The Need to Knows
The Time: 2pm PT
The Place: Capital One Arena, Washington DC
Place to Watch: KONG, Amazon Prime, MNMT SportsNet+, TVAS
Place to Listen: KJR 93.3-FM
Game Preview
After four-five games, the kid gloves come off. A team from Seattle faces another coastal elite team that has an aging star or two boosted by the kind of embarrassment of riches of a supporting cast you only get once every so often. A real test of their mettle that’s expected to be a major competitor in the grand scheme of things.
And to add insult to injury, both the football and hockey team get to experience that feeling.
The Caps are gearing up for their post-Ovechkin life; he confirmed it this year. That means that they’re going all in on one last cup before having the unenviable task of having to promote themselves without their franchise defining player. To their credit, they have a number of players who could fill the void; Alex Tuch, Ryan Leonard…sigh…Tom Wilson…and all of them have jumped out to be the big difference makers early on in their 3-1-0 campaign. They’re a slightly above average team possession-wise, still allowing chances in spite of their somewhat bruising defensive style, but part of why they can let that happen is that Logan Thompson and Charlie Lindgren are playing at top of the league levels. Both are hovering at a .930 SV% as of this writing and neither seem to be particularly bothered by it. This is going to be a genuine test of whether or not the Kraken’s offense can break through a stoic front.
Best shots I can suggest for right now is shutting down their first line so give themselves the opportunity to try and get some transition chances on Washington’s netminder, because otherwise getting to the net is a tall order against this Caps club. They’re gonna need to get space on that defense quickly if they want to come out on top.
LET’S GO KRAKEN!