In which season did the Seattle Kraken begin NHL play?

In which season did the Seattle Kraken begin NHL play? The Kraken began in 2021–22.

Seattle’s expansion franchise played its first NHL regular-season game on October 12, 2021, against the Vegas Golden Knights. That game marked the start of the 2021–22 season, the Kraken’s inaugural campaign and the NHL’s first full season with Seattle as its 32nd franchise.

The Kraken lost their opener 4–3 in overtime, but earned their first victory two nights later by defeating the Nashville Predators 4–3. Their first home game took place on October 23, 2021, at Climate Pledge Arena against the Vancouver Canucks. Seattle lost that game 4–2 before recording its first home victory against the Montreal Canadiens on October 26.

The season label can cause confusion because the team was formally awarded earlier and began arena preparations years before taking the ice. The 2020–21 option is especially tempting because that was an expected target during the planning process, but arena construction and scheduling pushed the debut to 2021–22.

Seattle finished its first season with a 27–49–6 record and missed the playoffs.