The Three NHL Teams Poised to Climb the Standings

Seattle Kraken

The Seattle Kraken have not been off to a good start to their inaugural season. They won just four of their first 15 games and sit at the bottom of the Pacific Division standings. Their 3-4-0 record at home is not good and their 1-6-0 mark on the road suggests they just aren’t that good.

But, the advanced numbers would strongly suggest otherwise.

The Kraken rank 7th in the NHL in scoring chance percentage and are 11th in expected goals percentage at five on five. This tells you they are a good, not fantastic, but pretty good hockey team. They are creating chances and getting pucks on net, regularly outshooting and leading in scoring chances but they just aren’t getting the wins.

Part of that reason is the awful goaltending they have received. Phillip Grubauer was the top free agent goalie available and the Kraken were fortunate to sign him. Or so it seemed. He has a 3.18 GAA and a .880 SV% in 12 games this season after being the runner-up for the Vezina Trophy last season. Backup Chris Driedger has only played two games so far but his numbers are even worse.

The Kraken won’t have the worst goaltending tandem in the league all season, and when Grubauer starts to play like he always has in the past, the wins will come frequently.

The Kraken also benefit from the fact their division isn’t stacked with Stanley Cup contenders. The Anaheim Ducks look great right now, but is their rebuild really far enough along that it’ll last? The Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames are also in playoff spots, but they have flaws on their team and won’t be impossible to catch. The Oilers have a terrific offence, but the numbers suggest they give up more than they create.

The Kraken aren’t posted to go on a Stanley Cup Final run like the Vegas Golden Knights did in their inaugural season, but a run to the postseason could still happen.