Thursday night fight to begin the homestand: previewing the Kraken battling the Flyers
By Silvia-Leija Rosas, edited by Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Our Seattle Kraken face off against the Philadelphia Flyers tonight at Climate Pledge Arena with a puck drop time of 7PM PDT, beginning a five-game homestand for them coming off a three-game road trip that saw them net four of six possible points. Amazon Prime members in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska can watch the game on Prime Video or on Tegna-affiliated channels, including KONG TV for Seattle-area viewers.
The Kraken are coming home with a fire lit under them after an inspiring 7-3 road win against the Nashville Predators on Tuesday. Seven (yes, seven!) different Kraken players scored and Joey Daccord was a menace in the net, coming up clutch especially during a massive sequence in the third period that helped Seattle truly pull away. The word offensive was totally missing from the Kraken’s vocabulary the game before against the Dallas Stars in a shutout defeat, but in Nashville they became the very definition. Even though the offense was good, the defense has to be better in order to sustain any sort of lead that’s built up. While Seattle is averaging 3.25 goals, they are also giving up 3.0 goals per game.
The Flyers are closing out their West Coast trip after back-to-back losses against the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers up in the Great White North. The latter, which they lost in overtime to a team that hasn’t left their home barn yet this season. The Flyers are a different team in that regard, as they haven’t yet played their first home game of the 2024-25 campaign yet. But it won’t be easy against a team who is desperate to end a road trip on a high note before their home opener and whose powerplay has improved by leaps and bounds after ending the season last in the NHL on the man advantage. Philadelphia is now 4-for-15 on the man advantage and have only allowed two power play goals on 14 opportunities. The Kraken, on the other hand, are 1-for-9 on the power play and allowed two power play goals per nine opportunities.
Players to watch
This might be cheating, but the entire fourth line. No, really. Tye Kartye, Yanni Gourde and Brandon Tanev have stepped up when the top three lines struggle offensively. They have been the most consistent and scored one of the many goals against the Predators. If you’re looking for just the one, though, keep an eye on Brandon Montour who is averaging over 23 minutes of ice time per game. “Monty” is creating offensive chances when the actual offense won’t give anything and has outskated several players to keep the puck under Seattle’s possession. If you’re a fan of milestones and numbers, add Jared McCann to the list of names to consider. “Canner” enters tonight’s game two goals shy of becoming the first player to score 100 goals with Seattle. He tallied four points (2g/2a) in four games including two multi-point games on Oct. 12 in Minnesota and Oct. 15 in Nashville. McCann holds the franchise record for multi-point efforts with 42. He has 15 points (6g/9a) in 28 career games against the Flyers.
For the Flyers keep your eyes on Matvei Michkov. The 19-year-old first round pick scored two goals in the Flyers' 4-3 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Michkov’s game is exactly what the Flyers need during this rebuilding phase. He has elevated his linemates’ game with multiple assists and is a key component of that improving power play. And just to be fair, I am also throwing Ivan Fedetov on the table for you all. The Russian goalie’s start against Seattle will mark his fifth NHL game and only second start of the season. His performances so far have been inconsistent but a goalie looking to prove himself is always dangerous - just ask Jake Oettinger. Another option for you to consider is Joel Farabee. Farabee enters tonight;s game with three points (1g/2a) in the Flyers' first three games. He tallied a power-play assist against Vancouver on Oct.11. Per NHL Stats, with the assist, he extended his career totals in season-opening games to three goals and five assists in five games. Farabee has two points (1g/1a) in six career games against Seattle.
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Check out our previous Seattle Kraken articles here.
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