Sharks vs. Kraken Odds
| Sharks Odds | +100 |
| Kraken Odds | -120 |
| Over/Under | 6 |
| Time | 10 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN+ |
| Odds via BetMGM. Get up-to-the-minute NHL odds here. | |
The Kraken will host the Sharks for their final home contest of what has been a less-than-stellar inaugural season, looking to snap their four-game losing skid.
The Kraken have still seen some excellent and lively crowds throughout April at Climate Pledge Arena, and have managed a strong 4-2-0 record.
Sharks Not Driving Play
San Jose clearly won its version of the Stanley Cup with a 5-4 shootout victory over the Golden Knights on Sunday, and have followed it up with two consecutive losses.
Tuesday's 5-2 defeat at home to the Ducks was a clear letdown, but the Sharks bounced back with a strong game last night, ultimately losing 5-4 to the Oilers in overtime.
Altogether, San Jose has continued to look mainly listless down the stretch of this season. In April, San Jose has managed just a 40.5 xGF%, and throughout its last five contests they hold a 38.68 xGF%.
They will head into Seattle for game 82 of what has been a trying regular season, and although I do feel like they will get up for this final contest, it's hard for me to imagine they control play at a more effective rate than we have seen.
Kaapo Kahkonen should start this contest for the Sharks, and certainly offers one edge over the Kraken. Kahkonen has played to a +4.4 goals saved above expected rating with a .911 save % this season, and has been effective since arriving in San Jose at the deadline.
Kraken Hanging Tough Against Good Teams
Seattle enters in the midst of a four-game losing streak, but I would really only argue that Wednesday's 5-3 home loss to the Kings should be viewed as a disappointment.
The Kraken played three road games against teams in excellent form last week, and certainly gave very strong efforts in Minnesota, before hanging very tough against the Stars the next night. Prior to that we saw Seattle put together some great results on home ice, including an excellent game in a 3-2 win over the Avalanche.
To the eye much of Seattle's play this month has looked scrappy, and a 51.0% xGF% over its last seven contests certainly agrees with that. Especially looking at the difficulty of the contests, with four coming in spots against some of the West's best teams.
Last year's second-overall pick Matty Beniers has certainly given a boost to the club, both with his play and with what seems to be an excellent attitude. For a group skating through a long season based upon development, I think that he certainly is injecting some energy into the room, and has veterans looking to match his elite compete level and teach him the ways to succeed at the pro level.
Philipp Grubauer will likely get the start in goal, and has struggled badly to a -33.7 GSAx rating with an .889 save % throughout 55 games played this season.
His play has been the main reason for Seattle finishing well below its expected point total, as much as it is unfair to pin it on one guy.
Seattle's crowd has still been abundantly positive to him and in every other aspect, and as much as I was wrong that the Kraken would compete for a playoff spot this season, I still believe they aren't as far off as they appeared in this inaugural campaign.
Sharks vs. Kraken Pick
Seattle has managed some really strong efforts at home this month, and I think this is a great spot for them to finish off the season on a high-note in front of a crowd which has been tremendous all season long.
You can feel there is still some positivity amongst this Kraken group, and it's been clear the fight is still there. In a spot where they should conceivably drive much more play than normal, I definitely see the merit on them being a rare favorite.
At -120, I'm backing the Kraken.
Pick: Seattle Kraken -120 (Play to -130)
