The San Jose Sharks and Seattle Kraken complete their regular season before hitting the green, while the Nashville Predators attempt to clutch on to their first wild card spot against the Arizona Coyotes.
San Jose Sharks (+105) vs Seattle Kraken (-125)
SJS: 32-36-13, 2.60 GF/GP, 3.19 GA/GP, L10: 3-3-4
SEA: 26-48-6, 2.59 GF/GP, 3.50 GA/GP, L10: 4-6-0
The Sharks and Kraken aren’t going to this year’s postseason, but they’ll play for pride to close out the season. In three meetings this season, Seattle has taken two of them and will hope to avoid a season series tie. They’ve undergone the first-season growing pains of a new franchise, paired with underperforming players from top to bottom. They’ve lost four of their last five, but have beaten the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars this month, which is something they can feel proud about.
Despite solid contributions from Timo Meier, Logan Couture, and Brent Burns, the Sharks’ lack of depth was their ultimate undoing. Their goaltending duo of James Reimer and Kappo Kahkonen hasn’t been the problem but has remained inconsistent enough to not be the answer. With Reimer starting on Thursday, expect Kahkonen to draw in for their final game of the season. He’s 14-34-4 with almost identical numbers to Reimer, but his record is bloated from his time in Minnesota. It’s not a stretch to believe Seattle takes this game, and the under (U 5.5, +100) makes this game appealing to put some money on.
Nashville Predators (-275) vs Arizona Coyotes (+225)
NSH: 45-29-7, 3.19 GF/GP, 3.02 GA/GP, L10: 4-3-3
ARI: 24-50-7, 2.48 GF/GP, 3.77 GA/GP, L10: 2-6-2
The Predators are playing their second game of a back-to-back against a rested Coyotes team that has won its last two games. As Nashville is still jockeying to hold on to their wild card spot and keep the Dallas Stars at bay, don’t expect too many players to get a rest day in. Considering Roman Josi is five points away from 100, he may want to give it one last go. He has six points in two games against Arizona, including a four-point outing back in November.
The Coyotes will be on the outside looking in for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons. They have a ton of free agents this offseason, lots of dead cap coming off the books, and a plethora of draft picks in 2022. Their 2021-22 season may be one to be forgotten about, but their future is set up for success if they can pull it off. If you’re feeling risky, now is Arizona’s best chance at taking down the Predators, as they’ll either rely on David Rittich in consecutive nights or Connor Ingram.
Odds via Yahoo and BetMGM.
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