The Seattle Kraken were shockingly in a playoff position Monday afternoon. Their -11-goal differential became a -14 differential after they matched up with Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Kraken try to lull their opponents to sleep by forcing their opponents to the outside, and downlow, and try to capitalize on mistakes. That’s a fine plan unless you’re playing against a team that has the greatest downlow player of all time and the hardest working 4th line in hockey. Seattle plays boring hockey. They have no one even remotely close to being considered as an upper echelon talent. They rely almost entirely on Joey Daccord being Dominik Hasek on a nightly basis. They weren’t handed as good of a roster as their expansion older brother, Vegas, but also have not had decisive enough management to create a real hockey program. Vegas, highlighted by the Andersson trade, may not use a 1st round pick again until 2030. They feverishly go after free-agents or anyone who they like on the trade market. Seattle on the other hand they just kinda exist. They’ve made some decently high draft picks during their time, but none of them are gamebreakers. This was evident on Monday afternoon against the Penguins. The game was largely a coin-flip, but the firepower of the Kraken is simply not enough to contend with the offensive depth the Penguins can throw at you. The Kraken are so boring that there is really no point in highlighting too much about this game. The game did have some big playoff implications, for both teams, so instead of talking about the snoozefest that is Seattle, I will blog a little bit about that.

Winning this game put the Penguins briefly into second place in the Metro. The Islanders beat the lowly Canucks and retook the spot a few hours later. Nevertheless, the Penguins playoff hopes are skyrocketing. The Rangers put out yet another letter that they are rebuilding. The Flyers suck (shocker). The Blue Jackets exist but we don’t concern ourselves with them. The Devils are a dumpster fire (yes, we will take Dougie Hamilton from you if you give us your 1st round pick). The Capitals are the one team that has a shot to catch the Penguins for the final spot in the Metro. However, the Penguins have two games in hand on Washington and they’re already ahead of them by three points. If the Penguins were to get leapfrogged by any of the above teams, with the way they’re playing it’s going to be more of a product of another team getting hot. I don’t foresee a Penguins collapse unless they fall on bad health, if that’s true they will certainly still have a chance to capture a wildcard spot.

The depth of these Penguins makes them a real threat in the playoffs. Everyone always says that your bottom six is more important than your top six in the playoffs. Once you make the playoffs, everyone has a good top six. The teams that separate are the ones that can create offense away from their top talent. Well, Brazeau has already set a new career high in goals.

Fourth liner Conor Dewar has tied his career high in goals and set his career high in points.

Parker Wotherspoon has set career highs across the board and has also turned into a reliable top four defensemen.

It’s this type of depth that can lead you towards numerous playoff series victories. You couple that with the sheer determination that Sid and Geno will have, look out NHL. No one will deploy a roster that wants a cup more than Pittsburgh. It is all Sidney Crosby thinks about. Geno has said all he wants to do is get back into the playoffs one last time. Karlsson has never won one. Letang has been mocked for years after his team won one while he was injured. Skinner wants to prove that it was all McDavid’s fault that he doesn’t have a ring. There’s still a lot of hockey left to be played but I am becoming dangerously optimistic. Could they lose to any team in the playoffs? Maybe. However, they could just as easily beat any team in the playoffs. You’re giving me a best of seven with two of the games top 25 players of all time who are beyond motivated, I like the odds of them winning games.

If the Penguins do make the playoffs, regardless of what happens in said playoffs, Crosby should receive consideration for the Hart. My Hart trophy vote would go to Celebrini. However, Crosby might be hard to deny. He has had three straight multi-point games. He is on pace for 44 goals and 94 points. That will likely have him end in the top 10 in the league. Not necessarily earth shattering in terms of numbers. Then you remember that he is 38 years old and has played in this league for 21 years. It is insane. It’s rare that a game takes place and he isn’t the best player on the ice. Maybe he’s a half step slower than his twenties, but he is still a force downlow. He’s still the catalyst that leads to late comebacks (like Saturday against Columbus). It’s insane how good he has been this season. His linemates have been ravaged by injuries throughout the season, he continues to produce in spite of that. Yes, Macklin should win the Hart. However, the top three candidates should be MacKinnon, Crosby, and Celebrini. Those three are all beyond worthy. They are also likely to form the best line in the Olympics. If Crosby doesn’t get the nod to be one of the candidates, I would look to Kucherov. Kuch is going to end up top 5 in points, his team is head and shoulders better than anyone in the East. Tampa has also dealt with significant injuries to top of the lineup players all year long. Those four guys are the only four guys that should be considered for the Hart. No one else comes to mind that deserves it. MacKinnon will run away with the Rocket. Macklin might lead the Sharks to the playoffs years earlier than anticipated. Crosby is 38 and might will (with Geno’s help) the Penguins back into the playoffs. Kuch is doing what Kuch does. No one else in the league should be mentioned in the same breath as these four guys. Three of them will be the most impactful players for Team Canada in a few weeks. The other would make Russia a threat for gold if they were allowed to compete. Maybe you could add Ilya Sorokin to the Hart mix if the Islanders get into the playoffs. That’s your top five. No one else is really close to these guys. The three Canadian boys are head and shoulders above the two Russians and are without a doubt the three best Canadians in the sport right now (Cale Makar you’re close).