The Penguins take on the Kraken on the second half of a back-to-back. Welcome back to NHL Predictions here on Last Word On Hockey! Each day, we provide in-depth analysis, insights, and predictions for all the NHL’s games. In tonight’s matchup, the Pittsburgh Penguins host the Seattle Kraken in a cross-conference clash.
NHL Predictions Seattle Kraken vs Pittsburgh Penguins
Head-to-Head: Kraken 0-0 Penguins
Time: 7:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST)
How to Watch TV: KHN/Prime, SN-PIT, KONG, Sportsnet+
Sidney Crosby and the Penguins host Matty Beniers and the Kraken on Saturday night in Pittsburgh.
The Penguins Story
Pittsburgh comes into this game off an abysmal loss against the Minnesota Wild last night. They lost the game 5-0. With this loss, the Penguins are 10-6-4. As such, Pittsburgh sits sixth in the East. Coming into this game, the Penguins will need to rely on their high-octane offence and top-of-the-league power play to get past a stingy Kraken squad.
Coming into this game, Pittsburgh is led in points by Evgeni Malkin. With 23 points in 20 games, Malkin has played well in leading the Penguins’ offence. Behind him, Sidney Crosby is second in the team in scoring, with 21 points in 20 games. Expect the Kraken to focus on shutting down these offensive weapons in this contest. Moreover, Arturs Silovs got the start in net last night, allowing four goals before being pulled for rookie goaltender Sergey Murashov. Expect the rookie to get the start tonight as part of the goaltending rotation set by coach Dan Muse. On the second half of a back-to-back, coming off a massive loss to the Wild, Murashov has a tough job ahead of him in this game.
The Kraken Story
The Kraken come into this game off a 3-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night. Seattle is 10-5-5 through 20 games this season, just two points behind the Anaheim Ducks for the divisional lead. The Kraken are 5-3-2 in their last 10. Special teams, however, have been a source of trouble for Seattle throughout this season. The team’s power play is scoring at a 20.7% clip, placing them 18th in the league with the man advantage. Furthermore, this has been detrimental to the Kraken’s anemic offence, ranked 29th in the league. Their penalty kill, effective at a 69.6% rate, is 30th in the NHL through this season. However, the Kraken are still playing incredible defence at 5v5, giving up the 6th-least number of goals in the league to this point. A Kraken victory will rely heavily on staying out of the box and keeping the game at 5v5.
The veterans have led the way in point production to start this season. Forwards Jaden Schwartz, Jordan Eberle and Chandler Stephenson are three of the Kraken’s four top scorers. Schwartz leads the team with eight goals and 15 points in 20 games, closely followed by Eberle’s eight goals and 14 points in 20 games. Young gun Matty Beniers has seen a slow, albeit better start to his season than last year. With just two goals along with 11 assists for 13 points in 20 games, the Kraken will want more from their long-term top six centre. From the backend, Seattle has received offence from Vince Dunn and Brandon Montour, the defencemen scoring 12 and 11 points through 20 games respectively. Whereas Pittsburgh is relying on it’s top lines for offence, the Kraken will try to play a team game to get an important two points against the Penguins.
NHL Prediction
The Pittsburgh Penguins, coming off a loss, seem to be rejuvenated from their Global Series trip to Sweden. While the Kraken have gotten more rest over the past few days, their anemic offence and abysmal penalty kill give the edge to the Penguins a team with the best power play and fewest goals allowed in the NHL to this point of the season.
NHL Prediction: Penguins win 3-1.
Prop Bet for the Night
A good bet for this game is a popular prop bet for goals under 5, giving a return of +210. The Penguins and Kraken are good defensive teams so far this season, expect a tight-checking game that could lead to a dearth in goals scored.
Main Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
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The post NHL Predictions: November 22nd Seattle Kraken vs Pittsburgh Penguins appeared first on Last Word On Hockey.