One: The Right Kind of Traffic
CHICAGO – Yes, the Kraken fired 30 shots on goal Tuesday night, including 15 in the first 20 minutes, while holding Ottawa to not much more than a handful. But most of the Kraken shots and overall scoring chances were in full view for Senators goalie Linus Ullmark, who has been playing lights out of late. NHL goalies who get clear lanes to see the puck will make the save with high probability, though they do not always control the rebounds.
“We did have some good looks,” said SEA coach Dan Bylsma post-game. “But Ullmark saw all of them. He's a big goalie [6-foot-5]. He's playing well; I think we probably had to come a little more dirty than we did.”
“Dirty” is the operative word for getting more Kraken players net-front, both for screening the goalie and on-hand for tip-ins (body deflections happily accepted, too) or scoring on rebound shots. Alternate captain Jaden Schwartz had the best chance Tuesday with a tip-in shot on which Ullmark had to make a Grade-A save. The Kraken forwards know net-front bodies are sorely needed on this road trip. Expect the goal-crease traffic jams to trend upward.
The trade for New York Rangers forward Kaapo Kakko certainly fits into the net-front needs. Along with the scoring potential of a 23-year-old former No. 2 overall draft pick in 2019, Kakko is 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds with a solid reputation for retrieving pucks in the offensive zone, winning puck battles along the sidewalls, protecting the puck from foes, being patient with the puck to make plays and never backing down from crease scrums.
Two: The Time is Now
In hockey, “desperate” is essentially a positive term. To play with desperation equates to hounding the puck, moving up ice swiftly, thinking shot-first, crashing the net, finishing checks, no shifts off for any forward line or defensive pair. After two straight home losses to dip below NHL .500, including the fifth time this season the Kraken have been shut out, Bylsma was straightforward about what’s needed Thursday and beyond.
“You take a look at the scenario, the setting, where we're at in the season,” said Bylsma. “I think desperation has got to creep into our game on a nightly basis. When it's not, it's evident. For the Tampa Bay game [5-1 loss], I don't think it was at the level to have success and play good night in and night out. The way we stepped out in the first period [Tuesday] was great, but you’ve got to respect the opposition and what they're good at and what they do ... there's probably a few more opportunities we could take to shoot the puck on goal. That's the mindset we need to play it every night.”
The road schedule features three games in the next four nights (Chicago Thursday, Vegas-Colorado back-to-back Saturday and Sunday) and then at Vancouver on Dec. 28 post-holiday break before returning home for a matchup with Utah on Dec. 30 to finish out the calendar year. There’s a lot of hockey year left, but time to get north on the ice, and with the win-loss is clearly now.
Three: Know the Foe: Chicago Riding Streak of 28 Straight Penalty Kills
Original Kraken forward Ryan Donato leads the Blackhawks with 11 goals. He scored the game-winning goal during the final two-plus minutes Tuesday for a comeback home 3-2 win over playoff contender Washington. Chicago scored all three goals in the third period, including a shorthanded goal from journeyman forward Ilya Mikheyev less than a minute into the frame. Chicago snuffed three Capitals power plays to make it an eye-popping 28 straight penalty kills. It marked a second straight win for new coach Anders Sorensen and an overall record of 3-3-0 in his first half-dozen games since being promoted from American Hockey League affiliate Rockford when Luke Richardson was fired. Sorenson gets high marks for his work with prospects who have advanced the NHL, but it’s likely his most scrutinized task will be finding the formula (and linemates) to free the 2023 No. 1 overall pick and 2023-2024 NHL Rookie of the Year Connor Bedard to find his best game.
