This fall, for the first time, Joey Daccord is the top guy in Seattle's net. No hedging, no asterisk.

He's not throwing his weight around. That's not the hockey way, or his way.

"If they want me to play a lot of games, I love playing, so I'm happy to be out there," Daccord, 29, said. "It's my favorite thing in the world to get to play in the NHL and play hockey. I always want to be on the ice. But (it's) whatever the coaches need from me."

It was a long summer, but a winning one. Though Daccord has a stack of passports at his disposal -- he was born in Boston, but dad is Canadian and mom is Swiss -- he grew up dreaming of playing for Team USA.

Top players from NHL teams that miss the playoffs or get bounced early can head overseas for the IIHF World Championships. Daccord had played a lot of hockey for struggling Seattle the previous few months, but he couldn't resist the opportunity. He and Kraken teammate Matty Beniers helped the U.S. men's national team to its first gold medal in 92 years May 25.

"Looking back, it's, it's so sick that we won," Daccord said. "It was a magical experience."

That probably helped Daccord's case for the February's Winter Olympics somewhat. He was invited to Team USA's orientation camp later in the summer. It was not a tryout, but rather a "getting to know you" event, as Daccord described it -- one where everyone's a famous hockey player and already knows of each other, at the very least. Golf, tennis, dinners and hangouts made up much of the agenda.

There are several American goalies with longer resumes. Daccord hasn't secured his spot, which might benefit the Kraken this season.

"Big picture, yeah, it's a goal. But the way that I get there is by playing well here," he said. "So if I focus on just doing my best here, then I'll let that stuff take care of itself."

Daccord's Kraken contract extension with an average annual value of $5 million has kicked in and the former seventh-round pick is making significantly more than ever before. He managed a respectable .906 save percentage, tied for 17th in the NHL, on a 2024-25 Seattle team that was out of playoff contention a month into the season. He appeared in 57 (11th NHL) of 82 games.

Ottawa might have drafted him, but Daccord developed into a starter within the Kraken organization.

"Joey's done a great job the last couple years of developing into a No. 1 goalie in the National Hockey League," GM Jason Botterill said. "It's great to see a goalie that was playing games for (the AHL's Coachella Valley Firebirds) in a Calder Cup Final, now be in the mix to possibly make the U.S. Olympic team."

He'll need nights off, though, and Philipp Grubauer is set to provide them. This is the first fall in five seasons of Kraken existence where Grubauer is unquestionably down on the Kraken depth chart, following the worst statistical season of his pro career and one of the worst in the NHL.

Botterill did not buy out Grubauer's contract as he was widely expected to. Instead he expressed confidence that the 33-year-old, already named to Germany's Olympic squad, would bounce back.

"It's great to hear that he has that belief in me," Grubauer said. "Last year was a little tough, not playing too many games."

Grubauer cited, then and now, a lack of playing time throwing off his cadence. It was a cyclical problem, as when he did spell Daccord, he often let in bunches of goals to bad teams. That had to impact his frequency of starts and seemingly led to a monthlong demotion to the minors, where he hadn't played in nearly a decade.

There are reasons for optimism going forward. Grubauer won a Stanley Cup in Washington while new Kraken coach Lane Lambert was a Capitals assistant coach.

"It's been almost 10 years, so time flies," Grubauer said. "It's nice to have him. He's an incredible person and brings a fresh wind into this organization."

Lambert will help guide the penalty kill and is known as a defensive-minded coach, which has to sound good to the team's last line of defense.

"I think we're going to play a little bit different than we did last year, which is probably going to benefit a lot of guys in this room," Grubauer said. "Just going to do my job, and when I get called to play again, try my best to get the points and win that game for us."

Grubauer spent the summer in Seattle and made a cameo at the Kraken's development camp, where the most recent draft picks join older prospects for a week of instruction at Kraken Community Iceplex. He was working out at Seattle's facilities anyway, he reasoned, so why not drop in and offer some guidance?

That same week, another goaltender joined the conversation. Matt Murray, whom Botterill knew from a long stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins, signed with the Kraken as a free agent.

"Matt is an awesome guy to have around. He has experience," Grubauer said. "He's won two Stanley Cups -- he's been there, right?"

Daccord and Murray also crossed paths, but in Ottawa. Murray had already won both titles and Daccord was "just trying to make a name" for himself. Their friendship was forged during the "COVID year," 2020-21, when players hung out a lot more than usual for safety's sake. Daccord echoed Grubauer -- great guy.

With February's Olympic break squished into the schedule, Botterill floated the idea of carrying three rostered goalies, which would be unusual. Barring that scenario, someone's getting demoted to the AHL.

After just three days of on-ice work with the overhauled coaching staff, the Kraken will make their preseason debut Sunday at home against Vancouver. Though time is short, Lambert seems happy to run it back. If to err is human, to correct is divine.

"If something's not right, don't let it go. Stop practice," Lambert said.

"Doesn't matter if you're a 14-year veteran or a rookie or a junior player in training camp. Everybody wants to learn. Everybody can learn."

There are two groups of 23 players, and each has three goalies fending off shots. Joining Daccord, Grubauer and Murray is top goaltending prospect and 2022 draft pick Nikke Kokko, plus former college standouts Victor Ostman and Jack LaFontaine. Ostman and LaFontaine were signed as free agents and have spent most of their time with the Kraken's ECHL affiliate.

Kokko made his NHL debut last season but is only a second-year pro, and goalies generally take longer to develop than forwards. When it comes to young netminders, Botterill "don't want to throw them into NHL games until they're ready."

They will likely share time during Seattle's six preseason games. There's plenty of work to go around until the first round or two of cuts arrive.

Kraken goalies settle into new season with new roles, new coach