Brewin Flames Posted March 14, 2023 Author Share Posted March 14, 2023 Game # 68 Seattle 2 Stars 5 Robertson's 39th goal helps Stars roll Kraken 5-2 ByAP Updated: 1 hour ago SEATTLE -- — Two games in three days against the same opponent in the same town gave the Dallas Stars a little taste of what could be coming in the playoffs. The Stars look more than ready for the postseason to arrive, especially after an impressive sweep in Seattle that kept Dallas on top in the Central Division. Jason Robertson scored his 39th goal of the season, the last of three power-play goals by Dallas, and the Stars beat the Seattle Kraken 5-2 on Monday night for their sixth win in seven games. Robertson’s goal came in the opening seconds of the third period and gave Dallas a three-goal lead. Jamie Benn had a goal and two assists and Miro Heisknaen had three assists as Dallas strengthened its lead on top of the division. “I think our execution, our passes were pretty crispy,” Robertson said of the Stars' power play. “Our movement, trying to be unpredictable, they’re guys moving all around the place.” The Stars swept the two games in three days against the Kraken and moved three points in front of Minnesota with 15 games left in the regular season. “It was an important four points. You look at the standings and we’re in a fight for first in the division, first in the conference. They’re in a battle for playoff positioning. They’ve been playing great all year,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “So this was a real test for us coming in here for two games and I thought our group really responded.” Evgenii Dadonov, Joe Pavelski and Wyatt Johnston also scored for Dallas. Jake Oettinger made 26 saves for Dallas. Yanni Gourde and Eeli Tolvanen scored for Seattle, but the problem for the Kraken was their penalty kill. Seattle entered the game having killed 31 of the previous 32 power-play opportunities by its opponents, only to watch the Stars go 3 for 4 with the man advantage. “Bottom line, we didn't get job done. At the end of the day that’s what matters,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “There’s a couple there that we made mistakes on with where our positioning was, where our sticks are.” Dadonov and Benn scored inside the first six minutes to give Dallas a 2-0 lead, and Pavelski’s power-play goal early in the second period made it 3-1. The turning point came midway through the second period after Tolvanen scored his 14th of the season and 12th since joining the Kraken to pull Seattle to 3-2. Just 14 seconds after the goal, Johnston outworked Daniel Sprong for a loose puck and caught Seattle goaltender Martin Jones out of position for his 17th goal and a 4-2 Dallas lead. “I was lucky enough to get it around the goalie and get it in as I was falling,” Johnston said. Jones made 27 saves and looked uneasy at times making his first start in 11 days. Seattle lost for the fifth time in its past six home games and dropped to 16-14-4 at home on the season. While the Kraken are poised to make the playoffs in their second season, their struggles at home may end up being the deciding factor in whether Seattle enters the postseason as one of the top three in the Pacific Division or a wild card. “We’ve been a group that’s been able to turn the page and go back to the next job at hand,” Hakstol said. “This group has to be able to do that again.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 17, 2023 Author Share Posted March 17, 2023 Game # 69 Seattle 2 SJS 1 Dunn scores in overtime, Kraken beat Sharks 2-1 0:59 Kraken prevail on Vince Dunn's OT goal Vince Dunn's 13th goal of the season gives the Kraken a 2-1 win over the Sharks. ByAP Updated: 2 hours ago SAN JOSE, Calif. -- — Vince Dunn scored 1:58 into overtime and the Seattle Kraken beat the San Jose Sharks 2-1 on Thursday night. Oliver Bjorkstrand had a goal and assist for the Kraken, tying the score with his 15th of the season on a breakaway at 7:03 of the third period. Philipp Grubauer stopped 31 shots, and Dunn extended his point streak to 11 games — especially impressive for a defenseman. “There was a will to him tonight," Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said about Dunn. "You can see his confidence offensively with the puck. At times he controlled some of the play, and maybe fitting that he was the guy to make the play on the winning goal.” Sharks forward William Eklund scored on a penalty shot for his second career goal, both in the last two games. James Reimer was terrific in net, finishing with 30 saves. “It was a good hockey game. A hard game. There wasn’t a lot of room out there. I really liked our effort. I thought we did a lot of good things, just weren’t able to capitalize on some of our chances," San Jose coach David Quinn said. "I thought we defended a lot better tonight. I liked a lot about our game, and it’s unfortunate.” Dunn beat Reimer through the legs to win it. “Just fortunate, I think. Just get it on net and try not to turn it over. If you miss a shot wide, it can turn the other way, and it’s an odd-man rush the opposite way," Dunn said. “So for me, just give myself a chance. I think it was a fortunate goal for me. Just kind of caught them on the change a little bit. I think just reading the pre-scout and everything (helped).” Eklund's goal early in the third was the first penalty shot a Sharks player had converted since Logan Couture scored against the Minnesota Wild on March 11, 2019. “It was nice to get a goal," Eklund said. "I was just trying to find my spot there.” Less than six minutes later, Yanni Gourde found Bjorkstrand streaking through the middle of the ice and he beat Reimer over his catching glove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 19, 2023 Author Share Posted March 19, 2023 Game # 70 Seattle 4 EDM 6 Evander Kane's hat trick lifts Oilers past Kraken 6-4 0:49 Evander Kane's hat trick lifts Oilers past Kraken Evander Kane completes his hat trick to help the Oilers top the Kraken 6-4. ByAP Updated: 9 hours ago SEATTLE -- — Evander Kane needed just three shots to show the Edmonton Oilers can be more than just Connor McDavid. And the timing couldn't be better with the playoffs on the horizon. Kane recorded his second hat trick of the season and the Oilers gained some cushion in the Western Conference playoff chase with a 6-4 win over the Seattle Kraken on Saturday. Kane capped the sixth three-goal game of his career by scoring on an odd-man rush with 9:40 remaining just after a power play for Seattle ended. Kane also scored Edmonton’s first goal less than two minutes into the game, and his second goal came 43 seconds into the second period. “That’s part of my job is to be productive for this group," said Kane, who has played in just 29 games due to injuries. "Obviously we have two of the best players in the world, but they can’t carry a team and win a championship. You need everyone pulling their weight.” McDavid still did his part with a goal and two assists, giving him 134 points for the season — the seventh-most points by any player in the past 30 years. McDavid scored his 58th goal of the season on a power play with 3:50 remaining. McDavid recorded his 20th three-point game of the season, the first player to reach that mark since both Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr did it in the 1995-96 season. The victory moved Edmonton three points ahead of Seattle for the final automatic playoff spot from the Pacific Division. Edmonton has one less game remaining than Seattle, but the Oilers gained the upper hand in the final matchup of the regular season between the teams. “It's really big. Every game down the stretch right now is huge for us,” said Edmonton's Kailer Yamamoto, who scored his ninth goal of the season in the first period. “We need to keep chipping away and keep finding ways to get these W's.” Zach Hyman scored his 30th of the season and Leon Draisaitl had three assists, giving him 104 points on the season. Stuart Skinner made 33 saves for Edmonton. Jaden Schwartz, Jordan Eberle, Oliver Bjorkstrand and Eeli Tolvanen all scored for Seattle, but the Kraken lost for the sixth time in their past seven home games. Vince Dunn extended his points streak to 12 games when he assisted on Seattle’s first goal that was tipped in by Schwartz. The goal was originally credited to Dunn, but later changed to Schwartz. “Obviously this is frustrating. You see the standings and where we're at,” Eberle said. “Obviously we're fighting until the end. It's a big road trip for us coming up.” Seattle's Philipp Grubauer made seven saves, but left with 13:30 left in the second period and immediately went down the tunnel to Seattle’s locker room. Martin Jones replaced Grubauer and the first shot he faced found the back of the net when Hyman collected a pass from McDavid and flicked a wrist shot over Jones’ blocker. Seattle announced Grubauer left due to a non-COVID illness. Jones made 10 saves. “It's a disappointing outcome. Our team played hard, our team played well," Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. "We had to play a little too much from behind.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 22, 2023 Author Share Posted March 22, 2023 Game # 71 Seattle 5 Stars 4 OT Adam Larsson's overtime goal helps Kraken beat Stars 5-4 0:46 Kraken triumph in OT on Adam Larsson's goal Adam Larsson's overtime goal gives the Kraken a 5-4 win over the Stars. ByAP 5 hours ago DALLAS -- — Defenseman Adam Larsson scored on a breakaway backhander 1:52 into overtime and emergency callup goaltender Joey Daccord made 25 saves in his first NHL appearance since Nov. 1 as the Seattle Kraken beat the Dallas Stars 5-4 on Tuesday night. Brandon Tanev had two goals and an assist, fellow fourth-line forward Daniel Sprong had a goal and an assist and Jared McCann added his team-best 34th goal plus an assist for the Kraken, who bolstered their hold on the first wild-card playoff position in the Western Conference. Jamie Benn sent the game into overtime with the tying goal with 0.7 seconds left and had two assists. Miro Heiskanen and Joe Pavelski each had a goal and an assist and Wyatt Johnston also scored for the Stars, who rallied from a two-goal deficit in the final four minutes. Larsson took a pass off the boards from McCann, near Seattle’s goal line, and sprinted toward the net, getting behind Heiskanen. “Those are the kind of plays you need this time of year,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “When you give up those two (goals) at the end, it can be pretty disappointing. Yet we went out and found a way to win it.” Dallas has 90 points with 11 games to play and is tied for first place in the Central Division with the Minnesota Wild. Jake Oettinger, who went in sixth in the NHL with a 2.46 goals-against average, came off a 6-5 win at Calgary that capped a 4-2 road trip – two of those wins at Seattle. “Given up 10 goals in the last two games,” said Oettinger, whose primary backup, Scott Wedgewood, has been out for a month with a knee injury. “Something’s gotta change.” Daccord was called up from Coachella Valley of the AHL on Monday with No. 1 goalie Philipp Grubauer unavailable with non-COVID illness. It was the 13th career NHL start for the 26-year-old Daccord, who improved to 3-8-1 in his NHL career. “It was a pretty crazy 24 hours,” Daccord said. “It didn’t really give me time to think. Just get in there and do it.” Tanev had his first two-goal game since Oct. 26, 2021, and his first three-point game since Nov. 29, 2021. His second goal put Seattle ahead 4-2 at 14:03 of the third period. Johnston’s goal was his 21st, the most among league rookies, and gives him a five-game goal streak. Dallas appeared to pull within 4-3 seconds later, but Ty Dellandrea’s goal was successfully challenged for goaltender interference on Max Domi. Pavelski, scoring at 16:34 of the third, and Benn each scored with an extra attacker on the ice. Benn has 30 goals for the fifth time. Heiskanen has an 11-game points streak, tying the Minnesota-Dallas franchise record for defensemen set by Craig Hartsburg in 1986-87. BLUELINE HISTORY Heiskanen’s points streak combined with a 12-game streak brought in by Kraken D Vince Dunn made for the first NHL game ever featuring multiple defensemen with double-digit scoring streaks. Dunn’s streak, which was the longest current streak in the NHL, ended. TRAVELIN’ MEN The Kraken are 23-9-3 away from Seattle for 49 points, the most of any West team in road play. They also improved to 28-1-3 when leading after two periods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 24, 2023 Author Share Posted March 24, 2023 Game # 72 Seattle 1 Preds 2 SO Saros helps Predators beat Kraken 2-1 in shootout 0:27 Philip Tomasino's goal in the SO ices the win for Nashville Philip Tomasino's goal in the SO ices the win for Nashville ByAP Updated: 5 hours ago NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- — Matt Duchene and Philip Tomasino scored in the shootout to lead the Nashville Predators to a 2-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Thursday night. Kiefer Sherwood scored for Nashville in regulation, and Juuse Saros made 27 saves in regulation and overtime. Saros also denied both Kraken attempts in the shootout. “You need good goaltending to win,” Predators coach John Hynes said. “You look at any team that’s in the playoffs, their goaltending is .920 or better. It’s one of the most important positions in the game. When you have solid goaltending, it gives you a chance every night.” Nashville earned its second straight since a three-game slide. It hosts Seattle again on Saturday. “You get into a rhythm and you get a good feel for it,” said Duchene, who has scored five goals in seven shootout attempts this season. Daniel Sprong scored for Seattle, and Joey Daccord made 23 stops in regulation and overtime. “It came down to the shootout,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get the extra point, but we’ve got to turn the page quickly and look at a couple of areas to be a little bit better in and pretty much expect a very similar game on Saturday afternoon.” The Kraken had won six straight road games. They have gone to overtime in four of the last six games overall. Seattle (39-24-8) holds the top spot in the wild-card standings in the Western Conference. Nashville (36-26-8) is trying to track down Winnipeg for the second spot. Sprong put Nashville in front 2:28 into the first period. Driving down the right side, Sprong dropped below the goal line and banked the puck into the net off of Saros’ right skate. It was Sprong’s 18th goal of the season. He has three points in his last two games. Sherwood responded with his fourth goal 14:01 into the second. Daccord stopped Tyson Barrie’s shot from the right side, but Sherwood snapped the rebound home. TOLVANEN’S RETURN During a media timeout in the first period, the Predators played a tribute video for Seattle forward Eeli Tolvanen. Tolvanen, a first-round draft pick of the Predators in 2017, was picked up off waivers by Seattle in December. Tolvanen has found success with the Kraken, scoring 13 goals and adding 10 assists in 37 games since the move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 26, 2023 Author Share Posted March 26, 2023 Game # 73 Seattle 7 Preds 2 Tolvanen scores twice, Kraken beat Predators 7-2 0:44 Oliver Bjorkstrand scores goal vs. Predators Oliver Bjorkstrand scores goal vs. Predators ByAP Updated: 11 hours ago NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- — Eeli Tolvanen scored twice, Philipp Grubauer made 14 saves and the Seattle Kraken defeated the Nashville Predators 7-2 on Saturday. Jared McCann had a goal and two assists, and Daniel Sprong, Adam Larsson, Matty Beniers and Oliver Bjorkstrand also scored for Seattle, which entered Saturday holding the top spot in the Western Conference’s wild-card race. Vince Dunn had two assists. Matt Duchene and Tyson Barrie each had a goal and an assist and Juuse Saros made 32 saves for Nashville, which had its two-game winning streak snapped. The Predators began Saturday five points behind the Winnipeg Jets for the West’s second wild-card berth. “They were the better team from right off the start,” Predators coach John Hynes said. “They just looked faster, more competitive on the puck.” Tolvanen’s two-goal performance was particularly painful for the Predators, as they waived the talented Finn in early December. Tolvanen has scored 15 goals since joining Seattle. “He just keeps working hard,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “What he did today is what he’s been doing for us all along.” Much like in Thursday night’s matchup between the teams, Sprong scored the game’s first goal early in the opening period. Sprong has scored in three straight games, equaling a career high. Tolvanen doubled the Seattle lead at 17:37 of the first with a power-play goal. The Kraken had not scored on the man-advantage in the last five games, going 0-11 over that stretch. “I feel like the last couple of games we struggled a little bit getting shots on net and getting scoring chances,” Tolvanen said. “Today we did a pretty good job on the power play. We got shots through and we got some traffic, too.” Barrie halved the Seattle lead at of the 1:43 of the second, tapping in the rebound of a Philip Tomasino redirect. Tolvanen struck again at 17:16 of the second. Saros came way out of his crease to try to prevent a Bjorkstrand breakaway. Unfortunately for Saros, he passed it right to Tolvanen just inside the blue line, where he sent a long wrist shot into the vacated net. Duchene scored at 53 seconds of the third to draw Nashville briefly to back within a goal, but Seattle scored four unanswered to put the game out of reach. “Yeah, it was kind of a weird game,” Duchene said. “We were not at the level we needed to be. We were a little flat. So I’m not sure. It’s hard to put your finger on why. Execution wasn’t great at times.” FRANCHISE RECORDS Nashville was credited with just one shot on goal in the first period, equaling a franchise record for fewest shots in one period. On the other side, it was the first time in Seattle franchise history in which it allowed a single shot against in a period. “It’s a mental game, one shot there,” Grubauer said. “That’s the period you want to have. I think it was 2-0 after the first period, one shot on net. That’s a hell of a road game.” DACCORD REASSIGNED Earlier Saturday, the Kraken reassigned goaltender Joey Daccord to the Coachella Valley Firebirds of the AHL. The goaltender went 1-0-1 in the two games he played this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 28, 2023 Author Share Posted March 28, 2023 Game # 74 Seattle 1 Wild 5 Wild beat Kraken 5-1 behind Boldy's 2nd hat trick in 8 days By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) Matt Boldy had his second hat trick in the last five games for Minnesota, Marc-Andre Fleury made 35 saves, and the surging Wild beat the Seattle Kraken 5-1 on Monday night. Jake Middleton had a rare goal, Ryan Hartman scored late and Jared Spurgeon, Marcus Johansson and Joel Eriksson Ek each had two assists as the Wild stayed in first place in the Central Division. They took a one-point lead on Colorado into the day, with a critical road game against the Avalanche coming next. Dallas is three points behind. Boldy is a big reason why the Wild are in the lead, with 11 goals in the nine games they've played since superstar Kirill Kaprizov was sidelined by a lower-body injury. The Wild are 6-1-2 without Kaprizov, who's still 10th in the NHL with 39 goals. "It just works like that sometimes. I wish I had a better reason for you, but it just seems to be going in," said Boldy, who is second on the team with 28 goals. Since the Wild entered the league in the 2000-01 season, only five NHL players have had more hat tricks at age 21 or younger than Boldy with three: Patrik Laine (eight), Marian Gaborik (five), Steven Stamkos (five), Alex DeBrincat (four) and Connor McDavid (four). Boldy, who turns 22 next week, had a hat trick in a 5-3 win over Washington here just eight days ago. "It looks like he's trying to throw it through the net, which is great," Wild coach Dean Evason said. "He has such a gifted shot." Jaden Schwartz ended Fleury's shutout bid with 9 minutes left, scoring on a bouncing rebound that banked in off the goalie and into the net. "It didn't feel like a 5-1 game. It felt closer than that," Schwartz said. "Fleury made some big timely saves, and we just weren't quite there for the second chances." The Kraken, who wrapped up a four-game road swing with their first regulation loss on the trip, control the first wild card spot in the Western Conference. They lead Winnipeg by three points. Boldly flashed a wide grin when he notched the natural hat trick 50 seconds into the third period, prompting a shower of ballcaps onto the ice and an exit for Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer. The fans were fired up for this potential preview of a first-round playoff series, chanting Fleury's name a few minutes later after a sliding pad save to deny another prime scoring opportunity. "It definitely feels good to win knowing we might see them again. I think right now it's trying to get the most points and trying to get on top of our division," Fleury said. "I think that's the focus right now." The Wild were outshot 36-20 by the Kraken and had only five on-target attempts in the first period. Middleton created a spark after Spurgeon faked a slap shot, passed the puck to his left and set up his blue-line partner for just his seventh career goal in 151 games in the NHL. Boldy brought a lagging power play to life with his first goal off the setup from Johansson, the first time the Wild scored on the man advantage in five games. They were on a 3-for-22 skid until then. Boldy, who has 17 points in 13 games this month since Johansson - the former Kraken left wing - was acquired in a trade with the Capitals and placed on his line, sneaked his second goal through traffic with 5:01 remaining in the second period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted March 31, 2023 Author Share Posted March 31, 2023 Game # 75 Seattle 4 Ducks 1 Schwartz, Beniers lead Kraken to 4-1 win over Ducks 0:34 Alex Wennberg nets goal vs. the Ducks ByAP Updated: 4 hours ago SEATTLE -- — Jaden Schwartz and Matty Beniers scored within three minutes of each other in the first period and the Seattle Kraken hung on to beat the Anaheim Ducks 4-1 on Thursday night. Daniel Sprong added a power-play goal with 4:18 left in the game and Alex Wennberg sealed it with an empty-netter. Martin Jones made 18 saves to help the Kraken keep their grip on the top Western Conference wild-card playoff spot. “We played a good hockey game,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “Could we have some things a little bit differently in the second period? Absolutely. We would have liked to be able to extend that lead. But we settled down in the third. We needed a couple real good saves from Martin Jones to do that, but the penalty kill did its job, the power play did its job in extending the lead and that’s it. “It closes out a good two points for us and it’s a real positive night.” Brock McGinn scored the lone goal for Anaheim. Lukas Dostal made 35 saves. Schwartz put the Kraken ahead at 7:57 of the first period. Will Borgen, playing on the right side behind his own blue line, angled a cross-ice pass that Schwartz caught up with just over Anaheim's blue line. From the top of the left circle, Schwartz fired it past Dostal. Beniers made it 2-0 at 10:37 when his shot went off the net, but came but came right back to him and he poked it in off the edge of his stick. Beniers had gone 13 straight games without a goal from Feb. 28 until getting his 20th in last Saturday’s 7-2 win at Nashville and now his 21st, tying him with Dallas’ Wyatt Johnson for most among rookies this season. “I think I was playing good before and after (the 20th),” Beniers said. “Sometimes, it just doesn’t go in, and that’s how the game works. You get one and it just starts falling. “Everyone goes through it. I think I was playing a good game before and I think I’m playing the same exact game now – they’re just going in.” McGinn cut Anaheim’s deficit to 2-1 with 1:16 left in the second period. In a scramble behind the net, Derek Grant came up with the puck and got it out to McGinn in the middle of the left circle. McGinn’s shot went off Jones’ right pad and into the far side. Sprong got his 20th of the season to make it 3-1 when he skated around a defender and lifted a shot high over Dostal’s left glove. Wennberg’s 13th came on a shot from behind the red line into the empty net with 2:15 to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 2, 2023 Author Share Posted April 2, 2023 Game # 76 Seattle 1 LA 3 Kings move to cusp of playoff berth with 3-1 win over Kraken 0:57 Oliver Bjorkstrand tallies goal for Kraken on the power play Oliver Bjorkstrand tallies goal for Kraken on the power play ByAP 4 hours ago SEATTLE -- — Despite a string of injuries and absences, the Los Angeles Kings are on the cusp of wrapping up another trip to the postseason. Pheonix Copley made 25 saves, Sean Durzi, Carl Grundstrom and Kevin Fiala scored, and the Kings created separation in the Pacific Division standings with a 3-1 win over the Seattle Kraken on Saturday night. Durzi scored at 11:45 of the second period thanks to a deflection that left an open goal, and Grundstrom stole the puck from Brandon Tanev and beat Martin Jones glove side with 14:38 remaining to give Los Angeles a 2-0 lead. Fiala added an empty net goal with 45 seconds left, his 23rd of the season. “I didn’t think there was a lot of ice for either team. Both teams played a very tight, I don’t want to say conservative, but smart game. There wasn't space to make plays and if you had a chance to get it to the net, you’d better take advantage of it,” Los Angeles coach Todd McLellan said. “Fortunately for us, we got the lead and there was only going to be one or two tonight.” The victory by Los Angeles likely ended Seattle’s hopes of catching the Kings in the standings. Los Angeles moved eight points ahead of the Kraken with six games remaining while Seattle has a game in hand. The Kraken's path to the playoffs is likely one of the two wild cards in the Western Conference. “It’s a real disappointing loss, but in saying that this group knows what it takes,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “There’s there’s enough guys that have been in here. They know what it takes.” Copley faced a limited number of dangerous chances with most of Seattle’s shots coming from well away from goal. But when he needed to make a big save, Copley was solid. He stuffed Eeli Tolvanen on a breakaway in the opening moments of the third period and later mater a sprawling glove save on Jordan Eberle during a delayed penalty against the Kings. “We were working really hard in our (defensive) zone for the full 60 and I think that’s how we’re gonna have to win games here coming down the stretch,” Copley said. “They're gonna be tight games. They're gonna be hard fought battles. So I think that’s just kind of how we wanted to play defensively.” Seattle ended up capitalizing on the penalty and ended Copley’s shutout hopes as Oliver Bjorkstrand scored on a rebound with 11:35 left, his 18th goal of the season. Copley came up with a key stop on Daniel Sprong with about 5 minutes left and withstood Seattle’s charge in the closing moments with an extra attacker leading to Fiala's clinching goal. Fiala was one of those injury concerns for the Kings. He had missed seven of the previous nine games for Los Angeles due to injury, including Thursday's loss to Edmonton. “He had a huge game for us tonight and it doesn’t affect him. He’s still making plays and still controlling the puck,” said Los Angeles' Alex Iafallo, who picked up his 200th career point assisting on Durzi's goal. Seattle goaltender Martin Jones made 16 saves, but it was a completely different outcome than the last time the division foes met back in late November in Los Angeles when the Kraken escaped with a wild 9-8 victory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 4, 2023 Author Share Posted April 4, 2023 Game # 77 Seattle 8 Yotes 1 McCann helps Kraken cruise past Coyotes 8-1 0:45 Jared McCann's 2nd goal pads Kraken's lead Jared McCann's 2nd goal pads Kraken's lead ByAP Updated: 2 hours ago SEATTLE -- — Jared McCann scored two goals in his 500th NHL game, helping the high-powered Seattle Kraken rout the Arizona Coyotes 8-1 on Monday night. Jordan Eberle, Carson Soucy, Will Borgen, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Morgan Geekie and Ryan Donato also scored for Seattle, which is three points up on Winnipeg and five on Calgary for the top wild-card playoff spot in the Western Conference. Philipp Grubauer made 21 saves. Lawson Crouse scored for the Coyotes, who are winless in their last eight (0-6-2). Ivan Prosvetov, playing just his fifth game of the season for Arizona, had 24 saves. It was the Kraken’s fourth game this season with eight goals, plus one game during which they scored nine. Eberle gave Seattle a 1-0 lead 4:54 into the game on a power-play goal. The Coyotes had the man advantage later in the period when Kraken star rookie Matty Beniers gained control of the puck behind his own blue line, took it across center and passed it to McCann in the high slot. McCann sent a wrister into the net at 15:07 for a short-handed goal. “Matty made a great play on the wall to create a turnover,” McCann said. "He made the pass and I tried to get to it as quick as I could.” While scoring in his 500th game was special, McCann said he never really thought about playing that many after being drafted 24th overall by Vancouver in 2014. He's the 10th player from that draft class to reach the milestone. McCann played with the Canucks, Pittsburgh and Florida before coming to the Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft. “It has been a journey for me — definitely not your Cinderella career,” he said. “I’ve had to grind my way at some points, but I think I’m a better person for it.” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol made McCann a bigger part of the team’s penalty kill after the Christmas break, and he has been pleased with the results. “We changed the structure of our kills a little bit, and he fits that structure very well," Hakstol said. “He has meshed very well with (Yanni Gourde), and that chemistry has been good.” Crouse put Arizona on the scoreboard at 4:44 of the second with his 23rd goal. Soucy restored Seattle’s two-goal lead at the 11:58 mark. Just three minutes later, McCann picked up the puck behind his blue line, took it all the way to the top of Prosvetov’s goal crease and drilled hit past him for his team-leading 37th goal and a 4-1 lead. Borgen, Bjorkstrand, Geekie and Donato added third-period goals to complete the rout. “You don’t look too far back and you don’t look too far ahead,” Hakstol said. “You just worry about working and doing what you have to (in order) to go get two points — the score doesn’t matter. “ Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny saw some positives during the first two periods, but not in the third. “We had good pace, good pressure, did a lot of good things to generate good scoring chances,” he said. “We were in it. I was happy with the play for most of the game. Like I said, we were doing a lot of good things, then we started to force the play a little bit. "We just have to learn to remain a little bit patient.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 5, 2023 Author Share Posted April 5, 2023 Game # 78 Seattle 5 Van 2 Eberle has goal, assist as Kraken rally to beat Canucks 5-2 ByAP Updated: 2 hours ago VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- — Jordan Eberle had a goal and an assist as the Seattle Kraken rallied from two goals down to beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 on Tuesday night. Yanni Gourde, Brandon Tanev, Jayden Schwartz and Matty Beniers also scored for the Kraken, who have consecutive wins for the first time since March 7. Martin Jones made 14 saves as the Canucks registered a season-low 16 shots. “That’s a character win down the stretch here when there’s not many games left and two points mean that much more,” Tanev said. Elias Pettersson and Anthony Beauvillier scored for the Canucks, who lost their fourth straight. Collin Delia stopped 23 shots. Coach Rick Tocchet believes, with the team out of playoff contention, some players may be viewing the final games of the season as meaningless. “Some guys are maybe getting tired. ... A lot of people in and out of the lineup. Maybe that’s it, I don’t know,” he said. “But the fact of the matter is you can’t think that way. We have to be strong mentally.” The Canucks took a 2-0 lead in the first period, but managed just nine shots over the final 40 minutes. “At the end of the first, we kind of just let up the play, let them take over,” Pettersson said. “The power play wasn’t good again. We’ve got to, first off, bury the chances we create. But just be more disciplined or just work harder.” A mystifying goal from Pettersson opened the scoring 4:31 into the game. Andrei Kuzmenko put the puck on Pettersson’s stick in the Kraken crease and the Swedish center pulled it behind his back before tipping it into the net for his 37th goal of the season. Vancouver took a two-goal cushion with 6:51 left in the first first when Jones slid across his crease to cover Conor Garland as he drove the net. The Canucks' forward appeared poised to launch a slap shot, but instead sliced a no-look pass across the slot to Beauvillier, who fired the puck behind the out-of-position goalie for his 18th. Gourde got Seattle on the scoreboard as his shot sailed through the legs of Vancouver center Nils Aman and past Delia stick side with 3:02 remaining in the opening period. An ugly second period proved to be Vancouver’s undoing. The Canucks had a prime opportunity to add to their tally early in the period with 55 seconds of 5-on-3 play, but struggled to get a shot off. Instead, Tanev whipped a wrist shot past Delia off a short-handed 2-on-1 5:07 into the period, tying the score 2-2. “That was definitely a momentum swing for us,” Eberle said. “Our kill has been doing a really good job and then chipping in offensively too, which you don’t expect. Those are key moments in games where you’re able to swing the momentum of the game and we’ve been able to do that.” The Kraken took the lead with 9:20 left in the middle period after the Canucks coughed up the puck at the goal line. Eberle picked it up and blasted a quick shot in off the crossbar for his 18th. A power-play tally boosted Seattle's advantage to 4-2 after Pettersson was called for interference. Daniel Sprong sent a shot through traffic from the top of the slot and Eberle got a piece of it before Schwartz tipped it in past Delia for his 20th with 3:46 left in the second. Beniers capped the scoring with one minute left in the third, sending a shot into the empty net from deep in Kraken territory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 7, 2023 Author Share Posted April 7, 2023 Game # 79 Seattle 4 Yotes 2 Kraken clinch first playoff berth, beat Coyotes 4-2 By SHANE LANTZ Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) The Seattle Kraken clinched the first playoff berth in franchise history and set an NHL record for victories in an expansion team's second season by beating the Arizona Coyotes 4-2 on Thursday night. Jared McCann, Jordan Eberle, Matty Beniers and Vince Dunn scored for the Kraken, who earned their 44th win - the most by a second-year NHL team since the Original Six era, which ended in 1968. It's a big turnaround for Seattle, which was 27-49-6 in its first season and finished last in the Pacific Division. Phillip Grubauer had 27 saves for Seattle, which won its third straight game. Barrett Hayton and Laurent Dauphin scored for Arizona, which has dropped nine in a row. Karel Vejmelka stopped 29 shots. McCann, who also had two assists, scored his team-high 38th goal at 19:36 of the first period to put the Kraken ahead. Dunn followed that up with a goal 28 seconds into the second period. Eberle sneaked one past Vejmelka at 5:52 to make it 3-0. Hayton scored Arizona's first goal at the 12-minute mark of the second. Beniers made it 4-1 at 16:09 of the third period with his 23rd goal of the season. Eberle had the second of his two assists on the goal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 9, 2023 Author Share Posted April 9, 2023 Game # 80 Kraken beat Blackhawks 7-3 for 4th straight victory Seattle 7 Hawks 3 ByAP 3 hours ago SEATTLE -- — Jordan Eberle, Jared McCann and Daniel Sprong each had a goal and an assist and the Seattle Kraken beat the Chicago Blackhawks 7-3 on Saturday night for their fourth straight victory. The second-year Kraken, who clinched their first Stanley Cup playoff spot Thursday, also got goals from Eeli Tolvanen, Yanni Gourde, Adam Larsson and Morgan Geekie. Jamie Oleksiak had three assists. Martin Jones made 15 saves two periods, then was replaced by Philipp Grubauer at the start of the third. Grubauer had 11 saves. Seth Jones scored twice for Chicago, which lost for the 10th time in the 11 games and is tied with Columbus for the fewest points in the NHL with 56. Lukas Reichel also scored and Petr Mrazek made 24 saves. Tolvanen put Seattle on the board just 4:48 into the game, firing it in from the middle of the left circle for his 18th. The Blackhawks tied it just 57 seconds later when Jones scored from low in the slot. Eberle, with his 20th, and Gourde, with his 13th gave the Kraken a 3-1 lead by the end of the first. Eberle’s goal made him the fifth Kraken player this season with at least 20. “That’s been our situation all year, and our strength all year,” he said. “Every line, we’re getting contributions from different guys, different lines different defense pairings, whatever it may be. That’s obviously a big skill to have going into the playoffs.” With a postseason berth already secured, Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said some of what he termed “sloppy” play was bound to happen Saturday. “Some of that is inherent, coming off a big win the other night,” he said. “You can talk yourself out of that as much as you want, but really, some of that leaked into our game tonight. It cost us some zone time. It looked sloppy, it felt sloppy at times, even though we didn’t give up a ton of chances. The guys know it, and we’ve got to make sure we clean that back up." The Blackhawks were still down just 5-3 and kept the pressure on through a good portion of the third period before McCann, with his 39th goal, and Geekie with his ninth, scored just three minutes apart to put the game out of reach. “I thought the first 12 minutes of the third period, we were the better team,” coach Luke Richardson said. “We were really putting pressure on them. Then about a minute before they scored their sixth goal, we started turning pucks over and started going sideways on our game plan. They’re too quick a team to turn pucks backward. That’s what happened on the last two goals.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 11, 2023 Author Share Posted April 11, 2023 Game # 81 Seattle 4 Yotes 1 Kraken win 5th straight, reach 100 points, top Coyotes 4-1 (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) By JACK THOMPSON Associated Press TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) Jared McCann scored his 40th goal of the season and the Seattle Kraken reached the 100-point mark in their second NHL season, beating the Arizona Coyotes 4-1 on Monday night. Oliver Bjorkstrand, Justin Schultz and Matty Beniers also scored for the Kraken, who won their fifth game in a row and are 26-10-4 on the road. They beat the Coyotes for the third time in eight days after winning twice at home last week. The Kraken had 60 points last season, next-to-last in the league - Montreal had 55. Only the Vegas Golden Knights, with 109 points in their debut season of 2017-18, reached 100 points faster among NHL expansion teams. "A lot of these guys that were here last year, they need to take a lot of credit for that," Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. "That being said, the group took it in stride and we get the opportunity to get ready for the playoffs." Philipp Grubauer stopped 22 shots for the Kraken. Joey Daccord, who played for Arizona State, finished the final 1:16 in goal for Seattle. Jack McBain scored for the Coyotes, who have one win in their last 11 games. Ivan Prosvetov had 33 saves for Arizona. Seattle is assured of at least the top wild card in the Western Conference. The Kraken clinched a playoff spot in Thursday's win over Arizona but need some help to stay above Los Angeles for third place. The Coyotes scored first when McBain deflected Liam O'Brien's shot from the blue line past Grubauer 9:22 into the game. Seattle tied it on the power play at 3:12 of the second period. Bjorkstrand celebrated his 28th birthday with his 20th goal of the season, a one-timer from Alex Wennberg. Eeli Tolvanen also assisted on the goal which came with Arizona's Barrett Hayton off for high-sticking. "Our first period scared me," Hakstol said. "They made a mistake at the end of the shift and then now we're playing defense tired. And that's when bad things happen. So that's why the power play in the second was really important." Schultz came out of the penalty box - he was in for boarding - and scored unassisted on a breakaway at 14:56, eight seconds after the penalty expired. Just 1:14 later, Beniers scored his 24th goal with McCann and Will Borgen assisting. McCann picked up a goal on a wrist shot during a power play in the third period, with Schultz picking up an assist. McBain and Seattle's Carson Soucy dropped the gloves with 1:16 left in the game. "Special teams played a big role in that game. They scored two on their power play," Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny said. When asked if it was tough facing a team three times within four games, Tourigny said, "I don't think they found it tough." Arizona dropped to 21-15-4 at home. The Coyotes, with one home game remaining, finished 7-25-9 away from Mullett Arena. Clayton Keller remained at 37 goals and 85 points, one point off the Coyotes single-season points high of 86 set by Keith Tkachuk in 1996-97. The franchise record is 132 points, set by Teemu Selanne in 1992-93 when the team was in Winnipeg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 12, 2023 Author Share Posted April 12, 2023 Game # 82 Seattle 1 VGK 4 Amadio scores 2, leads Golden Knights past Kraken 4-1 0:55 Michael Amadio tallies goal vs. Kraken Michael Amadio tallies goal vs. Kraken ByAP Updated: 3 hours ago LAS VEGAS -- — The Vegas Golden Knights have one game left to win the Pacific Division, and Michael Amadio is a key reason why they're in that position. He had two goals and an assist in a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night. Edmonton's 2-1 overtime victory over Colorado on Tuesday prevented the Knights from clinching the Pacific. Reilly Smith had a three-point game, scoring on the rebound off a shot by linemate Amadio. Smith also picked up assists on Amadio's goals. Jonathan Marchessault scored on a 5-on-3 power play and William Karlsson had two assists for Vegas. Laurent Brossoit made 20 saves and ran his season record to 6-0-3, helped by a Vegas defense that allowed four shots on goal in the third period. “If you can really put your thumb down on teams in the third period, it bodes really well for the playoffs because there’s no quit in the playoffs,” Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. “They’re going to keep coming and coming. In the regular season, sometimes teams will take the foot off the gas because they’ve got another game coming up. So you have to get into those habits of playing a full 60 (minutes).” Yanni Gourde scored for the Kraken, who played the second game of a back-to-back. “We had a good burst probably the last 15, 16 minutes of the first period, but just couldn't find any energy in the second and third,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “They played well. They were on top of us.” The Knights, who are 4-0-3 in their last seven games, lead the Pacific and Western conference with 109 points. They will face the Kraken again Thursday night in Seattle in the regular-season finale for both teams. A win gives Vegas the division title, while a loss, combined with an Oilers' victory over San Jose would give Edmonton the top spot in the division. Edmonton, which has 107 points, owns the tiebreaker. “We learned a lot about how (the Kraken) play, and we’re going to try to do the same thing when we go there,” Amadio said. “But it’s a tight race, so all the points matter.” Seattle had its five-game winning streak — all against teams out of the playoff picture — halted. The Kraken, who have 100 points and have secured a postseason berth, are two points behind Los Angeles in the race for the Pacific's third-place playoff spot. Amadio had his second career two-goal game. His other occurred Feb. 17, 2018, against Buffalo when he played for the Kings. It was his second three-point game of this season. “He's been awesome all year,” Smith said. “I’m a big advocate of how well he plays and very fortunate to play with a guy like that. He’s got some much poise ... and he makes a lot of smart plays. So I think he’s probably deserving of more ice time and more opportunity.” Smith's three points were a personal best this season. He is one goal shy of 200 for his career. Seattle's Jared McCann had his three-game goal streak halted, as well as his five-game point streak. DOUBLE WHAMMY The Kraken got hit with two minor penalties 3:05 into the third period. Will Borgen was assessed an interference penalty and Jesper Froden was called for hooking Vegas took advantage when Marchessault scored 18 seconds later for a 4-1 lead. “I didn't like going down 5-on-3 in that situation,” Hakstol said. “They were probably marginal (calls). To go down 5-on-3, I thought that was a tough spot. That didn't dictate the outcome of the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brewin Flames Posted April 14, 2023 Author Share Posted April 14, 2023 Game# 82 Seattle 1 VGK 3 Vegas claims Pacific Division crown with 3-1 win over Kraken 0:34 Alec Martinez puts Golden Knights ahead in second period Alec Martinez puts Golden Knights ahead in second period ByAP 3 hours ago SEATTLE -- — After missing the playoffs for the first time in their short franchise history last year, the Vegas Golden Knights wanted to savor this Pacific Division title. Not for long, though. The Golden Knights believe there's more to come in the postseason. “I’m definitely proud of the group the way they handled that and came back this year, played a lot of good hockey,” Vegas defenseman Alec Martinez said. “But again, everything with a caveat, we haven’t won anything yet.” Martinez broke a tie midway through the second period and the Golden Knights won their third Pacific Division title with a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken in the regular-season finale Thursday night. Vegas finished 51-22-9 with 111 points, tying the franchise record for victories and holding off the late surge from Edmonton to win the division title and clinch home-ice advantage in the Western Conference. Vegas will face Winnipeg in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. “We won all we could win in terms of the regular season,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We got the division crown, which was I thought was well earned. Edmonton has been charging hard coming out of the break like us. All the teams were playing well around us. And then you get the conference, which is nice too.” Martinez’s goal at 12:37 of the second period came during a delayed penalty against Seattle. Martinez swatted a rebound past Seattle goalie Philipp Grubauer for his third goal of the season and undoubtedly the most important. Reilly Smith also scored for Vegas on what technically was its first shot of the game but didn’t touch his stick blade. Vince Dunn’s pass from behind the Seattle goal bounced off Smith’s skate and slipped past Grubauer. The goal came nearly 10 minutes into the first period. Chandler Stephenson added an empty-net goal, deflecting the puck from his own zone with 38 seconds left. “There’s still a lot of work to be done, but I don’t think that this should be understated and make sure that we at least take a day celebrate it,” Smith said. Jaden Schwartz scored his 21st of the season for Seattle’s only goal on a night the Kraken dominated chances but couldn’t convert. Matty Beniers and Adam Larsson both hit posts and Daniel Sprong was stuffed on a breakaway by Laurent Brossoit, who made 31 saves. Seattle (46-28-8, 100 points) entered the finale still with an outside shot of catching Los Angeles and finishing third in the Pacific Division. But the Kings held up their end beating Anaheim and the Kraken had to settle for the top wild card berth in the Western Conference. “We played pretty damn hard. We had some good looks,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “I thought we could have created maybe a little bit more, mostly in the third period. I thought we worked really hard offensively. We generated enough.” Seattle will have to wait until Friday night to learn its playoff opponent. The Kraken will face either Colorado or Dallas depending on the outcome of Friday’s game between the Avalanche and Predators in Nashville. “Now the fun starts. This is why we play 82 games and this is why we grind throughout the year to give yourself an opportunity,” Schwartz said. MR. 82 AGAIN Phil Kessel appeared in his NHL-record 1,064th consecutive game and played in 82 games for the 11th time in his career. Brayden McNabb and William Karlsson also appeared in all 82 games this season for Vegas. Ivan Barbashev also appeared in his 82nd game but the first 59 of those came with St. Louis. Larsson was one of five players to appear in all 82 games for the Kraken and is the only one to play in every game in the first two seasons of the franchise. Will Borgen, Jordan Eberle, Brandon Tanev and Alex Wennberg also appeared in every game. WELCOME BACK Jack Eichel and Shea Theodore both returned for Vegas. Eichel had missed two straight while Theodore had missed the previous seven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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