Seattle Kraken hockey returns, as coach Lane Lambert’s men will be on the road in Texas to take on the Dallas Stars.
The Kraken currently sit tied for third place in the Pacific Division with the Anaheim Ducks, and trail the Edmonton Oilers by one point for second place. The Kraken have 26 games to earn a playoff spot, and with how tight the standings are, every game matters.
The Kraken entered the Olympic break winners of five of their last six games. Their goal tonight is to carry the momentum they built before the break. The Kraken should be refreshed, as their only players who participated in the Olympics were Philipp Grubauer, Eeli Tolvanen and Kaapo Kakko.
Kakko and Tolvanen returned to practice yesterday and are projected to be in the lineup tonight.
As for the Stars, they’ve come back from the Olympics less fortunate than the Kraken. While the Kraken have become much healthier, the Stars will now be without their leading scorer, Mikko Rantanen. Roope Hintz is also a game-time decision due to illness.
The Stars enter tonight’s contest sitting in third place in the Central Division and in fifth place in the NHL standings. They had won six games in a row before the Olympic break.
Kraken’s projected lines:
McCann-Beniers-Eberle
Tolvanen-Stephenson-Catton
Schwartz-Wright-Kakko
Winterton-Gaudreau-Melanson
Dunn-Larsson
Oleksiak-Montour
Evans-Lindgren
Daccord
Grubauer
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