Preview: Kraken @ Lightning

Just the Facts:

• The Time: 4pm PDT
• The Place: Amalie Arena, Tampa Bay, FLA
• Place to Watch: BSSUN, and ROOT Sports NW, ESPN+ or (Sportsnet+ in Canada)
• Place to Listen: KJR 93.3-FM
• An Opposing Viewpoint: Raw Charge

Know Your Enemy

The Seattle Kraken are meeting the Tampa Bay Lightning, in Tampa Bay, on Monday evening. The home team will be well rested, having last played Thursday, where they beat down the San Jose Sharks to the tune of 6-0. But even if that weren’t the case, the Lightning are a tough nut to crack at Amalie Arena. They’ve managed to pick up standings points in every home game this season, with only a single overtime loss blemishing their perfect record.

The usual suspects are leading the charge, with five players over a point-per-game on what is still a very talented roster. The Lightning might not be the perennial Stanley Cup favorites anymore, but they can beat any team, on any night. Their powerplay is clicking at well over 30% through eight games, and the penalty kill is close to unbeatable (94%). Names like Kucherov, Point, Stamkos, along with relative newcomer Brandon Hagel, mean the danger is no less at 5-on-5. And as if that wasn’t enough, Victor Hedman, who always seems to be in the running for the Norris trophy, looks to be in fine form as well through eight games(1-8-9).

Game Plan

The Kraken will need to win the special teams match up if they’re going to take home a win on Monday. Not an easy thing to do, but if there’s the slightest silver lining, it’s the absence of yet another of Tampa’s stars, goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy. Out following surgery for a herniated disc, the Vezina and Conn Smythe winning netminder is irreplaceable and thus, his replacement is the weak spot that the Kraken need to target.

Just who that will be on Monday isn’t known, but rumor has Swedish netminder Jonas Johansson getting the start. Johansson has been the better of the Lightning’s two goalies at 4-1-2, but there’s a chance that Seattle’s mediocre start to their season plays to their advantage. Number Two guy Matt Tomkins hasn’t seen a start since October 15th, and with Vasilevskiy’s timetable for a return unknown, Johansson will have to sit out a few games here and there. If Seattle is perceived as a somewhat easier night, the backup might get the nod from coach Jon Cooper.

Last season the Kraken usually found ways to play up to the level of their competition, but posted two losses against Tampa Bay, bringing the all time record to 0-4 against the Bolts. The goaltending situation is something that Seattle needs to exploit, but it’ll take a full 60 minutes of mistake free hockey to make that happen. But with luck, on the next episode of the Beneath the Frozen Sea podcast we’ll be discussing the franchise’s first win over this aging dynasty of an opponent, rather than closing out October with another loss.