How the Kraken are preparing for shootouts

A shootout can turn a hockey game into a one-on-one battle of patience, instincts, and execution. For the Kraken, finding success in those moments starts well before a shooter approaches the net.

Goaltending coach Colin Zulianello spent part of the offseason examining shootout success around the NHL and looking for ways that Seattle could better prepare its shooters and goaltenders. The work led to a presentation for the players, followed by dedicated practice sessions designed to turn those lessons into habits.

“We thought we could do better than we did last year,” Zulianello said.

The goal was to establish a plan rather than leave everything to instinct. For the goaltenders, that meant identifying focal points and an approach for facing different shooters. For the skaters, it meant understanding what makes a goalie uncomfortable and how to disrupt the plan a goalie brings into a shootout.

For forward Bobby McMann, preparation starts with recognizing that a shootout offers a different kind of opportunity from a typical shift.

During a game, momentum, bounces and the actions of other players can influence what happens next. In a shootout, the situation becomes more isolated, giving the shooter greater control over how to approach the challenge.

“I think we take it more seriously,” McMann said. “You realize it’s not just read and react and just take your best stab at it. I think there’s a lot more calculation involved, a lot more process involved.”

That calculation begins with the goaltender. McMann has worked with Zulianello to better understand how goalies approach shootouts, paying particular attention to their positioning, movement and stance.

One of the first things he examines is how wide a goaltender sets his feet. A wider stance can offer clues about how a goalie is trying to protect the bottom of the net, while a more upright position may suggest a different approach to defending the shot.

Those details can help McMann determine which options might be available as he moves toward the net.

Rather than committing mentally to one move before beginning his approach, McMann has several options in mind. He can then adjust based on what the goaltender gives him, using those observations to determine his next move.

“Definitely have a plan, but then you have to make reads on different situations, too,” McMann said. “It’s pretty quick.”

The objective is to recognize an opportunity without becoming so committed to a predetermined move that the goalie can take it away.

Even with that preparation, there is no guarantee of success. McMann said he can usually tell whether he likes what he sees as he approaches the net, but he does not know for certain whether he has beaten the goaltender until the puck crosses the goal line.

The Kraken have taken their preparation beyond the classroom and onto the ice.

During one post-practice session, emergency backup goaltender Dolan Gilbert faced about 150 shootout attempts from Kraken players. The volume gave the skaters an extended opportunity to experiment with their approaches, work on specific moves and adjust.

Gilbert knew he would be facing shootout attempts that day, but did not necessarily expect to see quite that many.

“It was long, but it was fun,” Gilbert said. “I think shootouts are fun in general.”

The session also gave him a closer look at tendencies of NHL shooters. With so many attempts in succession, he could observe the moves players favored and the variations they tried when their usual approaches were not available.

“Just the little tendencies and stuff is cool to learn,” Gilbert said. “What their go-to is, and that kind of thing is pretty cool to learn.”

From the goaltender’s perspective, the challenge is to match the shooter’s speed while remaining patient. Gilbert described the interaction as a waiting game in which the first player to commit can put himself at a disadvantage.

“Whoever bites first probably loses,” he said.

That same principle applies to goaltenders working to improve their own approach. Zulianello emphasized the importance of patience, explaining that goalies must take in the information a shooter provides and wait for the player to initiate a move before reacting.

The repetition benefits both sides. Shooters can test their routes and identify which moves work for them, while goaltenders can practice reading those movements without the added demands of a full game.

For skaters, it creates an opportunity to discover what works for them individually. A move that suits one player’s skill set may not be the right option for another, making the ability to experiment and adjust an important part of the process.

Zulianello said the players have applied the information relatively quickly, drawing on their skill levels and the video and individual conversations accompanying the team’s preparation.

The Kraken have devoted time to shootout work on multiple occasions this season, giving players more opportunities to refine approaches rather than relying on occasional repetition during regular practices.

Gilbert, who serves as emergency backup while also balancing office responsibilities within the organization, said the level of shootout preparation detail stood out compared with his college hockey playing experience.

“It’s impressive,” Gilbert said. “It’s the little details that separate this level from the rest.”

While the extended practice session gave Gilbert a closer look at Seattle’s shooters, it also illustrated how much shootout information both sides are trying to gather.

For goalies, preparation begins before the puck is placed at center ice. Video study can reveal a shooter’s tendencies, but a goalie still must recognize what is happening in the moment rather than assume the player will repeat a familiar move.

Zulianello said goaltenders have different preferences in how they defend shootouts. Some are more active, others remain patient, and some look to gain more depth as a shooter approaches. Whatever their approach, the ability to read the situation without reacting too early remains important.

The shooter, meanwhile, is trying to manipulate those decisions.

According to Zulianello, the Kraken identified ways players can disrupt a goaltender’s cadence and interfere with the plan he wants to execute. Those techniques give shooters more than one way to create an advantage, whether through their route, timing or choice of move.

The coaching staff can provide the information, but the player ultimately must execute it.

McMann’s approach of entering a shootout with several possibilities in mind and then using the goalie’s positioning to select a sensible option reflects that balance. He is not simply trying a rehearsed move; he is looking for the response that gives him the best scoring chances.

Gilbert’s experience facing the Kraken players offered a glimpse of how much variety that can create. With so many attempts in one session, players could try unusual moves and discover effective options.

That makes patience important for both in a literal cat-and-mouse game. A shooter wants to force a reaction without revealing too much, too early, while a goaltender wants to gather as much information as possible before committing.

Neither can know exactly how the other will respond. The advantage belongs to the player who can recognize the situation and make the right decision in the available time.

No amount of preparation can eliminate a shootout’s unpredictability. A shooter can execute perfectly and still be denied by an excellent save. A goalie can read a play correctly and still see the puck find the back of the net.

That is why Zulianello evaluates more than whether a particular attempt succeeds.

“Obviously, we look at the results,” he said. “Unfortunately, it’s a results-driven business, right? But I do focus on processes.”

For the shooters, that means evaluating routes, decisions, and execution. For the goaltenders, it’s about reads, positioning, and patience.

Zulianello noted that scoring on roughly 25% to 30% of shootout attempts is a strong rate, illustrating how frequently even successful players fail to convert. That makes it important to evaluate the quality of the attempt rather than judging solely by whether the puck goes in.

The Kraken want the extra point that comes with a shootout victory, but their preparation is designed to give them the best possible chance of earning it rather than relying on a favorable bounce.

There is also a mental component. Zulianello acknowledged that some players would prefer not to be selected for a shootout, even with the opportunity to decide a game. The pressure is significant for both shooter and goalie, making preparation and confidence particularly important.

For Seattle, the objective of these workouts is to make that pressure more manageable by giving players something to fall back on when the puck is placed at center ice.

The result will not always be what the Kraken want. But if the process is sound, the team believes the work can pay off over time.

Zulianello’s approach comes back to the same principle that inspired the offseason project: identifying areas where the Kraken can improve and finding practical ways to do so. The presentation gave players a clearer understanding of shootout details, while the repeated sessions gave them opportunities to apply those lessons.

Ultimately, the Kraken cannot dictate every shootout bounce. They can, however, make more informed decisions when the next shootout arrives.

For Zulianello, that is what progress looks like: Seattle’s goaltenders making patient reads and its shooters finding ways to make the opposing goalie uncomfortable. The scoreboard will determine who gets the extra point, but the work long before that gives the Kraken a better chance to earn it.