The Seattle Kraken are preparing to host the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday, Nov. 5. This game marks the Kraken’s last on their five-game homestand. They just beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 in the game prior on Nov. 3. This marked Seattle’s second win of the homestand. They’re looking to close it out with a win against San Jose.
Related: 3 Takeaways From the Kraken’s 3-1 Victory Over the Blackhawks
The Sharks just closed out a four-game homestand of their own. In the final game, they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in a shootout on Sunday. San Jose will seek a win at Climate Pledge Arena before heading back to SAP Center.
Kraken Storylines
The Kraken are coming off a giant win against Chicago, which resulted in two points for Seattle in the standings. While the season is still in the early stages, these two points have put the Kraken in a great position, as they are currently in first place in the Pacific Division. Despite having the same number of points as the Edmonton Oilers, Seattle’s start to the season is undoubtedly the best in their five NHL seasons.
Ahead of the morning skate on Nov. 3, defenseman Ryker Evans was on the ice in a regular jersey. On Oct. 1, the team announced he would be out for 6-8 weeks with an upper-body injury. This game against the Sharks marks the five-week mark. While it’s great that Evans is getting out there on the ice with his team and his return seems imminent, they will want to make sure he is completely cleared before playing him. The last thing Seattle needs is to re-injure a player in his first game of the 2025-26 season.
While Evans is closer to a return to the ice, there is still no update on Jared McCann or Frederick Gaudreau. McCann is still listed as day-to-day, but Gaudreau was at least skating in a red no-contact jersey. Hopefully, these two players, as well as Evans, get well soon.
The player to watch in this game is Eeli Tolvanen. He has had a slower start to the season, recording four assists so far, including the secondary assist on Matty Beniers’ goal against Chicago. Lane Lambert switched the lines around so Tolvanen was playing alongside Beniers and Eberle on the first line. With the added ice time and the skilled teammates at his side, Tolvanen is due for his first goal of the season soon.
Team Stats
Seattle Kraken
Season Record: 6-2-4
Top Scorers:
- Jordan Eberle – 5 goals (G), 5 assists (A), 10 points (P)
- Jaden Schwartz – 4 G, 6 A, 10 P
- Brandon Montour – 3 G, 5 A, 8 P
- Matty Beniers – 2 G, 6 A, 8 P
- Chandler Stephenson – 3 G, 4 A, 7 P
Goalie Stats:
- Joey Daccord – 6-1-3, 2.53 goals-against average (GAA), .910 save percentage (SV%)
- Philipp Grubauer – 0-0-1, 2.12 GAA, .897 SV%
- Matt Murray – 0-1-0, 3.13 GAA, .909 SV%
San Jose Sharks
Season Record: 4-6-3
Top Scorers:
- Macklin Celebrini – 7 G, 11 A, 18 P
- William Eklund – 5 G, 6 A, 11 P
- Will Smith – 4 G, 7 A, 11 P
- Dmitry Orlov – 0 G, 10 A, 10 P
- Philipp Kurashev – 5 G, 4 A, 9 P
Goalie Stats:
- Yaroslav Askarov – 2-4-1, 4.29 GAA, .867 SV%
- Alex Nedeljkovic – 2-2-2, 3.29 GAA, .895 SV%
Projected Lineups
(Subject to change before puck drop)
As per The Hockey Writers’ projected lineup article.
Seattle Kraken
Eeli Tolvanen — Matty Beniers — Jordan Eberle
Jaden Schwartz — Chandler Stephenson — Kaapo Kakko
Mason Marchment — Shane Wright — Jani Nyman
Tye Kartye — Ben Meyers — Ryan Winterton
Vince Dunn — Adam Larsson
Ryan Lindgren — Brandon Montour
Josh Mahura — Jamie Oleksiak
Joey Daccord
Matt Murray
Scratched: Cale Fleury, Philipp Grubauer, Berkly Catton
Injured: Jared McCann, Frederick Gaudreau, Ryker Evans, Max McCormick
San Jose Sharks
Tyler Toffoli — Macklin Celebrini — Will Smith
Philipp Kurashev — Alex Wennberg — Adam Gaudette
Jeff Skinner — Michael Misa — Ethan Cardwell
Barclay Goodrow — Ty Dellandrea — Collin Graf
Dmitry Orlov — Timothy Liljegren
Nick Leddy — John Klingberg
Sam Dickinson — Shakir Mukhamadullin
Alex Nedeljkovic
Yaroslav Askarov
Scratched: Mario Ferraro, Vincent Iorio, Vincent Desharnais
Injured: William Eklund, Ryan Reaves
Next Up for the Kraken
The Kraken will head to Missouri to take on the St. Louis Blues for the first game of their two-game road trip on Saturday, Nov. 8.
