Things are starting to look up for the Seattle Kraken.
The Kraken won five of six games on their just-completed homestand to surpass hockey’s version of .500 (10-9-1) and move within a point of the Western Conference’s two wild-card playoff spots.
Seattle will try to carry that momentum into Saturday’s game against the host Los Angeles Kings, who have lost three of their past four games.
The Kraken dropped four road games in a row — a span in which they scored just four goals — before returning home.
“We were obviously losing those games, and I think your confidence, momentum and mindset starts to change a little bit,” Kraken center Matty Beniers said. “So, I think being able to get home, we just kind of had a couple of days off. We were able to get some really good days of practice and make sure that our mindset and game was good and together.
“And then we were able to get that first win … and once that happens, you build confidence, and you build chemistry from there.”
The Kraken are coming off a 3-0 victory against visiting Nashville on Wednesday as Joey Daccord made 24 saves for his first shutout of the season. Brandon Montour (one goal, one assist) and Chandler Stephenson (three assists), Seattle’s big offseason acquisitions, sparked the offense.
Forward Jared McCann, the Kraken’s leading scorer with nine goals and 21 points, scored three times during the homestand, including an overtime winner against Vegas.
“The way things ended on the road trip, we felt like we’d let some games get away from us,” McCann said. “Obviously, it wasn’t good but coming home here we kind of turned the page and just tried to focus on the next game.
“I mean, it’s just more of a mental thing. You’ve got to get past that mental block. We didn’t have our best (on the road), but you’ve got to just push that aside and worry about the next one.
“That’s kind of the way we had to look at it and it’s worked out for us.”
The Kings lost 1-0 to visiting Buffalo on Wednesday despite 18 saves by David Rittich. It was the first time this season that Los Angeles was blanked.
“There’s nights that I’m really frustrated with how we played, and it’s hard to be disappointed with the guys (Wednesday),” Kings coach Jim Hiller said. “They tried, it didn’t go their way. Live with it and move on.”
The Kings came close to scoring several times, including a two-on-one rush late in the second period when Trevor Moore tried to pass to Phillip Danault instead of shooting.
“Just one too many passes,” Hiller said. “We thought Mooresy should have shot it. If the pass gets through and Phil taps it in the back door, we’re saying, ‘Wow, what an incredible goal.’ So you can’t take that decision-making off the players. They have to play hockey and choose what’s right in the situation.
“On a night like (Wednesday) where it was hard to find a goal, you don’t want to pass too many up. Maybe that was one that we passed up.”
–Field Level Media
