Kraken vs Hurricanes Betting (Dec. 15): Carolina Looks Strong in return to PNC Arena

The 2022-23 NHL season continues on Thursday, Dec. 15 with a massive schedule of 12 games, featuring a clash between the Seattle Kraken and Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m. ET. Carolina has been stacking up the wins lately while Seattle has struggled to pick up a victory, meaning tonight’s Kraken vs Hurricanes matchup is important for both teams in different ways.

Scenes from an 11-point road trip ?️ pic.twitter.com/8ua1axyJhn

— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) December 14, 2022

The Kraken enter this one having lost four of their last five games with each of those outings ending in a blowout. Their most recent loss was also an ugly one, dropping a 6-2 affair to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes have been enjoying a fair bit of success lately. Carolina improved to 6-0-1 in its last seven games thanks to a 1-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings two nights ago. Pyotr Kochetkov turned away all 27 shots he faced for the shutout while defenseman Brady Skjei had the lone goal in the contest.

As with most notable matchups, there are plenty of betting opportunities in this Kraken vs Hurricanes tilt. Here’s a look at BetOnline Sportsbook’s latest odds for the games, as well as a prediction and the best bet to make, courtesy of Betting News.

Seattle Kraken vs Carolina Hurricanes Matchup Information and Betting Odds

Matchup Information

• Matchup: Seattle Kraken (16-9-3, 9-3-1 Away) vs. Carolina Hurricanes (16-6-6, 5-3-1 Home)
• Venue & Location: PNC Arena (Raleigh, North Carolina)
• Date: Thursday, Dec. 15, 2022
• Game Time: 7 p.m. Eastern Time
• Kraken vs Hurricanes Info: ESPN+, ROOT Sports NW

Kraken vs Hurricanes Odds

Game odds are via BetOnline as of Thursday, Dec. 15 at 7:55 a.m. ET. Odds from other top online sportsbooks may also be mentioned in this article.

Spread

• Seattle Kraken +1.5 (-150)
• Carolina Hurricanes -1.5 (+122)

Over/Under

• Over 6 Goals (-110)
• Under 6 Goals (-110)

Moneyline

• Seattle Kraken +168
• Carolina Hurricanes -205

Seattle Kraken vs Carolina Hurricanes Betting Trends

• Seattle is 1-4 straight up in its last five games.
• Carolina is 14-3 straight up in its last 17 games against the Pacific Division.
• The total has hit the over in four of Seattle’s last five road games.
• The total has hit the under in 10 of Carolina’s last 14 games.

Seattle Kraken vs Carolina Hurricanes Prediction and Picks

Kraken vs Hurricanes Prediction: Hurricanes 4, Kraken 2

Kraken vs Hurricanes Picks: Hurricanes ML (Best Value: -205 at BetOnline) & Hurricanes -1.5 (Best Value: +122 at BetOnline)

Although the Kraken have been one of the more surprising teams this season, that hasn’t been the case at all lately. If they were losing close games lately, that would be one thing. Unfortunately, each of their last four losses hasn’t even been close.

The Kraken have allowed four-plus goals in each loss over their last five games. What’s even worse is that their offense has disappeared during that span, being held to just two or fewer goals in each of those outings.

Unfortunately for Seattle, it’s going to be tough to score goals tonight. For starters, Carolina has terrific defense and goaltending, resulting in just 2.61 goals per game being given up — the fourth-best rate in the NHL.

What’s even worse for the Kraken is that the Hurricanes enter this game following back-to-back shutout wins. Kochetkov hasn't allowed a goal in each of his last two appearances, stopping 43 consecutive shots to improve to three shutouts on the year in just 12 starts.

Not only do the Kraken have to worry about scoring goals, but they also must worry about keeping the puck out of their own net. The Hurricanes might be the sixth-lowest-scoring team (2.82 GPG), however, the scoring has jumped up to a 3.29 GPG rate over the last seven games.

Even more impressive, a total of eight different Hurricanes players have tallied multiple goals in that span. With how easily the Kraken have been allowing goals lately, it won’t be a surprise if that trend continues.

It’s also worth noting that Carolina has had Seattle’s number over the course of the latter’s short existence. Although the Kraken won the inaugural meeting, 2-1, the Hurricanes have won each of the last two by a combined score of 8-3 — including a 5-2 victory back in October. Andrei Svechnikov scored twice while Sebastian Aho had a three-point night, leaving time to tell if the duo can recreate history.

Nevertheless, I don’t see the Kraken winning this one. The Hurricanes already proved they could handle Seattle earlier this season and a return home after a successful six-game road trip is only going to give the host team an even bigger boost.

Though a Hurricanes moneyline win is perfectly acceptable, I also recommend them at -1.5 on the spread. The Kraken’s last four losses have been by an average deficit of three goals, losing each of them by at least two. With how well the Hurricanes have been playing lately combined with Seattle’s poor performances, winning by two-plus goals is certainly possible for Carolina.

Other Seattle Kraken vs Carolina Hurricanes Resources

• Kraken vs Hurricanes Consensus Picks, Score Projections & Betting Stats