Seattle Kraken forward Shane Wright has seen an uptick in his minutes in the last six games and has set a career-high six-game point streak during this period.
Seattle Kraken forward Shane Wright has seen an uptick in his minutes in the last six games and has set a career-high six-game point streak during this period.
Seattle Kraken forward Shane Wright has seen an uptick in his minutes in the last six games and has set a career-high six-game point streak during this period.
The Kraken were outshot 40-27 in last night's 5-4 shootout loss to the Detroit Red Wings, but the Kraken's 21-year-old centre stood out in the best way possible, scoring twice and winning his minutes at even strength. Each forward line besides Wright's group was outshot and held a lower percentage of the expected goal (outside of the fourth) line at 5-on-5 according to Natural Stat Trick.
With Wright on the ice, the Kraken outshot their opponents 8-6, had a higher Corsi for percentage (51.61%), and held 70.0% of the expected goals, creating 1.26 expected goals.
His line, consisting of Jared McCann and Andre Burakovsky, outscored the Red Wings 2-1, including Wright's second goal of the game halfway through the third period to bring them within one.
Wright's confidence has continued to grow as the season has progressed, and he's shown that he can play with nearly every winger on the team. His offensive numbers have greatly improved, and he hasn't sacrificed anything on the defensive side of the puck. In the last six games, the Burlington, ON native has scored three goals and four points. His ice time has also been higher than his season average in all but one game, the 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks in which he scored a third-period power play goal.
Following his two-goal performance, the 2022 fourth-overall pick spoke about his mindset during the loss.
"Just wanted to shoot," said Wright. "Saw some lanes and I had a little time and space and I've told to shoot a little more. I just wanted to put it on net and I was lucky to find the back of the net a couple times."
Finding the back of the net a couple of times requires more than just "luck"." His play as of late has been more direct and he's willingly take the space that opens up for him. He's skating with the puck more and the next step is to demand it more frequently.
In his last 15 games, Wright has recorded 12 points, but his success ranges farther back than that. In his last 34 games, or since he returned from a brief stint as a healthy scratch, Wright has scored 10 goals and 27 points which translates to 24 goals and 65 points over an 82-game span.
Juraj Slafkovsky and Logan Cooley, the two forwards selected before Wright in the 2022 NHL Draft are averaging more than three and four minutes of ice time per night. If his ice time increases, there is statistical evidence that his production could increase.
The increase in ice time could occur following the trade deadline, depending on how active GM Ron Francis is but Wright's recent play should help Francis feel a bit comfortable moving on from some veteran forwards.
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