Mark Giordano sounds off on ex-Kraken teammates

The Toronto Maple Leafs got the veteran blue line help that they needed at last year's NHL Trade Deadline, bringing aboard former Calgary Flames and Seattle Kraken captain Mark Giordano. A Toronto native, he was certainly thrilled to be suiting up for his hometown team at the time of his acquisition. 

And he made the call to stick around for another two seasons, having agreed to a contract extension that saw him take a considerable hometown discount - a deal that pays him an AAV of $800K over the next two years, a far cry from the $5.4 million he made last year.

Tonight, he'll be facing the Kraken for the first time since last season's deal. And as it currently stands, the Kraken are third in the Pacific Division standings despite having finished last year well outside of the postseason picture.

What has Giordano noticed about his former teammates play this year? 

"We did a lot of good things," he said of last year's team. "I think we played quick and moved the puck quick. You can see that in their game now. Their transition game looks really good. They look really fast. They have added some nice players to their roster. They look pretty deep throughout their lineup."

"It looks like a team that plays really quickly with a lot of pace. We have to be ready for that."

Head coach Sheldon Keefe was also quick to compliment the way that the Kraken play.

"It is a team that when you look at them statistically or on video, you have lots of respect for them and the coaching staff," Keefe said. "But our focus will be on our game and how we can play."

Take a look at tonight's anticipated line combinations: 

Forwards
#58 Michael Bunting – #34 Auston Matthews – #88 William Nylander
#19 Calle Järnkrok – #91 John Tavares – #16 Mitch Marner
#15 Alex Kerfoot – #64 David Kämpf – #47 Pierre Engvall
#12 Zach Aston-Reese – #29 Pontus Holmberg – #20 Dryden Hunt

Defensemen
#44 Morgan Rielly – #78 TJ Brodie
#55 Mark Giordano – #3 Justin Holl
#38 Rasmus Sandin – #37 Timothy Liljegren

Goaltenders
Starter: #30 Matt Murray