Saturday's
3-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings
was a tough, tight and defensive struggle in which the Kraken came up on the short end. Acknowledging the Kings' third goal was scored on an empty net in favor of a sixth Kraken attacker, the game was effectively a one-goal game.
It was the same as Thursday's 2-1 loss in St. Louis and a 4-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche last Monday.
Hakstol says they are continuing to work on improving their performance in tight contests.
"We're competing and battling and as you get into those tight one-goal games, little things make the difference," Hakstol said. "Finding a little bit more offense is part of it, but we have to just continue paying attention to detail and paying attention to the defensive side of the game. We can tighten up a little bit more.
"On the other side, we have to find a way to generate a little bit more offense. We scored one goal [Saturday]. We had some other opportunities, but not enough. We didn't generate enough, especially 5-on-5 in that hockey game last night. So, it's something that will be a focus for us [Monday]."
It's not just Hakstol who said the Kraken are playing competitive hockey. Kings coach Todd McLellan was impressed with how hard Seattle worked Saturday.
"It was a battle, a fight for ice both ways," McLellan said. "They checked hard. They closed the gaps [between onrushing opponents and Kraken players, typically defensemen].
"They took space away, won some races to the pucks. We did the same thing. Very tight game and then both goaltenders made some good saves when they had to."
The Kraken need to keep that battle level high but find one or two more timely goals, including getting a second goal if they score first. That's how Los Angeles finished the Saturday matchup on top.