Golden Knights vs Kraken Picks and Predictions: Flurry of Goals in Seattle Forecast

With 14 games to go, the Vegas Golden Knights are on the outside looking in for West's final playoff spot ahead of tonight's meeting with the expansion Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena.

Can the Knights ride the momentum from their dramatic 5-4 win over the Blackhawks last weekend into a must-win game tonight? Can the Kraken grab their fourth win in five games? Find out in our free NHL betting picks and predictions for Golden Knights vs. Kraken.

Golden Knights vs Kraken odds

This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.

Vegas opened as -180 ML road favorites but has since moved to -160 with a total of 6 leaning to the Over. Vegas has won both meetings this season at home and was as high as -220 on the ML.

Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right until puck drop and be sure to check out the full NHL odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.

Golden Knights vs Kraken predictions

• Prediction: Golden Knights 3-way ML (-105)
• Prediction: Over 6 (-120)
• Best bet: Over 6 (-120)

Predictions made on 3/30/2022 at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.

Golden Knights vs Kraken game info

• Location: Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, WA
• Date: Wednesday, March 30, 2022
• Puck drop: 10:00 p.m. ET
• TV: TNT

Golden Knights vs Kraken betting preview

Key injuries

Golden Knights: William Carrier F (Doubtful), Max Pacioretty F (Out), Laurent Brossoit G (Questionable), Rielly Smith F (Out), Robin Lehner G (Out), Mark Stone F (Out), Brayden McNabb D (Out).
Kraken: Jaden Schwartz LW (Questionable), Haydn Fleury D (Questionable), Brandon Tanev LW (Out).
Find our latest NHL injury reports.

Golden Knights vs Kraken head-to-head record

Golden Knights: 2-0 SU, 8 goals for. 
Kraken: 0-2 SU, 5 goals for.

Betting trend to know

The Over is 7-2 in the Golden Knights’ last nine overall. Find more NHL betting trends for Golden Knights vs. Kraken.

Golden Knights vs Kraken picks and predictions

Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.

Moneyline analysis

The Golden Knights almost saw their season go down the drain on the weekend but an incredible third-period comeback and an Evgenii Dadonov OT winner sent Vegas to its second straight win and helped keep pace in the Western Conference playoff race. The Knights currently have a 44% chance to make the postseason, per Money Puck, but a loss tonight would certainly set the club back.

Vegas is still dealing with a plethora of absences but getting Alec Martinez back on the blue line was a huge boost for the Knights, who also got Mattias Janmark back. Vegas is rolling three solid offensive lines right now led by the Roy-Eichel-Dadonov, who had two goals in that big win over the Blackhawks. 

Logan Thompson has been getting the starts in net for the visitors of late. Robin Lehner is out and backup Laurent Brossoit hasn’t played since March 15. Thompson, a rookie, has won back-to-back starts and four of his last six. He's had some bad games where he’s allowed more than three goals, but he’s also held his opponent to two or fewer in three of his last five. 

Thompson could have an easier night versus a Seattle offense that scores goals at the 26th-highest rate in hockey. It has been even more difficult to score for the expansion team this year as its 2.46 goals per game mark is the third-lowest in hockey. Seattle will also be without Jaden Schwartz, which hurts its top lines and the power play.

Seattle is 4-6 SU over its last 10 but has struggled to beat good teams all year. Three of those four wins have come against opponents with losing records, with the lone exception being the Kings. The Kraken have also failed to beat good teams at home and are 2-11 SU in their last 13 games as a home underdog. 

Seattle hasn’t announced a starter yet but Chris Driedger picked up the win Monday versus Los Angeles. He stopped 36 of 37 shots but we still aren’t afraid of the Seattle No. 2. Heading into that game, Driedger had allowed at least three goals in seven straight. He’s 6-10 SU on the season with a 3.22 GAA and a save percentage below .900. Fade him tonight even with him coming off a solid performance. In fact, don't trust Seattle's goaltending no matter what because Philipp Grubauer hasn't been much better.

The Golden Knights have been playing with pressure for over three weeks now so this is not a new spot for them. They are getting healthier and face an easier opponent despite the market favoring the home side. The books have struggled to price the Kraken all season so we aren’t reading too much into the market movement on the ML. Give us the Knights to keep things interesting in the West with their third straight win.

Prediction: Golden Knights 3-way ML (-105 at DraftKings)

Over/Under analysis

This total opened at 6 and is starting to gain some momentum to the Over. Vegas has played anything but tight games of late and is 7-2 to the Over in its last nine. Seattle has also been a great Over target this season with an O/U record of 37-24. Seattle is also 12-5-3 O/U in its last 20 games.

Neither team will be strong in net and Vegas will likely be trotting out their No. 3 goalie in Thompson. He’s 5-2 to the Over since getting recalled with a 3.10 GAA. He's also seeing over 35 shots per game. Seattle sits in the Bottom 12 in GAA this month and its games have an average of 6.50 goals in March.

Vegas showed it can score in bunches on Saturday when it erased a three-goal Chicago lead in less than two minutes — all at even strength. At 5-on-5, only four teams have more expected goals than the Knights, who generate high-danger chances at an elite level. Seattle is a decent team at 5-on-5, defensively, but has been undone by the worst goaltending in hockey.

Looking at special teams, Seattle is a lightning rod for power-play goals against. They have a 58% kill efficiency this month, which is only better than the Red Wings. Seattle has allowed a power-play goal in five straight and 14 over its last 10 games. 

The Seattle offense is the one thing that scares us from this Over but Thompson could certainly help the home side hit two or possibly three goals today. The Vegas PK has also struggled of late, killing penalties at the seventh-worst rate in hockey in March.

With so much on the line for the Knights, if they find themselves trailing, they might sell out to generate some offense which could also open them up to a Seattle counterattack.

Give us another Vegas Over tonight.

Prediction: Over 6 (-118 at BetVictor)

Best bet

With both teams struggling to kill penalties and both teams throwing 3.00 GAA goalies in net tonight, we’re happy to ride this Over 6. Both clubs have been profitable to the Over all season. Over the last 10 games, they are a combined 12-5-3 O/U. The Vegas offense is coming off a great game Sunday while the Seattle offense could be aided in a terrible Vegas penalty kill.

The Knights seem to be in another must-win situation and we saw what can happen on Saturday if they trail in these types of games. We aren’t expecting the goaltenders to steal the show and if either team starts taking penalties, we could possibly see a couple of tallies with the man advantage.  

We love some goals in the nightcap.

Pick: Over 6 (-120)

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