The Seattle Kraken will be leaving ROOT Sports Northwest at the end of the 2024-25 season, the Seattle Times (paywall) reports. Their Unpatriotic Game is now available to watch on Amazon Prime, and there are no additional fees beyond the price of Prime. The Times notes that at least 15 of the games will also be simulcast on Tegna’s other NBC affiliates in Seattle and Portland, KONG 16 and KGW 8. However, KGW states: Social media It is said that more than 70 games will be shown. Other Northwest region networks will be added later. Nationally televised games (like ESPN and TNT) are still exclusive and not available on local networks or streaming.
Kraken called the departure “mutual and amicable.” The Seattle Times notes that this change could lead to a significant decrease in local television revenue for NHL teams.
There will be significantly less financial difference between the annual rights fees that ROOT Sports previously paid to Kraken as part of the initial five-year agreement and the annual rights fees guaranteed through this business. One industry source estimated the amount of first-priority fees at about $20 million annually.
Rumors about the future of the Portland Trail Blazers have been floating around for a while here at ROOT Sports, and this announcement points to one template the Trail Blazers could be considering. Amazon Streaming His component could be a special perk for Kraken, of which Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is a minority owner.
When asked for comment, a representative from ROOT SPORTS said, “The Blazers plan to participate in ROOT SPORTS again next season.”
