3 Keys: Kraken at Stars, Game 2 of Western 2nd Round

(WC1) Kraken at (C2) Stars

Western Conference Second Round, Game 2

Seattle leads best-of-7 series 1-0

9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS

DALLAS -- The Seattle Kraken will look to take a big advantage in the Western Conference Second Round when they play the Dallas Stars in Game 2 at American Airlines Center on Thursday.

The Kraken defeated the Stars 5-4 in overtime in Game 1. They were the first team to score five goals against Stars goalie Jake Oettinger in his NHL playoff career. Three came in a 52-second stretch of the first period.

"We kind of stuck to our game and tried to get inside as much as we could but he's an unbelievable goalie," forward Morgan Geekie said. "On the other side of it, he had a great series last series, and we knew that coming in."

RELATED: [Complete Stars vs. Kraken series coverage]

"We try to get pucks to the net and get to the right spots and we were fortunate to have five go in. I don't know if we're going to score five every night, but we're just going to try and do what we can and give our team the best chance to win."

Teams that take a 2-0 lead in a best-of-7 second round are 343-55 (.862), including 1-1 (.500) in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Here are 3 keys for Game 2:

1. Robertson looking to break through

Jason Robertson said he's been getting opportunities throughout the postseason. Whether he's getting goals or not, the Stars forward (seven points; two goals, five assists in seven games) is looking to make an impact.

"I think every game I'm still getting at least one Grade A, so that's something to be positive about," Robertson said. "I just want to be a positive impact on the game, turning the tide, not getting scored on when I'm out there. Just creating, putting our team in great situations after I change or whatever."

2. Road warriors

Seattle is 4-1 on the road during the playoffs. The only teams with more road victories in their first postseason trip are the Minnesota Wild (six in 2003), Vegas Golden Knights (six in 2018), Florida Panthers (five in 1996) and New York Islanders (five in 1975).

Why have the Kraken been so good on the road?

"I wish I had the answer to that," coach Dave Hakstol said. "We've been pretty successful on the road all year. I don't draw too much from it, maybe we've got to be a little bit better at home. I guess that's what I would draw from it.

"Sometimes there's trends that you see throughout the year. That's been one for us. We've been comfortable on the road. We've been pretty focused on the road. Tonight will obviously be our biggest test on the road this season."

3. Pavelski power

Stars forward Joe Pavelski is coming off a four-goal performance in Game 1. If he scores again in Game 2, he'll join Steve Payne as the only players in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history to get five goals over a two-game span in the playoffs. Payne had three in Game 1 and two in Game 2 against the Boston Bruins in the 1981 preliminary round.

"Obviously we're here to win games this time of year," Pavelski said, "so you appreciate certain things and how you feel and the confidence you get out of certain plays. But you flush that, and you have to go do it again and try to contribute how you can. I mean, it's all about winning right now and trying to get to those four wins fastest in your series."

Kraken projected lineup

Tye Kartye -- Matty Beniers -- Jordan Eberle

Jaden Schwartz -- Alexander Wennberg -- Morgan Geekie

Eeli Tolvanen -- Yanni Gourde -- Oliver Bjorkstrand

Brandon Tanev -- Ryan Donato -- Daniel Sprong

Vince Dunn -- Adam Larsson

Jamie Oleksiak -- Will Borgen

Carson Soucy -- Justin Schultz

Philipp Grubauer

Martin Jones

Scratched: Cale Fleury, Jaycob Megna, Jesper Froden, Chris Driedger

Injured: Andre Burakovsky (lower body), Joonas Donskoi (upper body), John Hayden (lower body), Jared McCann (undisclosed)

Stars projected lineup

Jason Robertson -- Roope Hintz -- Tyler Seguin

Mason Marchment -- Max Domi -- Joe Pavelski

Jamie Benn -- Wyatt Johnston -- Evgenii Dadonov

Luke Glendening -- Radek Faksa -- Ty Dellandrea

Ryan Suter -- Miro Heiskanen

Esa Lindell -- Jani Hakanpaa

Thomas Harley -- Colin Miller

Jake Oettinger

Scott Wedgewood

Scratched: Joel Hanley, Joel Kiviranta, Nils Lundkvist, Fredrik Olofsson, Riley Tufte

Injured: None

Status report

Schwartz and Schultz were not on the ice during the morning skate. "I guess this time of year, you never really know," Hakstol said. "We'll see where we're at tonight." ... The Stars will have the same lines as Game 1.