Nothing is on the line for either team when the Seattle Kraken wrap up a disappointing season on Thursday night at the Colorado Avalanche in Denver.
Seattle (34-36-11, 79 points) has been eliminated from the playoffs for the fourth time in its five-year existence after cratering late in the season. The Kraken were 27-20-9 coming out of the Olympic break and won two of their next four but have gone 5-14-2 since, including Wednesday night’s 4-1 loss at Vegas.
Captain Jordan Eberle said recently it was a number of issues that resulted in Seattle sitting out another postseason.
“The power play’s gone dry. The (penalty kill’s) let in some goals,” he said. “It’s not just one thing. We just haven’t played the way that we were playing, the detailed hockey, (knowing) the importance of each shift, the importance of special teams. The most frustrating part is that we have the group capable of doing it, because we’ve literally done it.”
The disappointing finish has led to some changes in the organization, most notably the news that Ron Francis, the president of hockey operations, is stepping down at the end of the season. Francis joined the Kraken as general manager in 2019, two years ahead of their first game, and helped build a team that upset Colorado in the first round of the 2023 playoffs.
The Avalanche (54-16-11, 119 points) have clinched the Presidents’ Trophy and likely will rest as many players as possible for a window-dressing game. If Colorado earns one point, it will set the franchise record reached in 2021-22 when it won the Stanley Cup.
“I’m sure a lot of us will take off the last game and get ready for the real fun here,” star center Nathan MacKinnon said after the 3-1 win at Calgary on Tuesday night.
Martin Necas needed one point to reach 100 for the first time in his career, and he got it with an assist on MacKinnon’s empty-net goal with 17 seconds left in the game on Tuesday night. MacKinnon leads the NHL with 53 goals, two more than Montreal’s Cole Caufield and five ahead of Edmonton’s Connor McDavid.
Caufield’s regular season is over while the Oilers have one more game, Thursday night against Vancouver.
In addition to sitting players, Avalanche coach Jared Bednar may remain sidelined with injuries sustained when he was hit by a puck in Saturday’s loss to Vegas. Bednar missed the two-game road trip to Edmonton with facial fractures and a corneal abrasion.
The team has not announced Bednar’s status for Thursday night, and MacKinnon said Wednesday on a local radio show that he thinks his coach should be ready for Game 1 of the playoffs.
Assistants Dave Hakstol and Nolan Pratt ran the team for the last two games — both victories — as the team prepares for the postseason.
“We’ve solidified our position, obviously, so you’re just trying to stay as sharp as you can,” Pratt said. “Obviously, it’s tough when you’re looking ahead at what’s to come. Really, it’s just about us trying to keep our game where it’s at and preparing for what’s coming forward.”
