Preview: Red Wings conclude western trip tonight in Seattle

The Detroit Red Wings look to continue their modest one-game winning streak tonight in Seattle.  The Kraken are on a one game losing streak and are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games.

Game time tonight is 10:00 PM ET at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA.

Player Focus: Riley Sheahan (C, Seattle)

Former Red Wings player Riley Sheahan is putting together a nice if unspectacular inaugural season in Seattle.  Sheahan signed as a free agent with Seattle and has suited up for 49 games with the Kraken.

This season, Sheahan has scored two goals, nine assists, 11 points, and a +4 rating.  Sheahan is a dependable 4th line center at this stage in his career, and Seattle has been the perfect place for the former Detroit 1st rounder.

At 30, Sheahan is currently playing in his 11th NHL season.  He has played 614 NHL games, and has scored 72 goals, 116 assists, 188 points, and a -54 rating.

Sheahan is in the final season of his current contract and will be an UFA at the end of the season.  Sheahan’s contract has a cap hit of $850,000 annually.

Red Wings Notes

• Detroit are currently 5th in the Atlantic Division with a 25-29-7 record
• The Red Wings are currently 27th in PP (17.7%) and 30th in PK (73.2%)
• Dylan Larkin leads Detroit with 27 goals and 58 points in 56 games
• Moritz Seider leads the Red Wings with 37 assists in 61 games
• Seider leads all Detroit defensemen in scoring with 42 points
• Lucas Raymond is currently 2nd in NHL rookie scoring with 46 points in 61 games
• Defenseman Marc Staal leads the Red Wings with a +10 rating
• Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic is expected to start and has a 16-18-6 record, 3.15 GAA, a .903 SV%, and two SO in 44 games
• There remains trade speculation regarding Nick Leddy as he is a healthy scratch again tonight

Detroit Projected Lineup

Forwards

Valdislav Namestnikov – Dylan Larkin – Lucas Raymond

Tyler Bertuzzi – Pius Suter – Filip Zadina

Jakub Vrana – Joe Veleno – Sam Gagner

Taro Hirose – Michael Rasmussen – Adam Erne

Defensemen

Jordan Oesterle – Moritz Seider

Olli Juolevi – Filip Hronek

Marc Staal – Troy Stecher

Goaltenders

Alex Nedeljkovic (starter)

Thomas Greiss

Scratched: Gustav Lindstrom, Nick Leddy, Givani Smith

Injured: Robby Fabbri (lower body), Carter Rowney (lower body), Mitchell Stephens (lower body), Danny DeKeyser (upper body)

Kraken Notes

• Seattle are currently 8th in the Pacific Division with a 18-38-6 record
• The Kraken special teams are currently 29th in PP (15.3%) and 28th in PK (74.6%)
• Yanni Gourde leads Seattle with 22 assists and 36 points in 54 games
• Jared McCann leads the Kraken with 23 goals in 54 games
• Vince Dunn leads all Seattle defensemen in scoring with 24 points
• Defenseman Carson Soucy leads all Kraken players with a +9 rating
• Philipp Grubauer  is expected to start and has a 13-26-5 record, 3.23 GAA, a .888 SV% and one SO in 45 games
• Former Red Wings draftee Calle Jarnkrok was traded from Seattle to Calgary on Thursday
• Trade speculation will keep captain Mark Giordano out of the Kraken lineup tonight

Seattle Projected Lineup

Forwards

Jaden Schwartz – Alexander Wennberg – Jordan Eberle

Colin Blackwell – Yanni Gourde – Mason Appleton

Marcus Johansson – Jared McCann – Ryan Donato

Riley Sheahan – Morgan Geekie – Karson Kuhlman

Defensemen

Carson Soucy – Jamie Oleksiak

Vince Dunn – Jeremy Lauzon

Haydn Fleury  – Adam Larsson

Goaltenders

Philipp Grubauer (starting)

Chris Driedger

Scratched: Mark Giordano, Kole Lind, William Borgen

Injured: Brandon Tanev (knee), Joonas Donskoi (undisclosed)