Kraken (31-31-13) at Ducks (25-47-4) | 7:00 p.m.

One: Puck Play

After Wednesday’s loss in Los Angeles, both Andre Burakovsky and Dave Hakstol pointed to Seattle’s inability to limit mistakes and turnovers as the fuel for the Kings’ offense. In even-strength play, in the offensive zone, the Kraken won just 11.8 percent of all loose puck battles (LA won 15%), and in the neutral zone, Seattle had 31 loose puck recoveries while the Kings had 40. When the Kraken are on their game, it’s the ability to gain possession (not give it up) that powers their offensive attack. A return to that style of play will need to happen versus the Ducks – after all, there’s no need to give an opponent easy opportunities. The good news is dialing in on puck protection should click with Seattle’s skaters. The team as a whole has the second most 5-on-5 takeaways this season (546) and the best turnover plus-minus (plus-230) in the league.

Two: Power Play Effectiveness

The Kraken power play has looked a little different of late. Skaters are bringing more movement within their play versus standing in a static formation. Wingers on the flanks have switched with the defender playing high in the zone frequently, and on a few occasions, we’ve seen two forwards sink lower in the zone to challenge net front. As a result, shot quality has improved when playing with the skater advantage, and Seattle has power play goals in three of their last five matchups, including Thursday’s game versus the Kings. This matters, of course, because two of those three games were against the Ducks – a team that takes the most penalties in the league (4.4 per game), and their penalty kill is ranked thirty-first in the league. That points to a higher likelihood of getting power play opportunities, and exploiting those chances could set things the right way on the scoreboard.

Three: Know the Opponent: Anaheim Ducks          

This team will certainly look familiar since the Kraken and the Ducks have played each other twice in the last ten days. The second of those matches, a 4-2 win on Mar. 28, included a record-setting ten power play opportunities for Seattle. With that memory perhaps still fresh, the Kraken will be ready for an opponent that may be fired up to avenge what was an un-disciplined 60 minutes by them in the last outing. One player who could be missing from the lineup, however, is Pavel Mintyukov. The 20-year-old Russian defender left Anaheim’s last game versus Calgary after inadvertently blocking a shot by teammate Jakob Silfverberg. Mintyukov, who tallied an assist in the Mar. 26 game in Seattle, is currently listed as day-to-day by Anaheim.