One: Come to Play
The Kraken defeated the Carolina Hurricanes by scoring just 19 seconds in and keeping the pressure on until notching the decisive two goals in the final 10 minutes of regulation.
That’s what you call a 60-minute game. They held the Hurricanes to only seven – that’s not a typo – shots in the first two periods and 16 overall. Do that, and you’ll win 90% of the time. There was no dipping their toe in the water this time. It was a full-on Kraken plunge. After 40 minutes, they had a 9-0 advantage in high-danger scoring chances. And even that wasn’t enough to guarantee victory, which is where the 60-minute effort comes in handy.
Two: Maintain some line consistency
Shuffling guys up and down the lineup is a good idea when the team can’t win games. But they just defeated the Hurricanes, so let’s see how the Jaden Schwartz-Matty Beniers–Yanni Gourde line looks a second time out. Gourde just had his best game all season, and Schwartz scored the type of huge goal he was getting a year ago before being sidelined six weeks due to injury. Schwartz now has goals in consecutive games and is somebody the Kraken need to get going.
And by the way, centering Shane Wright between Eeli Tolvanen and Oliver Bjorkstrand looks like a winner as well and has for a bit of time now.
If that means keeping Andre Burakovsky and Daniel Sprong sidelined, then so be it. They can get back into the lineup, but only when other guys play their way out of it. Didn’t see anybody do that against Carolina, so there. That’s how it must be from now on. Want to play? Earn your way in.
Three: Know the Foe
The Islanders are a team the Kraken has had success against at UBS Arena. In fact, with two wins in three tries it’s the only team on this road trip the Kraken had beaten in their venue before. Which makes this a huge swing game. Win here, and the Kraken are guaranteed at least a .500 road trip and perhaps more. Lose here, the specter of dropping three of four on this trip looms large just as it did to start the week. And the Kraken need to change that dynamic.
The Islanders are still without one-time Seattle Thunderbirds star Mat Barzal and also Anthony Duclair due to injury. And Bo Horvat, their prized mid-season acquisition two years ago, is without a goal in his last 12 games. In other words, this is a beatable Islanders team, the way it was a month ago when the Kraken took them down at Climate Pledge Arena.
New York has dropped four of five and nine of 12, largely because they’ve scored only 31 goals in the dozen contests – just 2.6 per game. Break it down even further, the Islanders have scored three goals or fewer in nine of the 12 matchups, which, if the trend continues, will be a key to victory for a Kraken team that is 7-1-0 when scoring more than three.
