Seattle Kraken vs. Vancouver Canucks Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 4/26/2022

Time: 10 p.m. ET

Venue: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, BC

Where to watch: ROOT-NW+

DraftKings: Check back later

BetMGM: Check back later

Caesars: Check back later

Kraken: 26-46-6

Canucks: 38-30-11

For the Seattle Kraken, it’s about creating the culture for next year. And that’s something to at least look forward to given the future of this team. You already have your first ever draft pick taking over the reins and looking like a surefire star out the gate. Another draft pick comes along next year, and suddenly you have a fun core to build around.

Seattle isn’t going to explode any time soon, but they have gotten some wins as of late over Colorado and Dallas in recent weeks and it makes you wonder where they are in the hierarchy to end the season. Matty Beniers is leading that charge, but he was held off the scoresheet for the first time in his career in the 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars on Saturday.

"If we can dial in our second periods, we've been playing some pretty decent hockey lately if you cross out the last couple of second periods," Kraken goalie Chris Driedger said. "Our group's working towards some real positive things, and we've just got to make the next step."

Seattle has lost two straight coming into this matchup and are averaging 2.5 goals in that stretch. 

"They put some pressure on us," Sheahan said. "We were getting hemmed in our zone it seemed like. At first, we were having more success breaking out and making those little plays in the [defensive] zone to relieve some pressure. They did a good job of coming at us and pressuring us, and we weren't able to break it. It allowed them to get some momentum and it gave us a tough time in that second."

The Vancouver Canucks are on their last legs of making the playoffs, and we need to give them their respective props because what the team has done since Bruce Boudreau became the head coach is admirable and, quite honestly, enjoyable with this group.

In the time he’s been behind the bench, Elias Pettersson has returned to his superstar-like form, J.T. Miller looks like a superstar in his own right, and Thatcher Demko may have taken that next step into becoming an elite goalie. But the Canucks might not be there just yet.

And the last game against the Calgary Flames might have shown just that after giving up four goals in the third period. They can be eliminated if the Golden Knights secure one more point in their Tuesday game against the Dallas Stars.

"We pushed from Dec. 5 until now, and I expect us for the next three games to keep pushing again," Boudreau said. "But we know that our ultimate goal is probably not going to be reached."

Conor Garland tied it in the third period and then things went downhill.

"When we tied it up, I thought, 'Okay, let's get through the next five minutes' and even if it was a game where you take it to overtime, we don't care if they get an extra point or not," Boudreau said. "But they score on the next shift and that sort of let go for the next four, five minutes after that. It was just a real big sock in the head type thing."

Not thinking the road team will steal a win here. Give me the Canucks as they hope to keep their season alive. Canucks win 4-2

Check back later for trends.

Kraken:

Ryan Donato -- Matty Beniers -- Jordan Eberle

Joonas Donskoi -- Riley Sheahan -- Daniel Sprong

Jared McCann -- Yanni Gourde -- Karson Kuhlman

Victor Rask -- Alex Wennberg -- Kole Lind

Adam Larsson -- Vince Dunn

Cale Fleury -- Carson Soucy

Jamie Oleksiak -- Will Borgen

Philipp Grubauer

Canucks:

Brock Boeser -- Elias Pettersson -- Conor Garland

Vasily Podkolzin -- J.T. Miller -- Alex Chiasson

Jason Dickinson -- Juho Lammikko -- Matthew Highmore

William Lockwood -- Brad Richardson -- Sheldon Dries

Oliver Ekman-Larsson -- Tyler Myers

Quinn Hughes -- Luke Schenn

Brad Hunt -- Travis Dermott

Thatcher Demko

Points: Jared McCann -- 47

Goals: Jared McCann -- 26

Assists: Vince Dunn -- 28

Goalie: Philipp Grubauer -- 18-30-5, 3.14 GAA, .890 SV%

Points: J.T. Miller -- 96

Goals: Elias Pettersson -- 32

Assists: J.T. Miller -- 66

Goalie: Thatcher Demko -- 33-22-7, 2.72 GAA, .915 SV%