Luke Henman is the first signing of the expansion Seattle Kraken, the team announced on Wednesday.
Henman, a 21-year-old center from the QMJHL’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, led the team in scoring this season with 16 goals and 43 points in 32 games.
“I am super-excited and honored,” Henman told the Kraken website. “I have a belief in my game. My main focus will be to put in the work to get better.”
It’s a three-year, two-way deal for Henman, who will now go down as the answer to the trivia question, “Who was the Kraken’s first ever signing?” Henman will attend rookie camp and full training camp before GM Ron Francis and his staff make a determination as to where he’ll play next season.
Henman was drafted by Francis’ old team, the Hurricanes, in the fourth round of the 2018 draft. Carolina opted not to sign him before the June 1, 2020 deadline, which resulted in him becoming an unrestricted free agent.
This is the start of the roster building of the Kraken, who will begin play next season and still need to hire a head coach. Now that they are officially apart of the NHL, Francis can make transactions ahead of the July 21 expansion draft. Two days later will be the NHL Draft, and the free agent market opens on July 28.
————
Sean Leahy is a writer forPro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line atphtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @Sean_Leahy.
