Watching the Seattle Kraken, you'd see an anomoly in the Pacific Northwest scene. The Seahawks have a winning record this season and the Mariners just won the AL West title. All is good and vibing in the Emerald City with the exception of "A Greater Expansion Story Than The Vegas Golden Knights."
Luckily, the Kraken got a home-opener win against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, 3-1. It was the first home-opener win ever for the franchise, doing it against a team that hasn't made the Stanley Cup playoffs since 2018. Meanwhile, Vegas did it in 2017 against the now-defunct Arizona Coyotes on October 10, winning by a score of 5-2.
What's more is that the Golden Knights have an all-time record of 12-2-1 against Seattle. Dominating the Kraken in a similar fashion to San Jose is quite impressive. It shows you which expansion story has been more impressive since stepping into the NHL.
At least with San Jose, you can say there's a rivalry since both teams met twice in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Both teams trade a series win and call it a day. Between the Kraken and the Golden Knights... not so much.
Both expansion teams will meet on Saturday as they look to build points early. What better way to do it than in the Pacific Northwest, where it's nothing but a winning atmosphere? Who knows? Maybe the Kraken can stop disappointing their sports brothers and do something this season.
Why the Golden Knights will continue the winning trend against the Seattle Kraken (and why they won't)
Remember when the Golden Knights were the second-best team regarding the power play last season (28.3%)? It seems like the group has picked up where it left off with a power play percentage of 30%. Part of that has come from Pavel Dorofeyev, who's found his spot past the faceoff circle for snipes.
Last season, the Kraken were subpar on the penalty kill, placing 21st in the NHL (77.2). While they were careful about being in the penalty box (26th in the NHL with 585 penalty minutes), they can't make any mistakes here. Otherwise, you can expect Vegas to pull some deceptive moves to give Dorofeyev shots near the slot.
There's also Jack Eichel, who has five goals and 10 assists in 11 career games against the Kraken. He's been steady in dismantling Seattle, using his shooting acumen and two-way game to cause problems. Watch for him as he looks to add to the misery in the Pacific Northwest.
Now, you might look at the Kraken and see a meager forward group with middle-of-the-lineup guys. However, the Sharks proved it's easier to score on the Golden Knights than anticipated. While San Jose has a better future blueprint than the "Greater Expansion Story Than Vegas", Seattle can still exploit a back-end group figuring it out.
This could lead to similar circumstances to Thursday's game, putting Vegas on the ropes. Fans are hoping for the Pacific Northwest monotony, where the Golden Knights continue dominating their little expansion brothers.