Will the Kings secure their sixth place finish?
Starbucks vs. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf – that’s the name of the game on Wednesday, if we take the most famous coffee shop companies of the respective cities as a basis. The duel would probably go clearly in favour of Seattle (Starbucks), but in the NHL things are different.
There, the Kings from Los Angeles are considered the big favourites and they could also secure a place in the postseason with a win. This should also be possible, as they are currently in good form and it is only a matter of the golden pineapple for the Kraken.
While LA won their last four games, Seattle is coming off three straight losses. The fact that the Kraken have won their last three home games is a point in their favour, but two of those victories also came against teams for whom nothing was at stake.
So our prediction for Kraken vs. Kings is a win for the away team from LA, which would also clinch play-off qualification. We don’t expect too many goals in this game, though, as only the 30th best offense in the league is playing against the 20th best
Seattle Kraken – Statistics & current form
For the Kraken, the season is just a leisurely winding down. Of course, they still want to win as many games as possible, but this is not their top priority, unlike the Kings.
In Seattle, many decisions are already geared towards the coming season, which is quite understandable after a first NHL season ever. With 26 wins so far, this first season has been okay, but not outstanding.
Seattle with potential to improve
However, we trust this team, which is young at its core, to increase its number of victories by at least ten the following year. Donskoi, Eberle or Gourde are all good players who will surely be joined by one or two other top players in the draft.
But what does that mean now for their final two games of the season? Seattle will not give up, as their 3-2 home win over the Avalanche alone confirms. That was one of their best performances of the season, even though the Avs didn’t have it all to play for in that game.
Seattle still down offensively
This circumstance will now change against Los Angeles. They will be desperate to clinch a playoff spot in their penultimate game to avoid a nail-biter. The Kraken will not be able to match the Kings’ determination, which makes betting on LA the No.1 option.
For Seattle against Los Angeles, the odds on the Kings are also just about acceptable without having to give them a handicap. Of course, the oddsmakers also know about the different starting positions before this matchup.
Key Players:
G: Philipp Grubauer
D: Mark Giordano
D: Carson Soucy
LW: Calle Jarnkrok
C: Jared McCann
RW: Jordan Eberle
Los Angeles Kings – Statistics & Current Form
The Kings seem to be able to save their lead in the Western Conference over the finish line. Even though we recently saw the Golden Knights with a slight advantage, the Californians can already make their mark on Wednesday.
One point would be enough for them not to be ousted from one of the top eight places. That is quite an achievement for Los Angeles, who before the season were regarded as outsiders for the postseason.
Team chemistry as secret to success
In recent days, more and more players have been talking about how well the team is put together and that the mixture of experienced and young professionals is the secret to success. Especially now in the final spurt of the season, the older guard around Brown, Kopitar or Edler plays a decisive role.
If we had concerns in the meantime that their average age might be a little too high, the Kings have proven the opposite not only to us but to all critics. Thus, the 34-year-old Kopitar also leads the internal ranking with 66 scorer points.
LA defence clearly stronger than Seattle’s
It is also particularly impressive that they have coped so well with the loss of their leading player Drew Doughty and since then even have a better record than with him. The young defensive players Bjornfot and Durzi are growing into leadership roles much faster than expected.
The Kings’ defence is also their big advantage on Wednesday against Seattle. With 2.83 goals against per game, they concede 0.63 less than the Kraken, which should make the difference in this matchup. For Seattle vs LA, a tip on the Kings is thus our favoured bet.
Key Players:
G: Jonathan Quick
D: Mikey Anderson
D: Drew Doughty
LW: Alex Iafallo
C: Anze Kopitar
RW: Adrian Kempe
Seattle Kraken – Los Angeles Kings head-to-head comparison / H2H record
The Kings also lead the direct comparison so far this season. The last meeting in March, however, they lost 1:6 and that at home, so there is also a certain redemption in the offing.
All in all, the Kings have 38 points more than the Kraken this season, which is a big difference. If we then add the asugang situation with the possible playoff qualification of LA, the men from the City of Angels are considered the clear favourites.
For Kraken against Kings, the odds are thus bettable on pure win bets as well as on Kings + sub-points. The 6.5 goals have not been topped in any of the last four Kings games, and at least they have not been topped in three of the last four Kraken games.
Seattle Kraken – Los Angeles Kings betting tips
The Kings are the clear favourites in this matchup. The stats speak for it as well. Not only do they concede 0.63 fewer goals per game (2.83 to 3.46), they also score 0.26 more (2.85 to 2.59). But since those offensive numbers don’t look strong from either, subpar points are also an option in this matchup.
Otherwise, a bet on Los Angeles is our bet of choice in Kraken vs. Kings. Even a -1.5 handicap can still be considered here.
An alternative bet in this matchup is to bet on a goal by Phillip Danault. He has scored in four of his last five matches and has already scored 26 goals this season.
