There’s no question the New York Islanders had an advantage on the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night, based simply on the fact that they had already played a game coming out of the break. The Kraken didn’t have their “legs” back in the 4-0 loss.
That said, it’s behind them now and it makes their next performance somewhat urgent. Remain discombobulated and out of sync and it could spell trouble. Find their game again, the one they were working with before the NHL All-Star break, and all should be well.
“Execution, timing and pace wasn’t very good last night,” Seattle Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol said after practice on Wednesday, “so we spent 25 minutes getting up and down the rink trying to improve that a little bit.”
For the Seattle Kraken, when they’re clicking, those three words all work together – execution, timing and pace. Their puck pressure, quick transition game and their opportunities off the forecheck all rely on hard work, quick legs, and being in the right place at the right time.
Seattle Kraken Vs. Metro
Hakstol said he liked the energy at the club’s practice, but still wasn’t entirely crazy with the execution. There’s little room for error with a double-whammy Eastern Conference challenge looming. The 2nd-place Metro Division New Jersey Devils greet the Kraken on Thursday night followed by the 3rd-place New York Rangers on Friday.
Seattle beat New Jersey in overtime 4-3 on January 19th at Climate Pledge Arena.
“Right from the drop of the puck they’re a quick team,” Hakstol said. “They have really good ability throughout their line-up, they play the game fast, so it’s a great match-up. It’s a real challenging match-up. The message is to get back to playing fast. It’s gonna be that type of game tomorrow, you’ve gotta check well, you’ve gotta skate to check, and you’ve gotta make sure you’re doing things quickly and sharply with the puck.”
— It appears the Seattle Kraken will be without Andre Burakovsky for the next two nights as Hakstol indicated the club’s leading scorer is still being evaluated. Burakovsky left the game after his first shift on Long Island on Tuesday night with a lower body injury.
— Defenseman Justin Schultz, undisclosed upper body, has been skating with the team and could be available for the game on Thursday and/or Friday night.
