One: With Marchment Trade, Opportunity Knocks
SAN JOSE – The Kraken arrived here in northern California from Calgary in the middle of the night for the next stop on a four-game road trip against Pacific Division foes. Nineteen hours later, GM Jason Botterill officially sent forward Mason Marchment to the Columbus Blue Jackets for draft picks (2027 second-rounder, 2026 fourth-rounder). There are different ways to snap out of a losing streak, and this is most decidedly one of them. Marchment has recently been playing on the Kraken top line alongside Matty Beniers and Jordan Eberle, averaging 16 to 17 minutes per game. Another teammate will step into that opportunity starting Saturday, and who’s to say that lineup adjustment doesn’t have a positive ripple effect?
Getting back on track against the Sharks Saturday and collecting standings points in back-to-back visits to Anaheim Monday and Los Angeles Tuesday would be just the holiday gift for this squad, coaches, and fans. Staying positive is the only option. Short-term memory would be helpful given the Kraken are 1-9-0 in their last 10 games.
There were positives in Calgary, especially an ongoing trend to keep opponents out of the outside shooting lanes. But coach Lane Lambert was clear that the Kraken are defeating themselves with mental letdowns, inconsistent puck battle levels, and not keeping up the forechecking buzzsaw they were operating game-in and game-out before being spotty during this wrong kind of streak. Missed assignments are part of it, such as a forward not covering the point when a D-man jumps deep into the offensive zone.
Two: Stephenson’s Point Streak, Wright Line’s Energy
There are some good things happening during this streak that are worth noting and copying if you are a Kraken teammate. Chandler Stephenson has registered a goal (four total) or assist (three) in his last seven games. His formula has pinned most to fast and smart skating, plus moving with quick reads to open time and space in the offensive zone. More please across the four lines and even the defensive corps when opportunity knocks.
Shane Wright and Finnish linemates Kaapo Kakko and Jani Nyman are quietly clicking and going unnoticed with the flurry of vanishing third-period leads. Wright has been on his game in recent contests, most notably entering the zone with confidence and driving to the net. He was upset with himself when his mark scored a goal back door against the Flames. But the self-anger is the compete level you want to see. Nyman made a terrific play to keep a puck in the zone on a power play goal in Calgary, and Kakko scored on the sequence, tipping a Ryker Evans rapid setup and shot on goal.
“I think our line, we've been getting chances,” said Kakko in the visiting locker room in Alberta. “They scored one goal against us. So we’ve got to be better in the defensive zone, getting the pucks out.”
Three: Know the Foe: Celebrini Impressing NHLers
It seems like every game night, the Sharks' Macklin Celebrini players, an opponent praises the young Sharks’ moves and instincts. Dallas young standout forward Wyatt Johnson is the latest example. Celebrini and his Sharks teammates are in the second wild-card position in the Western Conference despite being 5-5-0 in their last 10 games. They are 17-15-3 for 37 points overall, while Seattle is 12-14-6. The gap is not glaring, but it needs to start closing, even if the Kraken have three games in hand in this comparison. There are too many teams in between. Wins on this trip are a must.
Projected Lines (not official)
Winterton - Beniers - Eberle
Tolvanen - Stephenson - Gaudreau
Nyman - Wright - Kakko
Kartye - Meyers - Melanson
Dunn - Larsson
Lindgren - Oleksiak
Evans - Mahura
Daccord
