Seattle Kraken vs Vancouver Canucks Prediction 1/2/2026 Today’s NHL Picks

In this article, we will formulate a Kraken vs Canucks Prediction for this NHL game on Friday, January 2nd. Let’s take a look at the prediction for this NHL matchup.

Vancouver Canucks Preview

The Canucks have 35 points this season with a 16-20-3 record, and are 17-22 ATS and 21-14 in over/under. They have a 4-12-1 home record and a 12-8-2 road record and are sitting 8th in the Pacific Division. They are coming off a 6-3 home loss to the Flyers, and their previous three games were a 3-2 road shootout win over the Kraken, a 6-3 home loss to the Sharks, and a 5-2 road loss to the Flyers.

Offensively, the Canucks are averaging 2.77 goals per game and are scoring 19.4% of their power play opportunities. Defensively, they are allowing 3.49 goals per game and are killing 75.2% of their opponent’s power plays.

Elias Pettersson leads the Canucks with 23 points, while Kiefer Sherwood leads the team in goals with 16, and Quinn Hughes leads the team in assists with 21. Kevin Lankinen is the starting goalie for the Canucks, and he has a 6-10-3 record, with 3.41 GAA and .885 SV%. Thatcher Demko is the backup goalie and he has a 8-8 record, with 2.72 GAA and .907 SV%.

Seattle Kraken Preview

The Kraken have 39 points this season with a 16-14-7 record, and are 25-12 ATS and 14-20 in over/under. They have a 8-7-4 home record and a 8-7-3 road record and are sitting 6th in the Pacific Division. They are coming off a 3-2 home shootout loss to the Canucks, and their previous three games were a 4-1 home win over the Flyers, a 3-2 road win over the Kings, and a 3-1 road win over the Ducks.

Offensively, the Kraken are averaging 2.57 goals per game and are scoring 20.7% of their power play opportunities. Defensively, they are allowing 2.89 goals per game and are killing 71.7% of their opponent’s power plays.

Jordan Eberle leads the Kraken with 25 points, also leading the team in goals with 14, while Eeli Tolvanen leads the team in assists with 18. Joey Daccord is the starting goalie for the Kraken, and he has a 10-9-5 record, with 2.77 GAA and .904 SV%. Philipp Grubauer is the backup goalie and he has a 6-3-1 record, with 2.44 GAA and .917 SV%.

Seattle Kraken @ Vancouver Canucks Betting Trends: January 2, 2026

Why the Vancouver Canucks will win

• The Kraken have lost 18 of their last 19 games on the second leg of a back-to-back.
• The Canucks have won four of their last five games following a home loss.
• The Canucks have covered the puck line in four of their last five games following a home loss.
• The Kraken have failed to cover the puck line in three of their last four road games following a home win.
• The Kraken have lost the second period in each of their last four games when leading after the first period.

Why the Seattle Kraken will win

• The Canucks have lost each of their last four games as home favorites against Western Conference opponents.
• The Kraken have won five of their last six games as underdogs.
• The Canucks have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last 10 games as favorites.
• The Kraken have covered the puck line in each of their last six games.
• The Canucks have lost the second period in each of their last six games when tied after the first period.

Total Goals Facts

• Each of the Canucks’ last seven games as home favorites against opponents who are on the second leg of a back-to-back have gone OVER the total goals line.
• Each of the Kraken’s last five games have gone UNDER the total goals line.
• Three of the last four games between teams from the same division have gone OVER the total goals line.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Canucks’ last nine home games against Western Conference opponents.
• The ‘Under 0.5 Goals Period 1’ market has hit in eight of the Kraken’s last nine road games.

Vancouver Canucks Player Prop Facts

• Drew O’Connor has scored a goal in three of the Canucks’ last four games.
• Conor Garland has recorded at least one assist in four of the Canucks’ last five home games against Pacific Division opponents.

Seattle Kraken Player Prop Facts

• Jared McCann has scored a goal in five of his last six appearances against Pacific Division opponents.
• Vince Dunn has recorded at least one assist in each of the Kraken’s last five games against the Canucks.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Vancouver Canucks rank 31st in the league for goals against per game this season (3.49).
• The Vancouver Canucks rank 29th in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (75.19%).
• The Seattle Kraken rank 32nd in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (71.30%).
• The Seattle Kraken rank 29th in the league for goals per game this season (2.61).

Kraken vs Canucks Prediction

In their previous meeting earlier this season, the Canucks won 3-2 on the road in a shootout but the Kraken are 7-2 in their 9 meetings before that. Over is 7-3 in their last 10 meetings.

In this Kraken vs Canucks Prediction, the Canucks are coming as -170 home favorites. The wrong team is favored in this spot and favored by a lot, as the Canucks have less points than the Kraken and have been terrible at home, having half as many wins as the Kraken have on the road. They are also struggling lately with a 1-3 record in their last 4 games and have lost their last four games at home and have an inferior defense than the Kraken so I like the value with the road dog in this matchup. Take the Kraken on the moneyline for plus money.

Nikos Lagouretos's Pick: Seattle Kraken ML