Kraken Special Teams
The Seattle Kraken persevered on Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins and one of the key statistical categories that doesn’t necessarily jump off the page was the 2-for-2 penalty kill. The Penguins were the same, 2-2, but so what. What Kraken coaches and fans were concerned about was their team’s PK.
One game at a time, build off success. The Kraken penalty kill still sits 30th in the NHL at 66.7%, and one would think there’s nowhere to go but up.
The best part of the 2-for-2 is the fact that there were only 2 Pittsburgh opportunities. The best penalty kill is to stay out of the box in the first place.
The Kraken are practically dead even with Tuesday’s opponent, the Calgary Flames, in terms of overall power play efficiency, 27-percent to 26.9-percent. Those are very good numbers.
Stay out of the box.
Meanwhile, we go for a spin …
Let’s Skate …
Tage Thompson of the Buffalo Sabres went bonkers on Monday against the Detroit Red Wings with three goals and three assists, one of just three men to ever pull off a six-point night on Halloween in NHL history. The other two: legends Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Clarke.
The Sabres club record for points in a game is held by Gilbert Perreault with seven.
Jeff Skinner did alright as well, picking up a goal and two assists, the lamp-lighter being the 300th of his NHL career. The Sabres polished off the Red Wings 8-3.
Big Time Ouchies
— This bit of bad news from NHL.com: Jamie Drysdale could be out the rest of the regular season for the Anaheim Ducks. The 20-year-old defenseman will have surgery for a torn labrum and is expected to be sidelined 4-6 months. Drysdale was injured in a 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday.
— The Washington Capitals are suffering through a severe injury bug. Veteran forward TJ Oshie is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury, the same listing for defenseman John Carlson who’s out day-to-day.
Forwards Nicklas Backstrom, Tom Wilson, Carl Hagelin, and Connor Brown are all out long term with a variety of maladies. The Capitals have managed to scrape together a 5-4-and-1 record through their first ten games, but adding Oshie and Carlson to the list definitely won’t help matters.
NHL Tops
The Boston Bruins have the best winning percentage in the NHL right now (.889) with a record of 8-and-1. They’re tied for the most points in the league with the Vegas Golden Knights (8-and-2). The clubs lead their respective conferences with 16 points.
Enjoy the Hockey Action Tonight !!
