Kraken Fan Check-in!

[Tao Jersey Jones]

Hi. Just signed up so hopefully don't make too many etiquette errors. I grew up in Hamilton Ontario and a Buffalo Sabres fan (French Connection era) . Moved to BC about 20 years ago and stuck with them but it's like self flagellation and I just can't any more. I just can't. Have tried but don't really like the Canucks so this is an opportunity for a fresh start with something new (sort of) close to home. I'm an old punk rock guy and an old time hockey fan and over time you will hear me go on and on about grit and character most likely. I like the direction things here took with the draft and Beniers is going to be my kind of guy I think. I don't know how good this team can be right away, but they seem to be in sync with how I would build a team and the roster already looks better than Buffalo, although that is a very low bar.
This could be fun.

You should like Bastian then, among others.

 

[GrungeHockey]

You should like Bastian then, among others.

Yes. He's an energy line type guy who could be a solid role player.

There's a few choices they made where they went character over skill (for the available bodies) and I like that approach. Will Borgen is another guy who looks poised to break out. Not sure, they added some decent D so he might not crack the line up but from what I saw of him (briefly) last year he's a tough kid just hitting his prime. Could turn out to be a steal off an otherwise bad roster (Buffalo).

 

[BringBackTheRats]

Hey! Not sure this is a good spot, but I'm a Devils fan coming out for the game Saturday. It'll be my first time in Seattle. Any suggestions on cool dive/punk or arcade bars in the city? Any tips on good food at the arena? Thanks!

 

[Colin226]

Hey! Not sure this is a good spot, but I'm a Devils fan coming out for the game Saturday. It'll be my first time in Seattle. Any suggestions on cool dive/punk or arcade bars in the city? Any tips on good food at the arena? Thanks!

Oddly no one has responded to either of our requests for suggestions, so I’ll join in given my 36 hours in this city so far. Definitely check out Pike Place Market. We ate at Pike Place Chowder (albeit expensive) and Mee Sum Pastry (BBQ pork hom bow and shumai), but in general it was just fun to walk around and see all the shops. We had dinner at Elliott’s Oyster House, which was incredible. Food was great and it’s right on the water. We also had a pre-dinner drink at Diller Room, which is awesome for a cocktail.

We’re currently up in Ballard at one of the numerous breweries and will be heading to Dough Zone later for what a friend said is a “must try” spot for dumplings and noodles.

See you tomorrow! Post back if you have any recommendations as well. Maybe we can help them become more visitor friendly

 

[The Marquis]

I’d have helped, but I live 3 hours away. Can’t recommend dive/punk bars in Seattle, but if you’re ever in Portland, I definitely can. Honest Biscuits at Pike Place Market is my favorite place to eat when I visit Seattle though.

 

[The Marquis]

Oddly no one has responded to either of our requests for suggestions, so I’ll join in given my 36 hours in this city so far. Definitely check out Pike Place Market. We ate at Pike Place Chowder (albeit expensive) and Mee Sum Pastry (BBQ pork hom bow and shumai), but in general it was just fun to walk around and see all the shops. We had dinner at Elliott’s Oyster House, which was incredible. Food was great and it’s right on the water. We also had a pre-dinner drink at Diller Room, which is awesome for a cocktail.

We’re currently up in Ballard at one of the numerous breweries and will be heading to Dough Zone later for what a friend said is a “must try” spot for dumplings and noodles.

See you tomorrow! Post back if you have any recommendations as well. Maybe we can help them become more visitor friendly

I don’t think any of the regular posters in the Kraken forum live in or even near Seattle. I could be wrong though.

 

[Colin226]

I don’t think any of the regular posters in the Kraken forum live in or even near Seattle. I could be wrong though.

I was sensing that. Honestly haven’t seen much Kraken pride around the city but I get it for a struggling new team. I have had a few people recognize that my Devils hat/shirt means I’m in for the game and I’m confident this city will be hockey crazy when the team is good!

 

[The Marquis]

I was sensing that. Honestly haven’t seen much Kraken pride around the city but I get it for a struggling new team. I have had a few people recognize that my Devils hat/shirt means I’m in for the game and I’m confident this city will be hockey crazy when the team is good!

The team will do well, but down in the area of town with the places you mentioned, you won't find a lot of people who actually live in Seattle. It's like the northwest's version of Times Square. Pretty much tourists and workers.

 

[tank44]

It may be good idea for a sticky thread for out of towners and travel into Seattle. I feel the "what should I do" and "where should I go" have been answered before. Also at this point may be best to wait till next season.

 

[BigFatCat999]

I could not find a local news thread but uh....



Y'all watching this? Should y'all be worried?

 

[The Marquis]

I could not find a local news thread but uh....



Y'all watching this? Should y'all be worried?

It’s been debunked by everybody that matters (NPS, USGS, NFS, etc). It’s just a cloud.

 

[BigFatCat999]

It’s been debunked by everybody that matters (NPS, USGS, NFS, etc). It’s just a cloud.

Works for me. as a guys who was (barely) alive for Mt. St Helens. I worry

 

[The Marquis]

Works for me. as a guys who was (barely) alive for Mt. St Helens. I worry

I too was barely alive for that. I just visited St. Helens a couple weeks ago. Amazing how many trees are starting to grow in the blast zone. In 30-40 years it'll be a forest again around there. I sure hope I get to see it.

 

[sigma six]

Is this the official OT thread also?

All this smoke... now it's coming from a central Oregon fire instead of the Idaho border.
Wife and I tried to go hiking near Mt Rainier yesterday, but arrived in Packwood just in time for the road closure and evacuation. Back home we went, hope the locals are doing ok.

 

[Quackenator]

Is this the official OT thread also?

All this smoke... now it's coming from a central Oregon fire instead of the Idaho border.
Wife and I tried to go hiking near Mt Rainier yesterday, but arrived in Packwood just in time for the road closure and evacuation. Back home we went, hope the locals are doing ok.

all the smoke this weekend was pretty awful. definitley wasnt the best time to hike

 

[Scomerica]

Is this the official OT thread also?

All this smoke... now it's coming from a central Oregon fire instead of the Idaho border.
Wife and I tried to go hiking near Mt Rainier yesterday, but arrived in Packwood just in time for the road closure and evacuation. Back home we went, hope the locals are doing ok.

Only plus side is that we avoided fires/smoke for most of the summer. Cooler/wetter weather should be on the way for October to put anything out.

 

[Scomerica]

I was sensing that. Honestly haven’t seen much Kraken pride around the city but I get it for a struggling new team. I have had a few people recognize that my Devils hat/shirt means I’m in for the game and I’m confident this city will be hockey crazy when the team is good!

Honestly, the demographics for different sports teams and areas of Seattle is weird.

Feel like downtown you see lots of Sounders stuff. South Seattle/Kent/Tacoma you still see a lot of Sonics stuff and NBA things. Seahawks and Mariners seems to be hardcore state wide but especially in rural areas. You even get out of state support for those two- Alaska, BC, Idaho, parts of Oregon.

I see a lot of Kraken stuff like flags and bumper stickers but it tends to be in the suburbs and in particular wealthier ones- Shoreline, Bothell, Lynwood, Bellevue etc

 

[The Marquis]

Honestly, the demographics for different sports teams and areas of Seattle is weird.

Feel like downtown you see lots of Sounders stuff. South Seattle/Kent/Tacoma you still see a lot of Sonics stuff and NBA things. Seahawks and Mariners seems to be hardcore state wide but especially in rural areas. You even get out of state support for those two- Alaska, BC, Idaho, parts of Oregon.

I see a lot of Kraken stuff like flags and bumper stickers but it tends to be in the suburbs and in particular wealthier ones- Shoreline, Bothell, Lynwood, Bellevue etc

The Portland area is interesting as well. I live about 35 miles from Portland, so I spend far more time there. In the urban core it's all Timbers and Blazers, with no consensus on anything else at all (baseball is all over the place and football is pretty much just college). In the Oregon suburbs you'll see lots of Blazers and Timbers, and Thorns (lots), but you start seeing more Seahawks and Mariners than in the inner city, but not a lot of Kraken yet.

The Washington side of the river is another story and is pretty well represented by both Portland teams (particularly Timbers) and Seattle teams, but only when there isn't a Portland rival, so you'll see almost no Sounders or Sonics stuff in SW Washington, but you'll see a lot of support for The M's and a LOT for the Seahawks. I'd say the Seahawks are easily the most popular sports team of any kind in SW Washington and it's not close, with probably the Timbers and Blazers battling it out for 2nd and 3rd, the M's 4th and now the Kraken 5th with a long ways to go.

 

[Scomerica]

The Portland area is interesting as well. I live about 35 miles from Portland, so I spend far more time there. In the urban core it's all Timbers and Blazers, with no consensus on anything else at all (baseball is all over the place and football is pretty much just college). In the Oregon suburbs you'll see lots of Blazers and Timbers, and Thorns (lots), but you start seeing more Seahawks and Mariners than in the inner city, but not a lot of Kraken yet.

The Washington side of the river is another story and is pretty well represented by both Portland teams (particularly Timbers) and Seattle teams, but only when there isn't a Portland rival, so you'll see almost no Sounders or Sonics stuff in SW Washington, but you'll see a lot of support for The M's and a LOT for the Seahawks. I'd say the Seahawks are easily the most popular sports team of any kind in SW Washington and it's not close, with probably the Timbers and Blazers battling it out for 2nd and 3rd, the M's 4th and now the Kraken 5th with a long ways to go.

I am a bit shocked Portland doesn't have an NHL team. Their WHL team is well supported like Seattle's and I don't think they would do worse financially or support wise than some of the smaller Canadian markets. Theirs also an arena there if Jody Allen ever decided to try and get an NHL team.

I've seen an argument for MLB going to Portland but I just can't see where they would put a stadium in the city that would be of major league quality and size.

College sports are weird. Obviously a lot of Husky fans in Seattle but there's also a decent amount of Cougar fans and those of the smaller schools and some from Oregon and Idaho. There's so many out of towners that move to Seattle though that it dilutes it. I see a crap ton of midwest/Big 10 school decals around. I can see why the Ducks would be so huge once you get south of Portland.

 

[The Marquis]

I am a bit shocked Portland doesn't have an NHL team. Their WHL team is well supported like Seattle's and I don't think they would do worse financially or support wise than some of the smaller Canadian markets. Theirs also an arena there if Jody Allen ever decided to try and get an NHL team.

I've seen an argument for MLB going to Portland but I just can't see where they would put a stadium in the city that would be of major league quality and size.

College sports are weird. Obviously a lot of Husky fans in Seattle but there's also a decent amount of Cougar fans and those of the smaller schools and some from Oregon and Idaho. There's so many out of towners that move to Seattle though that it dilutes it. I see a crap ton of midwest/Big 10 school decals around. I can see why the Ducks would be so huge once you get south of Portland.

MLB to Portland APPEARS dead. There hasn't been much news on it since the MLB officials visited Portland and the city was in DIRE shape, or something to that degree.

There are a couple of very viable spots. There's a Port area spot in NW that would need some infrastructure, but is fine. NW Portland. The other, which would be amazing is on the Lloyd Center property. The mall is dying. A baseball stadium and entertainment/retail district could easily replace it. It's a sad place to see these days. There are also already certain things already in place, like parking, etc. If I had all the money in the world, that's what I'd try and do if I wanted to bring a ball team to Portland.

 

[Kevinsane]

Kraken fan from northern BC. I grew up in Vancouver, and attended a lot of Sonics/Seahawks/Mariners games.

You’ll start to see a lot more Kraken pride in Washington once the influence of kids reaps dividends. Youth hockey players will grow up and go to games. Youth hockey will expand, as it has wherever the NHL has placed a franchise, and the Kraken’s social media and outreach programs are fantastic.

On ice success will always attract more fans, but it’s less the wins and losses and more the style of play and likability of the team that will resonate. The current iteration of the Kraken play hockey that is flat out fun to watch.

 

[BORAT53]

I'll change my username and picture sometime soon, but I've decided to become a full-time Seattle Kraken fan as of today.

 

[The Marquis]

Well, welcome.

 

[Fan from AK]

Hey there Kraken fans. I lived just 40 miles south of Tampa to see my very first NHL game. It happened to be the Tampa Bay Lightning's very first home game in their inaugural first season. I saw them in person win the cup in 2004. That moment hooked me on hockey forever. I have been to both games when the Lightning paid visit to beautiful Seattle. I don't want to seem a bad guy but the Bolts will always have a place in my heart, I now live in Alaska so my new favorite west team is your Seattle Kraken. I just bought airplane and game tickets to Wednesday's game against the Knuckleheads game in full support with my Adidas authentic Inaugural season patch that I bought at the game last year in March. Please don't hate me to the loyalty of the Bolts. The Kraken have my full support other than when they play the Bolts. BTW, I HATED to see Gourde go. I have an authentic Bolts sweater in my closet from him as well. My avatar is from the 2004 Cup win. Go Kraken!!!!! I will be there Wednesday in my Kraken sweater.

 

[The Marquis]

Awesome, welcome to the Kraken board!