Since the Kraken dropped the puck, a new generation of fans has gone all-in on hockey — but Seahawks diehards say no expansion team can touch the 12s. Which jersey actually represents Seattle's soul?
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Add your commentBorn and raised in Beacon Hill. My grandfather took me to my first Seahawks game in 1979. My dad cried when we went to the Super Bowl in 2014. My daughter now has a Kraken jersey and genuinely does not care about football. I don't know what to feel about any of this.
I'll be honest I didn't care about hockey at all before 2021. Went to a Kraken game with coworkers expecting to be bored. Left completely obsessed. Something about the pace of it, the crowd, the atmosphere in that arena — I haven't felt that kind of spontaneous excitement at a Seahawks game in years. And I've had season tickets since 2009.
The Kraken haven't even been to a playoff series yet and people are crowning them? Come back to me when they've got a Lombardi Trophy equivalent and a fanbase that turned an entire stadium into the loudest outdoor venue in NFL history. I'll wait.
I proposed to my wife outside CenturyLink — er, Lumen Field — after a Monday night game in 2011. Hawks nation is literally woven into the most important moments of my life. No hockey team three years old is touching that. Respectfully.
okay here's my hot take and i know people are gonna come for me: the Seahawks peaked in like 2014-2015 and the organization has been coasting on that goodwill ever since. at least with the Kraken every season feels like something is actually being built. that matters to me more than nostalgia
My kids go to school in Shoreline and I promise you the Kraken merch in that building outnumbers Seahawks gear like 3 to 1. The next generation has already made their choice and adults arguing about 'real' Seattle identity are just not paying attention.
lol okay but have you BEEN to a Kraken game at Climate Pledge? the energy in that building is genuinely insane. I moved here from Columbus two years ago and I've never felt more welcome as a new fan anywhere. seahawks games feel like you need a secret handshake to prove you 'deserve' to be there
Anyone who says the Kraken is already Seattle's team is trolling or has lived here for like 18 months. I'm not even that big a football fan personally but the cultural weight of the Seahawks in this city is not something you can just leapfrog by selling cool octopus hats. Ask me again in 20 years.
Fun fact most people forget: Seattle actually had a professional hockey team before the Kraken. The Seattle Totems played in the WHL back in the day. Hockey isn't new to this city — the Kraken is just the version we finally get to keep.
Exciting? Sure. Soul of the city? Absolutely not. The 12th Man thing is corny to some people but that crowd noise record we set at the old Qwest Field was a genuine WORLD RECORD. We literally made the ground shake. A hockey rink seats what, 17,000 people? It's a different universe.
Kraken fans are mostly transplants from California and the midwest who wanted something 'new' to latch onto. The 12s built something over DECADES. You can't manufacture that kind of identity with a logo and some teal merchandise.
The Totems were a minor league team, not an NHL franchise. Comparing them to the Kraken is like saying Seattle has always had major league baseball because we had the minor league Rainiers. It's not the same thing and history nerds need to stop using that talking point to make hockey seem more 'authentic' here.
Can someone explain to me why this has to be a competition? I watch both. I love both. Seattle is not a one-team town and acting like it is feels very 1987. Also the Mariners exist and they are ALSO part of this city's soul even if they break our hearts every single August.
This is a fake debate. Seattle is big enough for two great sports identities. Why are we arguing about jerseys like this is a zero-sum game? Cheer for both. Problem solved. Next question.
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