Blues Vs Kraken as March 4 approaches: TV and lineup picture comes into focus
blues vs kraken is set for March 4 at Climate Pledge Arena, with a 10 p. m. ET start and a broadcast on +.
What happens when Blues Vs Kraken hits the Wednesday night slate?
The matchup pairs the Seattle Kraken (29-22-9) and the St. Louis Blues (22-29-9) on a Wednesday NHL slate. Seattle enters the game sixth in the Western Conference with 67 points, while St. Louis sits 15th in the Western Conference with 53 points.
The game time is listed as 10 p. m. ET, and the venue is Climate Pledge Arena. The broadcast is on +.
What if the Blues stick with the same lineup in Seattle?
St. Louis is keeping the same lineup for the matchup in Seattle following a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild to begin a four-game road trip. The game is the final one before Friday’s 2 p. m. CT trade deadline.
Colton Parayko, who has missed the last two games with back spasms, remains out. He did not participate in Wednesday’s morning skate, and the club indicated he will not play Wednesday even as he travels with the team.
Joel Hofer is set to start in goal for the second consecutive game, and it will be his third start in the past four games.
Projected St. Louis lineup at Seattle
- Forwards: Brayden Schenn – Robert Thomas – Jimmy Snuggerud; Jake Neighbours – Pavel Buchnevich – Jordan Kyrou; Dylan Holloway – Dalibor Dvorsky – Pius Suter; Alexey Toropchenko – Jack Finley – Oskar Sundqvist
- Defense: Philip Broberg – Justin Faulk; Cam Fowler – Logan Mailloux; Tyler Tucker – Matthew Kessel
Nathan Walker and Jonatan Berggren are expected to be healthy scratches.
What if the Blues try to repeat last week’s result while the deadline looms?
The Blues recently beat Seattle 5-1 in St. Louis, a game in which Dylan Holloway recorded his second NHL hat trick. St. Louis also snapped a 10-game road losing streak with the 3-1 win in Minnesota on Sunday, and coach Jim Montgomery pointed to battle wins and road-game management as key elements.
Montgomery said the Blues won 56 percent of their battles in the Minnesota game, adding it marked the second win in three games in which the team won 55 percent or more of its battles. He also cited third-period execution on the road and limiting Minnesota to six Grade A chances. He added that offensively the team “didn’t create enough, ” while emphasizing patience and not forcing plays.
Montgomery described a target battle rate as being over 51 percent, framing it as an indicator that a team has the puck more than it chases it.
As the schedule continues into the trade deadline window, captain Brayden Schenn emphasized staying focused on playing until anything definitive happens. The Blues enter the game 14 points out of the second wild card in the Western Conference, and Schenn described recent steps in confidence and offensive output, while pointing to a consistent “battle and compete level. ”
Seattle, meanwhile, is expected to present a tougher test at home than in the previous meeting. Montgomery noted that in the earlier matchup Seattle was coming off playing the night before, while this time the Kraken have had practices and are back at home.
With puck battles, goaltending, and game management central themes for St. Louis, blues vs kraken arrives as a measuring stick night in Seattle before the calendar turns toward the Friday deadline.
