Seattle Kraken's Philipp Grubauer finds redemption with rebound season

Were fans booing or "Gruu-ing" at Climate Pledge Arena last season? It's hard to tell in the best of times.

It was certainly the latter this season, when Philipp Grubauer buckled down and turned his Seattle legacy around. The Kraken franchise's first splashy free agent signing went from Public Enemy No. 1 to certified fan favorite, one of the feel-good stories of a disappointing 2025-26 campaign.

Last year the veteran goaltender and Stanley Cup champion was relegated to the American Hockey League after a miserable start.

"Last year - really, really hard year, not gonna lie," Grubauer, 34, said. "Probably one of the hardest ones in my career."

Let it be said that the Kraken weren't playing well in front of him. The season started well, then went quickly downhill.

"It's hard to be a good goalie when you have a terrible team in front of you, and that's what we were a lot of the time when he played," defenseman Vince Dunn said. "And I take accountability in that."

Based on his exit interview comments, Grubauer very much prefers current coach Lane Lambert's conservative brand of hockey, which isn't sending "like, a breakaway each period" the goaltender's way.

Dan Bylsma's more aggressive, swing-for-the-fences style was in effect during the worst statistical season in Grubauer's career, and Bylsma's staff caught a stray insult on Friday.

"Last year, I don't know what system we played - if there even was a system, right?" Grubauer said.

"We're playing a little bit more defensive and five guys are working back. It allows us (goalies) to take a step back and read the game a little different."

The prior style of hockey may not have suited Grubauer, but he also had some truly bad outings where he let in multiple unscreened goals. An 8-5 drubbing the day after Thanksgiving by the lowly San Jose Sharks stands out, as does the game that got him sent down, a 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 28.

When he was reassigned to Coachella Valley, Grubauer sported a 5-15-1 record. He carried a 3.83 goals-against average and .866 save percentage, both of which were last among the 54 NHL goalies who had played at least 15 games.

He referenced talking to teammates in Coachella Valley, and those conversations helping him work through his own thoughts. No one else was in Grubauer's exact predicament, having fallen so far from grace. But no one was exactly where they wanted to be, which was the NHL.

Grubauer said his belief didn't falter. He credits his work with Colin Zulianello, then the Firebirds' goalie coach, who helped him rehab his game. Zulianello was later promoted to the same job with the Kraken.

It was Grubauer's first AHL stint in almost a decade. He did his time, mentored where he could, put in the work over the summer and set out to "basically just (leave) it all on the table and prove people wrong."

Many speculated that chance wouldn't come, that the final two years of his contract would be bought out. There were few free-agent goalie options, though, and general manager Jason Botterill swerved expectations. He ignored the angry chatter and trusted in a bounce-back season.

"There's going to be criticisms and there's going to be opinions, and that's what we sign up for in our job, defenseman Jamie Oleksiak said. (Grubauer) has done a good job of just keeping that perspective and doing what he can to get better each day, and it's paid dividends."

Grubauer bounced all the way up to the top of the leaderboard before a 7-17-2 swoon cost the Kraken a playoff spot. On Feb. 5, when Seattle paused for the Olympics, Grubauer's .916 save percentage was tied for third in the NHL. At the end of the season, he landed in a tie for 10th.

In the meantime he represented the Kraken in the Olympics, competing for Team Germany. In four appearances, Grubauer had a 2.79 GAA and .912 SV%. Germany fell in the quarterfinals.

Throughout the season he consistently got the starts he wanted, which helped him remain game-ready.

"That's what I was missing last year. Wasn't the confidence or anything," Grubauer said. "I was seeing those situations, getting to play a little bit more often, right? You get out there and you can help the team, and not sit around on the bench for four weeks."

An online vote determines the Kraken's Fan Favorite Award. It went to Grubauer in a full-circle moment. The goalie missed the last 10 days of the 2025-26 Kraken season with a lower-body injury - "I'm good," he said, "Nothing concerning" - and acknowledged his win on the bench, in his street clothes, during the team's home finale April 13.

"It's a great feeling. Definitely a huge honor," Grubauer said.

In a few weeks, once the sting of the team's collapse wears off, there will be time for another round of reflection.

"Maybe, hopefully, I can sit there and say, ‘I'm proud of myself,'" Grubauer said.

"Obviously, I'm not satisfied. … There's always improvement to be made somewhere, and you always want to improve and get better."

Classic athlete behavior.

"It's obviously a fantastic story," Oleksiak said. "That's why we kind of play the game - redemption, and facing adversity, and how guys respond to that, pushing yourself to the limit."

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published April 19, 2026 at 4:51 PM.