Two: Take cohesion on the road
Friday’s win was the best example yet of the Kraken finding some rhythm within the systems outlined by head coach Dan Bylsma. And they’ll look to establish more of that at Rogers Place, an arena where they’ve only won once in eight all-time matchups, both regular season and exhibition.
The Oilers came within a victory of a Stanley Cup title last spring and should have a 50-50 split of regulars and hopefuls out there for a prized Saturday night home game in Canada. The Oilers’ projected top line trio of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman is expected to make its competitive debut. This should be a good test of whether the Kraken’s defensemen in tonight’s lineup – especially projected regular season starters Ryker Evans and Will Borgen and potential seventh defenseman Josh Mahura -- can both thwart the high-flying Oilers’ attack and generate offense out of their own end through cohesion with forwards.
Three: Late roster push continues
We’ve seen a real battle for what could be a final fourth line spot or an extra forward’s role depending on how many of those the Kraken keep once preseason ends. Ryan Winterton continued his push with a goal in Friday’s win on the heels of Ben Meyers also scoring in Tuesday’s loss to Vancouver. And don’t forget the physical contributions of John Hayden in that rugged, fight-filled Tuesday contest.
All three were part of the Saturday morning skate group and should be in tonight’s lineup. Any extra forward spots on the roster will likely be filled by one of those three. At the very least, whoever shows best the remainder of camp from this trio could be the first AHL played recalled if there’s an early injury to a Kraken forward.
