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  Greg WyshynskiNov 5, 2025, 08:00 AM ET

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  Greg Wyshynski is ESPN’s senior NHL writer.

Joey Daccord felt like a statue.

The Seattle Kraken goalie watched his teammates suffocate the Carolina Hurricanes for 40 minutes in a game last season, outshooting them 14-2 in the second period after giving up only five shots on goal in the first. “I was like, ‘I feel like I’ve been standing still for 2½ hours already. I need to see some pucks,'” he recalled. Daccord wasn’t seeing many shots in reality. So he opted for virtual reality instead.

Before the third period, Daccord strapped on a Meta Quest headset and fired up NHL Sense Arena, a VR hockey program that he has used for several years to keep his mind and skills sharp away from the ice.

The Kraken locker room was now a 360-degree virtual rink, chosen from options that included a baseball stadium and the outdoor rink from the NHL’s Lake Tahoe game. His hands were transformed into a blocker and a catch glove, as he stood in front of a 3D goal cage. He faced dozens of pucks fired from virtual shooters at different angles, getting locked back into focus. When Daccord saw real rubber again in the third period, he stopped 11 of 12 Carolina shots to preserve a win for Seattle.

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Daccord is part of a growing number of hockey players using VR for cognitive training. Devin Cooley (Calgary Flames), Devon Levi (Buffalo Sabres) and Eric Comrie (Winnipeg Jets) are among the goalies who have used the technology. So has PWHL star forward Taylor Heise of the Minnesota Frost. USA Hockey and at least 17 NCAA Division I programs have all used the NHL Sense Arena training tools.

“I think it’s been instrumental in my career and a factor for why I’m able to play the way that I do at the NHL level. It’s integral in my training and my preparation,” Daccord said.

The Carolina game wasn’t the first time Daccord turned to VR during a game. He recalled a road game against the Arizona Coyotes a few seasons ago in which he wasn’t happy with how his glove hand was reacting during the first period.

“I went in the back, threw on the headset and programmed it to shoot a hundred pucks at my glove. After I caught a hundred pucks, I went out and my glove was fine the rest of the game,” he said. “As more guys use it, it just becomes more normal. And getting the backing of the NHLPA shows that it’s here to stay.”

On Wednesday, Sense Arena became the first and only licensed NHL and NHLPA virtual and mixed-reality hockey platform, announcing a partnership with the NHLPA that will bring the names and likenesses of NHL players into virtual and mixed reality for the first time. The company has had a partnership with the NHL for more than two years, bringing team names and branding into its virtual drills. Sense Arena also partnered with several NHL teams, including the Los Angeles Kings, New Jersey Devils and Vegas Golden Knights.

“This partnership with Sense Arena is an exciting opportunity to bring fans closer to the incredible talent of NHL players,” NHLPA chief commercial officer Steve Scebelo said. “This is truly a dynamic new platform that will showcase the talents of the players and bring fans closer to the action in a way they have never experienced before.”

A number of NHL goaltenders have used VR programs as part of their training, and now the tech is available on a wider scale featuring real NHL players. Courtesy of Sense Arena

Users can now receive passes or face shots from Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, Matthew Tkachuk and dozens of other NHL stars.

“When I first tested the beta version, you are two inches from the face of Leon Draisaitl or Nathan MacKinnon. Now you look into their eyes, you look at their uniforms, all of the textures,” Sense Arena founder and CEO Bob Tetiva told ESPN recently. “So it’s such a real experience, man. I was blown away.”

Users can also attempt to sneak pucks past elite goalies such Connor Hellebuyck, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Daccord. Heck, even the goalies themselves can become the shooters in VR.

“I’m not using the goal-scoring part of it, despite what other people may think,” said Daccord, who has made multiple attempts at scoring an empty-net goal in the NHL, including on Monday against Chicago.

“I’m using it for the goalie stuff.”

DACCORD HAS DEDICATED HIMSELF to off-ice cognitive training since around the age of 16. He did a block of vision training, and that sent him down the path for “training the eyes and training the mind” that continues as a pro athlete.

He remembers telling his father how he wished there was a way for him to “sit there and just read [shot] releases all day.” A few months later, around the COVID-19 shutdown, Daccord’s father showed him a VR headset and the Sense Arena program.

“I remember at first thinking it’s just kind of a game, that I’m never really going to use that. And now I use it before every single game I play in the NHL. It’s a huge part of my training and my game-day routine,” Daccord said.

That routine starts about an hour before warmups, as Daccord does about 20 minutes on the headset. “I start with the cognitive drills, stuff that I like to do to get my brain firing a little bit,” he said.

One drill Daccord said he has relied on involves a machine shooting different-colored pucks at him. His hands are rendered with corresponding colors, and he must match puck-to-hand in a split second. After that, Daccord will move on to some technique drills in which pucks are being shot into specific spots, and then another drill that simulates shots from NHL-level scorers.

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“When I get out on the ice for warmups, I feel like I’ve already [seen] 150 shots,” he said. “I’m good to go. It’s almost like I’m not even warming up. I’m kind of in flow. I’m reading the release off the stick pretty well. I think it’s a huge advantage for me.”

Daccord has also used the VR training program as a substitute for on-ice practices. Recently, the Kraken played road games against the Philadelphia Flyers on a Monday and the Washington Capitals on a Tuesday. Daccord played against the Flyers and didn’t suit up the next night. The Kraken then flew to Winnipeg for a game Thursday.

The schedule meant that Daccord didn’t have any ice time for the two days leading up to the Jets game. So he used virtual ice instead, practicing in Sense Arena before the Capitals game, then for 25 minutes before his flight to Winnipeg and then another 45 minutes after arriving in Manitoba.

Daccord stopped all 32 shots he faced in Winnipeg for a 3-0 Kraken victory.

“I felt so good at morning skate on Thursday. Just tracking the puck, seeing the puck. I felt like I had skated the day before,” he said. “Most of the boys would tell you that they like to skate and feel the puck and see shots. When the schedule works out weird, you’re not able to get reps. Sense Arena was a great way for me to get those reps.”

THOUGH VR TRAINING benefits pros such as Daccord, it could also be a boon for younger generations of hockey players, who are more likely to test out new technology and training methods.

“They’re on screens, they’re seeing analytics, they’re seeing different ways to train that are very different than how I trained,” said Andrew Alberts, the hockey development director for Sense Arena who played nine seasons in the NHL for the Vancouver Canucks, Boston Bruins, Hurricanes and Flyers.

Alberts says he views VR training as a way for young players to go beyond scoring a goal or completing a pass to better understand the processes behind them.

“For young kids that go through those reps of picking their head up, scanning, playing with their head up, understanding time and space, that’s all part of that hockey IQ that those young players need,” he said. “Right now I think there’s a big emphasis on stick handling and speed, which is great, but you need to have the whole package.”

Users will be able to play against NHL stars in the newest, licensed version of the Sense Arena program. Courtesy of Sense Arena

As a former defenseman, Alberts says he enjoys the drill that mimics a player going back for a puck and seeing the passing options before getting crunched by a check — without consequences.

“Going through these reps as a player and not getting killed, that’s what’s great about it,” he said.

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Sense Arena launched its hockey VR experience in 2018. Back then, it would send installers to places such as the Kings’ training facility to build physical spaces for the off-ice VR training. The platform made inroads with goaltenders first, back when Sense Arena was available via the Oculus headset. Teams such as the Devils valued the potential for players recovering from injury to use VR hockey training without putting a strain on their bodies.

The leap in quality and affordability of wearable technology enabled Sense Arena to market its off-ice training platform to the home user. It’s available exclusively on the Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S.

Earlier this year, Sense Arena released DanglePro, a mixed-reality stickhandling module. Using their own stick and a training puck, users dangle through a mess of debris coming at them like water bottles and equipment.

“I think being able to control what you want to work on and develop is so key for players that are looking to keep stay at the top of their game,” Alberts said. “Goalies want certain situations where they’re tracking pucks, reading releases, rep after rep after rep. We’re trying to do the same thing with players now, introducing this new technology with the mixed reality.”

In addition to individual training modules, NHL Sense Arena ’26 has a new 3-on-3 gameplay mode that allows users to play a full 82-game NHL season, managing a roster and selecting teammates. That’s where they can unlock other NHL players — the NHLPA-backed version will start with around 15 players from each team with others added during gameplay.

“It’s up to you to put yourself into the GM’s role and then acquire new players based on your wins,” Tetiva said.

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In the future, Alberts said they’d like to have each virtual player mimic the moves of their real-life counterparts. Currently, the Sense Arena team records NHL and NCAA players and melts those movements down into 3D models. To have VR Alex Ovechkin blasting pucks from the “Ovi Spot” is something they’re working with the NHL on perfecting using advanced data, and that’s down the line for the platform.

Alberts believes the technology has a lot more to offer NHL teams. For example, his group has proposed filming their skaters so players could watch themselves in a virtual environment to “see what goalies see” on their shots. Sense Arena allows for replays from the perspective of the puck coming off the shooter’s stick, and angles that provide insight into player movements that normal video can’t replicate.

Daccord says he believes that hockey VR training will continue to grow — especially for his fellow netminders.

“I think you’re going to just continue to see more and more people use it because it’s such a good tool. How can you justify not using it on an off day before the game, seeing a couple hundred pucks?” he said.

“It’s about the access, right? I think if you want to be a real goalie, this is a resource you can use. The No. 1 thing in hockey is being able to read a release of a shot. With this, you can sit on your couch if you want and just read release after release after release. I think it’s incredible.”

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Lane Lambert knows mistakes were made. Lessons were also learned.

His first opportunity as an NHL head coach came when the New York Islanders handed him the reins after 11 seasons in a supporting role with three different organizations.

Lambert would only last 127 games in the top job on Long Island following four campaigns as an associate under Barry Trotz. Having dusted himself off and taken some time to reflect, he’s hoping for a much longer runway in his new gig.

Lambert was hired by the Seattle Kraken in May — the franchise’s third bench boss in five campaigns since entering the league — and has the club off to a solid start in 2025-26.

“It’s just experiences,” Lambert said when asked how he’s a different coach this time around. “There’s certain things that maybe you’ve done in the past where you say, ‘Oh, gee, if I had that over, I would do it differently.’ Won’t expand on what those are, but certainly experience would give you the opportunity to do things, I guess, better.

“Unless arrogance keeps you from doing that.”

Seattle started the schedule 3-0-2 for its best-ever opening five-game stretch before consecutive regulation road losses to the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals this week on a back-to-back. The Kraken wrap up a difficult road trip Thursday against the Winnipeg Jets.

“Compete and work,” Lambert said of his message since training camp. “We’ve paid pretty close attention to our details and our structure and our defensive game, and piggyback the offence off of that.”

One of eight NHL head coaches in new surroundings, Lambert replaced Dan Bylsma after his one season in charge.

The 60-year-old from Melfort, Sask., who played 300 combined NHL games in the 1980s and won the Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with Washington in 2018, has impressed early on in Seattle.

“Love his intensity,” Kraken defenceman Vince Dunn said. “When he’s going through video, when it’s something positive, he’s just as intense as when it’s something negative. You feel that energy at all times when he’s behind you and leading a group that definitely needed that.

“He’s been great to connect with the guys, and he’s very personable. Having that aspect and then having him play that role in the dressing room, it’s been a really good balance.”

Lambert spent 2024-25 as an associate on Craig Berube’s staff with the Toronto Maple Leafs after getting fired by the Islanders. He helped the Original Six club make the second round of the playoffs last spring before falling to the Florida Panthers, who would go on to win their second straight Stanley Cup.

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Kraken captain Jordan Eberle was in New York when the club made back-to-back conference finals in 2020 and 2021 with Trotz in charge and Lambert by his side.

“He’s intense, he’s direct,” Eberle said of the Kraken’s new coach. “His message is really non-negotiable — this is how we’re going to do things, and that’s what I love.”

Seattle centre Chandler Stephenson said Lambert’s attention to detail and competitiveness stand out.

“Guys want to play for him,” he added. “Demands and expects a lot, but also gets the game within the game.”

After visiting the Jets, Lambert’s group will head home looking to make even more noise in the Pacific Division when the Edmonton Oilers come to town Saturday night.

“There’s always improvements to be made,” he said. “It’s a work in progress.”

Islanders defenceman Matthew Schaefer — the No. 1 pick at the 2025 NHL draft — is off to a torrid start in his rookie campaign. The 18-year-old blueliner from Hamilton has two goals and five assists through six games, including the first two-point performance of his career Tuesday in a 4-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks.

Ottawa took a big step last season by making the playoffs for the first time since 2017, but has stumbled out of the gate. The Senators sit 2-4-1 on the campaign, with their only regulation victory coming opening night. Minus injured captain Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa ranks last in penalty killing at an abysmal 57.7 per cent and had allowed the second-most goals against per game at 4.71 heading into Wednesday.

Leafs centre John Tavares sits two goals shy of becoming the 49th player in NHL history to reach 500. The 35-year-old also recently joined Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Ron Francis as the only men to register 500 points with two franchises. “A hockey player through and through,” Toronto defenceman Morgan Rielly said. “He deserves to be in that company all day. He’s a very impressive guy.”

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The Regina native has always supported Canada’s only Major League Baseball team. Eberle is also captain of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken.

And that makes the American League Championship Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners tricky viewing.

“I’m actually torn,” Eberle said Saturday morning. “I’m a western Canadian. Seattle is closer to me and they have more Canadians on the roster than Toronto does … it’s a win-win. I’d love to see the city of Seattle move on to the World Series. I’d love to see the Jays move on.”

The Mariners scored five runs in the eighth inning Friday to top the Jays 6-2 and take a 3-2 lead in the ALCS. Game 6 goes Sunday at Rogers Centre — just down the street from Scotiabank Arena where the Kraken faced the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night. Game 7, if necessary, would be Monday.

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  The Toronto Blue Jays will face the Seattle Mariners in Game 5 of the ALCS with a chance to take their first lead of the series on Friday at 6:08 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT. Catch the game on Sportsnet or Sportsnet+.

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Kraken defenceman and Toronto native Jamie Oleksiak said he remains a Jays fan despite getting caught up in Seattle’s run on the diamond. The hulking blueliner was in attendance when the Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers in 15 innings last week to advance to the franchise’s first ALCS since 2001.

“I’m always cheering for the Jays,” said Oleksiak, who watched Friday’s game with his family. “I’m happy either way, I guess … it’s been competitive and entertaining.”

Like many Jays fans, he tried to put on a brave face after an ugly bullpen implosion in Seattle roughly 12 hours earlier pushed Toronto to the brink of elimination.

“Still some series left,” Oleksiak said.

Fellow defenceman Vince Dunn, who grew up in Mississauga, Ont., said he’s been conflicted watching the Mariners, who have never played in a World Series, and the Jays go toe-to-toe in a compelling matchup.

“The Mariners not ever having won a championship, it’s maybe something that you’re hoping for and can rally around,” he said. “The teams in Seattle are pretty supportive of each other. I can only do my part and support them as well.

“Whoever wins, it’s a happy home for me.”

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First-year Kraken head coach Lane Lambert — an associate with the Leafs last season — said his support is firmly planted in the Mariners’ corner.

“It’s crazy,” said the Melfort, Sask., product. “Both cities, I was just in one and (now) in Seattle. I’m a homer. It was a heck of a game (Friday) night.”

A member of the Kraken since the club’s inaugural 2021-22 season and named the second captain in franchise history last October, Eberle has grown to appreciate his adopted city’s passion for its teams, including the NFL’s Seahawks and the Sounders of Major League Soccer.

“I love Seattle sports fans,” he said. “But I know how the Jays fans are, too.”

Eberle is also keenly aware the team that advances from the ALCS will face a potential buzz saw with the Shohei Ohtani-led Los Angeles Dodgers already waiting after completing their sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Championship Series.

“It’s gonna be awesome,” Eberle said. “But either way, they’re gonna have their hands full.”

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The Seattle Kraken defeated an Edmonton Oilers roster that featured Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard and starting goaltender Stuart Skinner 4-1 in their third pre-season game.

The Kraken got the scoring started in the first period despite minimal efforts on goal, but they never felt like the game was ever getting away from them.

Jagger Firkus tapped in a power play goal on a rebound, and Logan Morrison scored his first of the pre-season, before Ben Meyers and Jani Nyman scored insurance markers in the third period. Joey Daccord and Nikke Kokko turned away 24 of the 25 shots they faced.

Here are three standout performers from last night’s win:

The 21-year-old blueliner took part in his first pre-season game of the season and fit in perfectly. He recorded 18:13 of ice time, and despite not recording any points, Jugnauth looked comfortable with the puck on his stick and in the defensive zone.

His defensive skills were put to the test on several occasions, including defending consecutive 2-on-1s that featured McDavid, the world’s best hockey player. Jugnauth stayed calm and composed, deflecting a pass by Draisaitl intended for McDavid and then later forcing Ekholm into a weak shot and negating any passing lane to send the puck to McDavid.

In the third period, Jugnauth defended a 3-on-1, once again deflecting a pass before the Oilers could get off a Grade A chance.

Firkus is a point producer, and he has been throughout his entire junior career and in the early stages of his pro career. Last night, we got a glimpse of how Firkus can leave his imprint on hockey games.

The power play goal capped off the strong performance, but the 21-year-old was making nifty passes and was eager to get the puck into high-danger scoring areas. He finished the game with a goal and three shots on target in 14:39 of ice time.

Meyers and Morrison each finished with a goal and an assist in last night’s game, and the duo looked like they fit in at the NHL level. They each filled the score sheet and were effective offensive chance creators throughout the game.

Meyers finished with two shots on goal, four hits and two blocks in 17:10 of ice time, while Morrison put up three shots on goal, one hit and one block in 13:21 of ice time. Meyers and Morrison are likely on the outside looking in for an NHL roster spot, but with the injuries the Kraken are facing, the pair have moved up the depth chart and could be one of the first names called up from the AHL to start the season.

Honorable mention to Oscar Fisker Molgaard, who has come as advertised in his first two pre-season games. The 20-year-old has two assists, but his attention to detail and defensive acumen have been noticeable.  If he can carry the momentum into the start of the AHL season, Fisker Molgaard could see some NHL action towards the tail end of the season.

Several Kraken Prospects Shine In Pre-Season Opener Against Canucks
The Seattle Kraken kicked off the beginning of pre-season with a 5-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks, dressing several NHL players and top prospects.

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Seattle Kraken center Berkly Catton has two options: make the NHL roster out of camp, or return to the Spokane…