The Seattle Kraken face the Colorado Avalanche in Game Five with the series tied at two wins apiece. The Kraken tied up the series with a 3-2 overtime win in Game Four and are going toe-to-toe with the defending Stanley Cup champions. The Avalanche meanwhile looked like they were going to control the series but lost Game Four and now will be without arguably their best player, Cale Maker, who was suspended for Game Five. The winner of Game Five will take a 3-2 series lead and the upcoming game should be a great one.
The Kraken have evened up the series with their offense stepping up and scoring seven goals in the last two games. Jaden Schwartz, Alexander Wennberg, and Yanni Gourde have scored three goals and seven assists to lead the top two lines but the rest of the offense has stepped up as well. Eeli Tolvanen, Jordan Eberle, and Brandon Tanev have combined for three goals and three assists while defensemen Justin Schultz and Jamie Oleksiak have added two goals and five assists from the point to open up the offense.
The offense has stepped up but the defense has struggled in the recent games, allowing eight goals in the last two games. Adam Larsson, Vince Dunn, and Jamie Oleksiak have led the top two pairings but the rest of the unit has struggled, allowing the Avalanche to find open shots on the net at will. The bright spot has been the play of goaltender Philipp Grubauer who has saved 120 of the 131 shots h e's faced.