by
- What: Seattle Kraken vs. Vegas Golden Knights
- Date: Tuesday, October 10, 2023
- Location: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV
- Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
- How to Watch: ESPN, ESPN+
The 2023 Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights face the Seattle Kraken on opening night of the 2023-24 NHL season. Before the puck drops at the T-Mobile Arena on Tuesday, October 10, the Golden Knights will raise their first Cup banner to the rafters of the facility the team has called home since it joined the NHL for the 2018-19 season. Vegas vs. Seattle is one of three games ESPN and ESPN+ will feature on the first night of the 2024 NHL season. The other two games, which will happen earlier in the night, are Nashville vs. Tampa Bay and Chicago vs. Pittsburgh. Here is some background on the Seattle Kraken vs. Golden Knights game before we look at the betting odds, picks, and predictions for that matchup.
The Seattle Kraken finished the 2023 NHL season in fourth place in the Pacific Division with a 46-28-8 record. The team was in its second year of existence in 2023 and made it to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs, where they lost to the Dallas Stars in seven games.
The Vegas Golden Knights finished last season as the top team in the Central Division and the Western Conference with a 51-22-9 record after missing the playoffs the previous year. Vegas downed the Florida Panthers in five games to win its first Stanley Cup.
Before we look at the betting breakdown for the NHL opening night matchup between the Seattle Kraken and Vegas Golden Knights, check out our betting picks to win the 2024 Stanley Cup and our tips for betting on the NHL.
Seattle Kraken vs. Vegas Golden Knights betting picks – October 10, 2023
| Teams |  |  |  |
| Seattle Kraken | +147 | +155 | +155 |
| Vegas Golden Knights | -165 | -180 | -180 |
Seattle Kraken betting breakdown
The Seattle Kraken made a big jump from year one to year two, adding 19 wins and 40 points to their inaugural season record. However, the team looks different heading into the 2024 NHL campaign. Gone are forwards Daniel Sprong, Morgan Geekie, and Ryan Donato. On defense, the team no longer has Carson Soucy, and goalie Martin Jones left in free agency. Joining the team are forward Kailer Yamamoto and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. On defense, the club picked up Brian Dumoulin.
Seattle had a lot of scoring depth last season, with 18 different players scoring at least one goal in the playoffs. They will also rely on that approach for this season, as they only had three players who scored more than 60 points last year in Jared McCann, Vince Dunn, and Jordan Eberle.
The club will look for Philipp Grubauer to carry the load in net. Grubauer posted a 2.85 goals against average and .895 save percentage in the regular season and played every game of the 2023 playoff run, putting up a 2.99 GAA and .903 SV %.
Vegas Golden Knights betting breakdown
The defending Stanley Cup champions, the Vegas Golden Knights largely stood pat this offseason. The team’s only significant change to its roster was trading Riley Smith to the Penguins. That trade freed up the cap space the club used to sign forward Ivan Barbashev to a five-year, $25 million contract. Barbashev played 23 regular season games for the team, picking up six goals and 10 assists, but he picked up steam in the playoffs, finishing with 18 points in 22 games. The 27-year-old had a career-best year in 2022, scoring 60 points for the St. Louis Blues. Barbashev spent most of the playoffs teamed with Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault, who led the team in scoring during the playoffs.
The fact that management did not make any enormous changes to the Stanley Cup-winning roster speaks volumes about the chemistry and confidence this team has heading into the 2024 NHL season.
Best bet for Seattle Kraken vs. Vegas Golden Knights
These teams have played eight times in the regular season, and Vegas has won seven of those games. Vegas outscored Seattle 14-8 in their four games last season, going 3-1 in the process. They held Seattle to one goal in each of their two late-season matchups. Expect more of the same when these two clubs meet on opening night of the 2024 NHL season. The betting pick is for the Vegas Golden Knights to win.
Betting pick: Vegas Golden Knights to beat Seattle Kraken.
See below a list of reliable sportsbooks and choose the best one for you.
