots. He has an NHL-ready build, but he’ll need to improve pace and engage physically to reach his potential.” –
Rachel Doerrie, ESPN
One stat to know: Outproduced many top-ranked WHL scorers on a per-60-minutes basis, including Kraken prospect Clarke Caswell.
Notes: At this point in the draft, few players offer the mix of production (1.12 points per game) and tools that Behm does. If the same profile came at center, we’d likely be looking at him as a top-25 pick. If it fell this way, the pick would remind me a bit of the Carson Rehkopf selection in terms of profile. That said, stylistically, Behm is much more willing to drive the net and take punishment in that area of the ice than Rehkopf has been to date. If skating and strength elements take a step, Behm could be a second-line scorer and a nice value at pick No. 38.
Alternatives: If forward Ryker Lee (No. 29 on the Big Board) fell, I’d like him for many of the same reasons as Behm. 6-foot-5 forward Vaclav Nestrasil (No. 40) is a very interesting tools-based projection. Forward Benjamin Kevan (No. 49) has a track record of USHL scoring with two strong years heading into this draft.
*
TRADE: Seattle trades pick No. 57 to Buffalo for a third-round pick (No. 73) and fourth-round pick (No. 103)*
Comment: The Seattle Kraken would be slight losers in terms of market value on our
Trade Value Chart, but the benefit in this deal would come in closing the gap on Seattle’s draft board that lasts until the fifth round. This trade would give them closer to their traditional allocation of first- through fifth-round picks.
Alternatives: Assuming Seattle keeps this pick—which is, of course, most likely—I’d consider many of the players listed for the next two picks. I’d also consider forward Kristian Epperson (No. 60 on the Big Board). He will likely be the first re-entry candidate selected and is appealing in this range after putting up big numbers driving play alongside Michael Misa for the Saginaw Spirit. This is a range where Seattle has found success targeting goalies, but I suspect the team’s existing pipeline of goaltenders may dissuade them from taking a goaltender this high this year.
Round 3, Pick 73: Mateo Nobert, C (QMHL)
Age: 17 | Height: 6-foot | Weight: 168 | Shot: Left
Big Board: 96th | Data Score: 42.94 (32nd) | Games Played: 57 | Goals: 28 | Assists: 39 | PPG: 1.18
Scout’s view: “[Nobert’s] game is all about his smarts. He thinks it well both on the puck offensively and off the puck offensively and defensively. He’s also a reliable 200-foot center with good hands who can make plays and reads at speed and in congested areas. He needs to get stronger and improve in the face-off circle, but he’s an August birthday who has development time in front of him and was already a riser for his rapid development this season, playing huge minutes for Blainville.” –
Scott Wheeler, The Athletic ($)
One stat to know: Nobert is the third-youngest skater in the top 100 on the
Sound Of Hockey Big Board. He was also the third-leading scoring among draft-eligible players in the QMJHL.
Notes: The Kraken dipped into the QMJHL in this range of the draft last year, selecting defenseman Alexis Bernier, and I’ll project they do it again with Nobert. Nobert is a player with a lot of elements on his side—youth, hockey sense, and defensive ability chief among them. There’s a development road in front of him as he gets stronger, but his profile reminds me a bit of Oscar Molgaard (with more offense and less defense).
Alternatives: Forwards Aidan Lane and Mason Moe are also interesting in this range.
Round 4, Pick 103: Sam Laurila, D, Fargo Force (USHL)
Age: 18 | Height: 6-foot-1 | Weight: 187 | Shot: Left
Big Board: 104th | Data Score: 41.04 (40th) | Games Played: 57 | Goals: 8 | Assists: 33 | PPG: 0.72
Scout’s view: “Laurila is a valuable and intelligent two-way defender; his profile is incredibly well rounded. He’s an excellent skater with smooth four-way mobility. His gap control is excellent when defending downhill, and even though he doesn’t project as an overly physical pro defender, he’s great at angling off attackers and neutralizing transitional opportunities. He blocks shots. He’s got great instincts when defending the slot and rarely misses an assignment. For our money, he may have been the best defensive defender in the USHL this past season. It’s the progression in his offensive game that truly has him in contention for the first three rounds.” –
McKeen’s
One stat to know: Laurila was second among all under-19 USHL defenseman in scoring in 2024-25.
Notes: Laurila went undrafted last year as one of the very youngest eligible players (born Sept. 2, 2006). In the year since, he departed the U.S. National Team Development Program and broke out with the Fargo Force, turning into a two-way, play-driving defenseman. Laurila is bound for the University of North Dakota, which will allow him to avoid the log jam of defensemen at Coachella Valley in the near term.
Alternatives: Former Seattle Thunderbird defenseman Bryce Pickford is also appealing in this range. He also went undrafted in 2024 before breaking out with the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Round 5, Pick 134: Ethan Wyttenbach, F, Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)
Age: 18 | Height: 5-foot-9.75 | Weight: 170 | Shot: Right
Big Board: 175th | Data Score: 53.93 (11th) | Games Played: 44 | Goals: 24 | Assists: 27 | PPG: 1.16
Scout’s view: “An intelligent and adaptable two-way winger, he has NHL- calibre playmaking, details, and skills. It all hinges on skating and physicality growth.” –
Elite Prospects
One stat to know: Before he was sidelined for part of the back half of the USHL season with an injury, he tallied a point in all but three of his games.
Notes: The odds are against Wyttenbach as a smaller player drafted late, but if there is a player with that profile to bet on, it may be him—the winner of the inaugural
Gaudreau Award, presented to one USHL player based on combined “elements of on-ice play with joy, enthusiasm, care and responsibility.” The production was there, and, while he is a shade under 5-foot-10, he played a sturdy interior game in the USHL. He’s bound for Quinnipiac University, which allows a long development runway.
Alternatives: Forwards Aidan Park and Kale Dach; defenseman Will Sharpe.
Round 7, Pick 198: Andrei Trofimov, G, Stalnye Lisy Magnitogorsk (MHL)
Age: 18 | Height: 6-foot-3 | Weight: 176
Big Board: 266th | Data Score: N/A | Games Played: 26 | GAA: 2.10 | Save %: .929
Scout’s view: “Andrei Trofimov fits the mold of many of the Russian goalies in this draft class. Slightly undersized, strong numbers in the MHL this season, technically sound with strong edge work, and a lot unknowns about how he’ll translate to a more north-south game with traffic and more bodies in front of the net.” –
Elite Prospects
One stat to know: Trofimov was fourth in save percentage among under-19 goalies in the Russian junior league last season.
Notes: The Kraken have taken a goalie in each draft. The question is whether it comes in the second- or third-round or later. Trofimov is a young re-entry with solid numbers at the Russian junior level to add a layer of international depth below Semyon Vyazovoy and Kim Saarinen.
Alternatives: Forwards Jeremy Loranger, Poul Andersen, and Gavin Cornforth; defenseman Ludvig Johnson.
* * *
What do you think? Who do you want to see the Kraken select? I’d love it if someone wanted to use the
Sound Of Hockey Big Board and give me their alternative mock draft using these same rules. Send it in the comments below or on X @deepseahockey and @sound_hockey or BluSky @deepseahockey or @soundofhockey.com.
Curtis Isacke
Curtis is a Sound Of Hockey contributor and member of the Kraken press corps. Curtis is an attorney by day, and he has read the NHL collective bargaining agreement and bylaws so you don’t have to. He can be found analyzing the Kraken, NHL Draft, and other hockey topics on
Twitter and
Bluesky @deepseahockey.
Read more from Curtis
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2025 NHL Mock Draft, Seattle Kraken seven-round edition appeared first on
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pick heading to Utah!
