The Seattle Kraken finished their three-game homestand with two wins and an overtime loss to the best team in the league. The first game of the week, against the Montreal Canadiens, was one of the most memorable of the season. Fans witnessed the Kraken rally from a two-goal deficit, Jani Nyman’s first NHL goal, and an unforgettable overtime winner that will be seared into their memories.
It was probably the loudest I’ve heard Climate Pledge Arena in some time. It was a nice reminder of why I still love going to the games, even if playoff hockey isn’t in the cards this season.
The Jani Nyman experience
We’ve been talking about Jani Nyman all season as one of the Kraken’s most exciting prospects. He’s a ‘big man’ with a wicked shot that could be exactly what the Kraken need. After a relatively slow start to the season in Coachella Valley, Jani has scored goals consistently for the Firebirds. When he got called up early last week, there was a lot of anticipation over whether he could showcase his skill in the NHL.
Often, players take significant time adjusting to the NHL’s speed and size — we’ve seen it before with Ryan Winterton, Logan Morrison, and even Shane Wright. But Nyman wasted no time, scoring a beauty of a power-play goal from a gorgeous feed by Jordan Eberle in his first NHL game. He followed that up with another power-play goal on Sunday against the Winnipeg Jets. As mentioned on the Kraken Hockey Network, “Li’l Jani” became the second Kraken player to score a goal in two of his first three games, with Matty Beniers being the other.
Folks. Jani Nyman's First NHL Goal. It's a beauty set up by the captain (his third primary helper of the game) #SeaKraken
— Alison Lukan (@alisonl.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Pessimists might point out that both of his goals came on the power play, but it’s more than just the goals that should excite Kraken fans. Nyman looks like he belongs in the NHL, consistently putting himself in good spots to shoot and battling for pucks without hesitation. It’s early, but you have to like what you’ve seen from him in his first three NHL games. And let’s not forget — he’s still just 20 years old.
Checking in on the Swedish Hockey League
The Swedish Hockey League kicked off its postseason over the weekend, with two Kraken prospects still competing. Unsigned sixth-round draft pick from 2023, Zeb Forsfjäll, and Skellefteå AIK are taking on Färjestad BK in a No. 4 versus No. 5 seed matchup. Meanwhile, Oscar Fisker-Mølgaard and HV71 are once again battling in the relegation round against Modo. Unfortunately, HV71 is already down 0-2 in their best-of-5 series and will need to win three in a row if they are going to avoid being relegated.
Mølgaard had a solid regular season in a league where scoring is hard to come by, tallying 19 points in 38 games with a plus/minus of plus-six on a struggling team. At just 20 years old, he’s considered a strong two-way center and is expected to join the Coachella Valley Firebirds for a limited stint this season once his HV71 campaign concludes. The SHL has provided Mølgaard with an excellent development path, playing in a level of hockey that, outside the AHL, is the most similar to the NHL. He’s projected to play in Coachella Valley next season and is likely a season or two away from being NHL-ready.
Other musings
- The Kraken have lost all three games against the league-leading Winnipeg Jets by a margin of one goal. Two of those games were overtime losses, while the other ended with Winnipeg scoring the game-winner with just 27 seconds remaining.
- Across all three games against the Winnipeg Jets, the Kraken only trailed for 12 percent of the total time — the lowest percentage they’ve trailed against any Western Conference opponent this season.
- To put that 12 percent trailing figure into context, the Kraken have trailed in 42 percent of their total game time this season. The only team with a higher trailing percentage is the San Jose Sharks.
- After Brandon Montour’s brilliant game-winning goal against the Canadiens on Thursday, I spent the entire drive home talking about it being a set play. For the next 24 hours or so there was a lot of discussion about it on several platforms. I really loved how Troy Smith discussed it on the Sheet the next day. Alison also got some additional context here.
- Eeli Tolvanen has stepped up as one of the new penalty killers in the absence of Yanni Gourde and Brandon Tanev. While he was used sparingly on the penalty kill over the past few seasons, it’s not a role he’s been asked to play much throughout his career.
- Since two of their top penalty killers (Gourde and Tanev) last played on March 4, the Kraken’s penalty kill has operated at a 92.3 percent success rate, tied for second-best in the league.
- No one should be too concerned about Shane Wright’s current deployment as the “fourth-line center.” It’s a strategic move to provide Jani Nyman with experienced players around him. Jared McCann was moved to center for Nyman and Burakovsky, which pushed Wright to the fourth line. This setup could also be an opportunity for Wright to work on his two-way game. He’s still getting power-play time and was on the ice for overtime.
- Jani Nyman had just two goals in his first 10 games with Coachella Valley. However, in his last 10 games with the Firebirds before being called up, he scored eight goals.
- The Kraken rank second in the league in the percentage of team goals scored by defensemen, with 20.8 percent of their goals coming from the blue line. Whether that’s a good or bad thing is still up for debate.
- As mentioned above, HV71 is facing Modo in the relegation series. Former Kraken and Seattle Thunderbird Alexander True is part of that Modo team.
Chart of the week
If there’s one thing I’ve loved about this season’s team, it’s their refusal to quit. I’ve probably mentioned this a couple of times this year, but last Wednesday against the Montreal Canadiens, the Kraken once again rallied from a two-goal deficit. They lead the league in wins after being down by two goals.
Goal of the week
There were lots of fun goals to choose from this week, but let’s give it up for Jani’s first NHL goal. For this one, we get the full clip, including Nyman’s parents’ reaction.
Player performances
Jordan Eberle (SEA) – The Kraken captain has recorded one goal and six assists over his last four games, including a three-assist performance against the Montreal Canadiens last Wednesday.
Eeli Tolvanen (SEA) – Tolvanen scored three goals over the last three games and leads the Kraken in goals this season with 21, which also marks a career high for a single season.
Brandon Montour (SEA) – Montour has tallied three goals and three assists over his last three games. He also set a Seattle Kraken single-season record for goals by a defenseman, with 16 goals on the season, matching his career high. He was named the NHL’s Third Star of the Week.
The week ahead
The Kraken have three road games over the next eight days, starting with a back-to-back against the Blackhawks and Wild on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a Saturday matchup at the Edmonton Oilers.
The Blackhawks have struggled all season, holding the second-worst record in the league. However, the Kraken have already lost to the Blackhawks once this season, so it’s unwise to assume they’ll be an easy opponent.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Wild have been struggling lately, going 3-6-1 over their last 10 games and averaging just 1.6 goals per game during that stretch. The Kraken will be on the second night of a back-to-back, though, and they are currently 0-10-0 in such situations this season.
And Edmonton…let’s just worry about Edmonton later.