Kraken at Predators Odds, Preview, Prediction: Seattle Seeking First Win (October 14)

Kraken at Predators Odds

The Nashville Predators may have made the playoffs last season, but they were also one of the NHL's most inconsistent clubs. Oddsmakers aren't too high on Nashville's chances this season, either, as the Preds enter the campaign as one of the league's biggest longshots.

The Seattle Kraken got their inaugural season underway with a 4-3 loss on Tuesday night, but the league's 32nd team was quite impressive fighting back from a 3-0 deficit.

Seattle Kraken

Despite the loss, the Seattle Kraken started to come together in the second half of Tuesday nights game. Seattle finished the game slightly in the black with a 51.15% expected goals rate and created 11 high-danger scoring chances compared to right for Vegas.

What sunk the Kraken was some poor goaltending from Vezina finalist Philipp Grubauer. The German allowed four goals on 30 shots and finished the game with a -0.4 Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx).

Seattle's defense did a pretty good job in front of Grubauer, limiting Vegas to just eight high-danger scoring chances at 5-on-5, and I would be surprised if the Kraken don't get much better goaltending from Grubauer and Chris Driedger on most nights.

Nashville Predators

The Predators were mediocre last season and then got worse in the offseason. They lost top-pairing defenseman Ryan Ellis and first-line forward Viktor Arvidsson, who potted 10 goals for them in 50 games last season.

The Predators are already an offensively-challenged team — their leading scorer last season was defenseman Roman Josi — so while losing a player like Arvidsson may not seem like a huge deal to most teams, it is a problem for the Preds.

Nashville posted a 49.74% expected goals rate, so it wasn't like the Preds were caved in, but they don't have the finishing talent to make those kind of numbers stick. Nashville finished the season ranked 22nd in goals scored per game.

The Predators do have a saving grace, however, and his name is Juuse Saros. The Finnish netminder posted a .927 save percentage and finished fifth in the NHL with a +13.2 GSAx, per MoneyPuck, last season.

Kraken vs. Predators  Pick

Juuse Saros will always give the Predators a chance to win, but I think there is value on the Kraken on Thursday night.

The Predators are likely to struggle to create scoring chances on a consistent basis, while the Kraken's defense should be a strength. Seattle may have let in four goals on Tuesday night, but I wouldn't expect that to be the norm for this team and its goaltenders.

I like the Kraken at even money or better on the road on Thursday.

Pick: Seattle Kraken +100 or better