On Thursday, March 19, the Seattle Kraken took on the Nashville Predators. This game closed out the season series, where each team had one win heading into it.
Nashville struck first in the early part of the first period, but the Kraken tied it up late in the same frame. The Predators took an early lead in the second, thanks to a power-play goal. Although the Kraken tried to even the score in the third period, the Predators scored an empty net goal to take a 3-1 win and the season series.
Gaudreau Made Sure It Wasn’t a Shutout
12 minutes after the Predators got on the board, Chandler Stephenson gained control of the puck and passed it to Frederick Gaudreau in the neutral zone. He skated it into the Predators’ zone and passed it to Kaapo Kakko. When Stephenson came into the zone, he passed it to him. He skated up to the net with speed and took a shot. Gaudreau was in front to tip the puck in and get Seattle on the board.
Gaudreau went 27 games without scoring a goal; his last was scored on Jan. 5 against the Calgary Flames. He may be on the fourth line, but he has excellent scoring abilities when needed. He lends a veteran eye to the younger players on the fourth line, Ben Meyers and Jacob Melanson. His play with these two second-line players might have just elevated him to another line in the future.
Kraken Had Another Sloppy Night
On paper, it didn’t look like the Kraken had an even performance with the Predators. They took one fewer shot than the Predators, recording 26 to Nashville’s 27. They took an additional penalty, recording eight penalty minutes to the Predators’ six. Seattle also won more faceoffs, recording a 53.7 win percentage. At the end of the day, Nashville was the better team in this game.
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When speaking to the media after the game, head coach Lane Lambert was asked about the Kraken’s discipline. He stated, “I’m not unhappy with the effort at all. I think we had enough chances to score and to win the hockey game, and we missed out on some of those. We need to find a way to put it in the back of the net, but overall, you can’t be unhappy with the effort and the way we played.”
The Kraken played hard, but they were outplayed by Nashville. The Predators were the better team in the end, which was a tough blow to Seattle. The Kraken are continuing to battle it out for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference. With this win, the Predators now have 71 points, the same number as the Kraken. The San Jose Sharks also lost their game on March 19, keeping them below the Kraken, but now the Predators jump above San Jose in the standings.
The Los Angeles Kings lost to the Philadelphia Flyers in a shootout, but that extra point they picked up by forcing the game into overtime was enough to catapult them into the wild card spot, the same spot the Kraken have been clinging to.
The standings are close, and the race is tight. With all the teams being so close together, it is truly anyone’s game at this point. Seattle will need to pick up as many points as possible on this road trip if they want to keep their postseason chances alive.
Kraken Continue the Road Trip
The Kraken will continue their road trip and head north to Ohio, where they will take on the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, March 21.
