All things considered, it was a pretty fun weekend of Seattle Kraken hockey. In back-to-back games with travel, Seattle prevailed 4-1 against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday and had the Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals on the ropes for much of Sunday afternoon before falling just short in a 4-2 loss.
Now that Seattle has fully thrown in the towel on its postseason hopes, the results don’t matter as much anymore—just getting to watch entertaining games is all we ask for.
Here are Three Takeaways from an fun pair of Kraken games against the Flyers and Capitals.
Takeaway #1: Big weekend for Chandler Stephenson
Center Chandler Stephenson—despite some criticism from Kraken fans due to the seven-year, $43.75 million contract he signed as a free agent—has quietly put together a solid first season in the Pacific Northwest.
He had a standout weekend, scoring a shorthanded goal on a breakaway Saturday in Philadelphia and assisting on Jordan Eberle’s Sunday, the captain’s first goal since returning from a pelvis injury.
Stephenson’s assist Sunday was pretty. Eeli Tolvanen gained control of the puck along the boards in the neutral zone and flicked it ahead past three Capitals players. Stephenson collected the puck and skated in on a 2-on-1 with Eberle, threading a pass through newly acquired Capitals forward Anthony Beauvillier. Eberle buried it short-side.
O Captain! My Captain! 🫡 🚨 #SeaKraken https://t.co/TjDYYTppnY pic.twitter.com/OVsPYkqI4z
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) March 9, 2025
That was Stephenson’s 32nd assist of the season, leading the Kraken in that category. He now has 43 points (11 goals, 32 assists), ranking second on the team behind Jared McCann.
Takeaway #2: Gru back in the net
Philipp Grubauer got his first start in net against the Flyers on Saturday since being recalled from the Coachella Valley Firebirds. He made the most of his AHL stint, going 5-2 in the minors, and returned with a strong performance.
Grubauer allowed just one goal, and even that came off a fluky play. Ryker Evans attempted to poke the puck away from Owen Tippett but inadvertently popped it up, causing it to bounce off Tippett and trickle past Grubauer.
Statistically, Grubauer posted a .958 save percentage, his second-best outing of the season. He was the best penalty killer on the ice too, helping Seattle shut down all five of Philadelphia’s power play opportunities.
One common criticism of Grubauer is that he doesn’t always make the big save when needed. That wasn’t the case Saturday. With the game tied 1-1, rookie sensation Matvei Michkov collected a rebound and backhanded what looked like a sure goal toward an open net, but Grubauer reached back with his glove and snagged it out of the air. Just 38 seconds later, Matty Beniers scored, and the Kraken never looked back.
Takeaway #3: Special teams
Seattle had four power play opportunities against the Capitals but couldn’t convert. They maintained possession in the offensive zone but struggled to generate quality chances against Washington’s seventh-ranked penalty kill (81.7 percent). Adding in a 0-for-3 effort against Philadelphia, the Kraken went 0-for-7 on the power play over the weekend.
On the flip side, they didn’t allow a power-play goal and even scored shorthanded, finishing plus-one in special teams situations. The Flyers, coached by John Tortorella, came up empty on five power plays and have struggled all season, converting just 15.3 percent of their chances.
Seattle’s power play continues to be a problem, clicking at just 18.4 percent—26th in the NHL and below last season’s mark of 20.7 percent (16th in the NHL).
Bonus Takeaway: The back-to-back struggles continue
Seattle came out strong against Washington, outshooting the Capitals 14-7 in the first period and taking a 1-0 lead. The Kraken have struggled with slow starts this season, but that wasn’t the case Sunday. However, despite a solid effort, they ultimately fell to the now league-leading Capitals. It never felt like they gave up—until Alex Ovechkin sealed the game with an empty-net goal, the 886th of his career.
Career goal No. 886 and career point No. 1600 for Alex Ovechkin. #Gr8Chase
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) March 9, 2025
Ovi is now 9 goals from the record. pic.twitter.com/HshOlC2APN
The Kraken are now 0-10 in the second leg of back-to-back games. They have one more back-to-back set this season on March 18-19 against the Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild. While the playoffs are out of reach this year, figuring out how to win these tough turnaround games will be crucial if Seattle hopes to make a playoff push next season.