Yanni Gourde was an instrumental piece of the Tampa Bay Lightning's 2 cup runs. In the 2021 expansion draft, he was left exposed by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who piece by piece lost their treasured 3rd line.
After losing Gourde to Ron Francis and the Kraken, they promptly dismantled the third line through trades, losing Blake Coleman to the Calgary Flames and Barclay Goodrow to the York Rangers.
What they lost, the Kraken gained in leadership, as Gourde's first year with the expansion team, gained him an Alternate Captain role.
Gourde was named one of the first four Alternate Captain's in franchise history, as the veteran defenseman, Mark Giordano was named the first Captain ever in Seattle. In his first year with the Kraken, Gourde's production moved up even as a 4th Liner, as he put up 48 points in 74 games.
