The Seattle Kraken enter Friday’s game against the Calgary Flames with an 8-4-1 start, while Calgary plans to rely on Dustin Wolf after Devin Cooley sustained a lower-body injury.
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The Seattle Kraken will try to turn their strong start into another win when they visit the Calgary Flames on Friday.
Seattle has collected 17 points in its first 13 games, going 8-4-1, and capped a 3-1-0 homestand on Wednesday with a 5-4 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. In that game, the Kraken erased a 4-2 deficit after surrendering a pair of goals in the final 12 minutes of regulation, then won on Brandon Montour’s goal in the final minute.
Forward Chandler Stephenson scored once and helped set the tone after the late-game comeback. “It’s just kind of a good confidence builder for the group,” Stephenson said. “It’s obviously early on, and you want to get ahead of the eight ball rather than behind it.”
Despite the results, Seattle has also shown a pattern of third-period slideouts. The Leafs game was the third time in four outings the Kraken surrendered a multi-goal lead in the third period, though they still managed to win those matchups.
Kraken coach Lane Lambert acknowledged the risk. “We’ve given up some leads, let’s be honest,” Lambert said. “And I think we’ve done a really good job staying resilient. That was a huge response after they tied the game.”
Calgary will look to respond after a disappointing loss on Wednesday, when a four-game winning streak was snapped by a 4-0 road defeat to the Edmonton Oilers.
The Flames also face a goaltending question following an injury to Devin Cooley, who sustained a lower-body injury late in the first period against Edmonton. The team did not provide an update on the severity, and the onus will fall to Dustin Wolf if Cooley can’t play.
Wolf is expected to be Calgary’s No. 1 option based on the plan outlined for this game, but his early-season numbers have been difficult. He is 1-4-0 with a 4.81 goals-against average and an .839 save percentage.
Wolf said he has been working to regain sharpness. “The results haven’t come for myself personally, but I’ve had a real good opportunity the last couple weeks to kind of get my feet under me, work on areas of my game that maybe aren’t at my sharpest,” he said.
Calgary coach Ryan Huska expressed confidence in Wolf’s ability to bounce back. “Confidence for me with Dustin has never waned. It’s always there,” Huska said. “I think he’s a terrific young goaltender. ... We’re expecting him to be our best player.”
The Flames and Kraken have already met twice this season, with Seattle taking both games by identical 6-1 scores, including in the opening week of the campaign.
If Cooley is unable to suit up, Calgary is expected to turn to minor league goaltender Arsenii Sergeev, a 2021 seventh-round draft choice. Sergeev recorded his only NHL start last season in a 3-1 win over the Kings in the season finale.
This matchup begins a stretch of six Flames games in 10 days. Huska said Thursday’s practice reinforced the team’s confidence. “I feel like we’re in a better place now than we were (in the first two clashes with Seattle),” Huska said. “We know we’re a better team than we showed.”
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