Need to Knows
- Time: 5:00 pm PT / 8:00 pm ET
- Location: Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado
- Where to Watch: KHN, KONG, ALT, NHL Network
- Where to Listen: Kraken Audio Network on 93.3 KJR
Know Your Enemy
Since the last time these two teams played, Colorado decided to do a little switch-up with their goaltending situation. Specifically, the Avalanche decided that they needed some forests in front of their net. On November 30, they traded for Scott Wedgewood from the Nashville Predators, and on December 9, they traded for Mackenzie Blackwood from the San Jose Sharks. For Avalanche fans (including my good friend who shared this clip with me), Wedgewood seems primed to endear people over after sharing how much thought he put into his new masks since he’s come to Colorado. Charming traits, however, weren’t the primary reason the Avalanche made trades for new goaltenders. At the start of the season, it was the team’s goaltending that was primarily responsible for costing them games. Looking for an upgrade was paramount for a team whose offensive talent is due to keep their Cup window open for years to come.
Speaking of that offensive talent, Nathan MacKinnon is currently leading the entire NHL in points with 55, and Mikko Rantanen sits at third with 50. Additionally, Cale Makar has the most points of any defenseman in the league with 42. Unless you are brand new to the sport (which, hi there, it’s nice to have you here) it shouldn’t come to any surprise that the Avalanche’s best players are being some of the best players in the league, period. It’s just a reminder of what exactly the Kraken are up against anytime they play Colorado.
Game Preview
It’s not only the last game of the season between the Kraken and the Avalanche, but it’s the last game before the Kraken go on a short holiday break. It’ll be almost an entire week until the next time the team plays, so sending the Kraken faithful off with a win for Christmas (or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa or whatever it is you celebrate as the year comes to an end) would be nice. Or at least, I’d rather not have to add “last night’s Seattle Kraken game” to the Airing of Grievances as my family jokingly celebrates Festivus on Monday. Though with the way these two teams are whenever they play each other, I might have grievances to air regardless of the outcome. This really has become such a bitter rivalry in such a short amount of time.
Regardless of the holidays, the Kraken still need to re-gain their footing. After a successful East Coast road trip where they earned 6 out of a possible 8 points, the Kraken came back home for 4 games where they only earned 3 points. While losing in the shootout to the Panthers isn’t a result to be too upset about, the losses against Tampa Bay and Ottawa on that homestand kicked off a trend that has spiraled into two more losses on the road against Chicago and Vegas. The Kraken’s recent play points towards the team losing many of the good habits they had picked up on that East Coast road trip. (Either that, or I need you all to help me figure out how I can quit my day job and cover this team in person more often, because maybe I was a good luck charm up in NYC.) In fact, the Kraken have been outscored 17-4 over the past 4 games. It’s not a good look!
There’s not a lot of time to allow the Kraken to reset before the game. Back-to-backs with travel are always tricky for that. Maybe the reset will need to come after the break. However, the Kraken need to remember how to play the game we’ve seen them capable of playing in the past, because the season is slipping away fast on them.