The Vegas Golden Knights will look to extend their win streak to three on Friday night when they visit the skidding Seattle Kraken for a Pacific Division matchup.
Vegas is coming off its first road win (1-3-1), a 4-2 victory in Edmonton on Wednesday to open a two-game trip.
Noah Hanifin scored twice, Jack Eichel added a goal and two assists and Ivan Barbashev contributed three helpers for the Golden Knights, who have won six of seven overall.
“It was good, it was starting to get into our heads almost a little bit,” Hanifin said of the road woes. “We’ve been playing so great at home, and when you play at home, you just have to kind of grind those games out, be responsible defensively, and we were looking to do that (in Edmonton).
“I thought we had a really good defensive effort, and that’s how you win road games, so it was good to get that one.”
Mark Stone has points in seven straight (four goals, eight assists), following his goal in the win over the Oilers. Tied with Eichel for the team assists lead with 15, Stone has a team-high 21 points in 13 games.
With his assist on Hanifin’s first goal, William Karlsson extended his point streak to five (two goals, four assists).
Barbashev leads Vegas with seven goals in 13 contests.
Goaltender Adin Hill is 6-2-0 with an .882 save percentage and a 3.01 goals-against average in eight starts this season. In five career games against the Kraken, Hill is 3-2 with a .901 save percentage and a 2.81 GAA.
Vegas won three of four games against Seattle last season, with Hill in net for a 5-4 overtime road victory on March 12, 2024.
The Kraken open a six-game homestand against the Golden Knights while looking to avoid a fifth straight loss.
Seattle, which has been off since Tuesday, is looking for its first win since Oct. 29, an 8-2 road victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
The Kraken are coming off a 6-3 defeat to the visiting Colorado Avalanche and are 2-3-1 at home.
Jared McCann and Matty Beniers each had a goal and an assist and Jaden Schwartz also scored for Seattle, which has lost seven of its last eight (1-6-1).
“Hopefully, we get a clear understanding of how we have to play and how we have to compete on an every-night basis to have success,” Kraken coach Dan Bylsma said. “I think each game has probably been a little bit different lesson, but that should be the overall theme.
“Time of the year to learn the lesson now — not wait for later in the year. Try to learn the lesson. It’s a difficult time and difficult lessons to learn, but we have to learn them, and we have to take it as it is.”
McCann has a team-leading 10 assists and 16 points through 14 games, while McCann and Eberle have six goals apiece to pace the Kraken.
Goaltender Joey Daccord is 4-3-1 in eight starts with a 2.76 GAA and a .915 save percentage. In two career appearances against the Golden Knights, Daccord is 1-1-0 with a .944 save percentage and a 2.00 GAA.
Friday is the first of the teams’ three meetings this season.
–Field Level Media
