One Point Away From Safety, But the Kraken Are Running Out of Time
The Seattle Kraken are in deep trouble, and Saturday's matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets feels like it could define their entire season. Here's the brutal reality: the Kraken are one point out of the Western Conference's second and final wild-card spot, meaning they're right on the playoff bubble with games running out. Meanwhile, the Blue Jackets are on an absolute tear, and they're not about to hand out any sympathy.
Columbus Comes to Town Hot
The Blue Jackets (36-21-11, 83 points) have won three straight and are sitting on an 11-game point streak at 7-0-4. They're tied for third in the Metropolitan Division and just destroyed the New York Rangers 6-3 on Thursday, with Adam Fantilli scoring twice, including an empty-netter to seal it. Blue Jackets coach Rick Bowness was honest about the performance: "These are hard games to play. (The Rangers) are out of the playoffs, and they have a lot of speed and they've got a lot of skill. And they're just playing loose hockey. Those are very tough games to play." But here's the thing, Bowness added, "when you can say that and say you still won the game, that's pretty good." Fantilli's second goal was a power-play marker in the second period that gave Columbus a 4-2 lead. Even Fantilli acknowledged it wasn't perfect: "Not every game is going to be perfect. (Bowness) said, 'Not every game's going to be Picasso.' To be able to find wins like that is huge."
Seattle's Road Trip Just Got Harder
The Kraken dropped their first stop on a brutal six-game road trip, losing 3-1 to Nashville on Thursday. Now they're headed to Columbus, and it doesn't get easier from there. Four of the five remaining teams on Seattle's schedule are in playoff positioning battles, the Blue Jackets included, plus Tampa Bay, Buffalo, and Edmonton. The only break is the injury-ravaged Florida Panthers. Center Chandler Stephenson said it plainly: "Can't feel sorry for ourselves, or it's going to be done before we know it. It's playoff mode right now, especially for teams that are trying to get in." The numbers tell the story. Seattle has gone 4-8-0 since the Olympic break and was outscored 9-3 over two straight losses. Coach Lane Lambert found some silver linings in the Nashville loss, saying the structure was solid and the team battled, but execution is killing them. "I thought our guys battled. I'm not unhappy with the effort at all. I think we had enough chances to win the hockey game, and we missed the net on some of those. We've got to find a way to put it in the back of the net."
Saturday is not optional. It's essential.
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This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.