The Seattle Kraken wrapped up their season series against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night with a commanding 5-0 victory at Rogers Arena. Despite missing top goal scorers Jaden Schwartz and Eeli Tolvanen due to undisclosed reasons, the Kraken never looked out of sync. Per the Kraken Hockey Network broadcast, both are considered day-to-day. Ryan Winterton was recalled from Coachella Valley on an emergency basis, signaling that the absences are injury or illness related.
The Kraken were tested early with a couple penalties—first Jamie Oleksiak for holding at 1:55, followed by Mikey Eyssimont for hooking at the five-minute mark. But the penalty killers held firm, and Eyssimont quickly redeemed himself, opening the scoring late in the first period. From that point on, Seattle never looked back.
Goals were added by Chandler Stephenson, Shane Wright, Andre Burakovsky and an empty-net goal by Adam Larsson.
Takeaway #1: Mikey Eyssimont is fun to watch
Eyssimont continues to make the most of his opportunity in the lineup. The scrappy forward notched his third goal as a Kraken, beating Thatcher Demko five-hole after Canucks forward Jake DeBrusk flubbed a pass in the neutral zone. The sequence was equal parts opportunistic and skilled, highlighting Eyssimont’s ability to capitalize on chaos.
I LIKEY MIKEY!!! 🎯 Eyssimont rips one blocker side on Demko to get the #SeaKraken on the board! Kraken lead 1-0 with 2:33 left in the 1st. pic.twitter.com/SWsztY0OSa
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) April 3, 2025
He nearly added a second goal in the third period, ringing a shot off the post after driving hard to the net. But goals alone don’t define his impact. Eyssimont was noticeable all night, buzzing around on the forecheck and getting under the skin of the Canucks players. He played with the energy of someone who knows every shift counts—and made each one matter.
Eyssimont is everywhere tonight—jumps on another chance and rings it off the post! 🔔 #SeaKraken still up 3-0 with 14:32 to play. pic.twitter.com/RxN7F6frfb
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) April 3, 2025
What stands out most is how Eyssimont has become a tone-setter for the fourth line. Whether he’s pressuring defenders into mistakes, chipping in on the cycle, or finishing a check, he brings consistent pressure. His ability to frustrate opponents and energize teammates adds depth to a lineup that needs all hands on deck with key scorers sidelined.
Takeaway #2: Kraken starting on time
For the fourth game in a row, Seattle scored the opening goal. Starting on time has been a key focus for this group all season, and the early advantage gave them control of the pace. While that fast start didn’t lead to wins in their back-to-back losses to Dallas, it kept them competitive deep into those games. This time, the strong start translated to a full 60-minute effort.
Vancouver didn’t play a poor game, but Seattle appeared to be the more patient and opportunistic team. The Kraken waited for chances and made the most of them when they came.
Joey Daccord was calm and composed between the pipes, turning away all 25 shots he faced for his third shutout of the season. His best save came midway through the first period. With the game still scoreless, Conor Garland found Drew O’Connor wide open for a short-handed chance. Daccord read it perfectly, snagging the puck with his glove and holding the line. Less than two minutes later, Eyssimont scored to give Seattle a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Daccord’s performance was backed by a disciplined defensive effort. The Kraken killed off three penalties, including two in the first seven minutes, and shut down Vancouver’s power play entirely.
Takeaway #3: Playing the role of spoiler
With the Canucks clinging to the slimmest of playoff hopes, every point matters. Seattle didn’t do their Pacific Northwest rivals any favors, handing them a deflating 5-0 loss and potentially sealing their postseason fate.
The Canucks now sit eight points out of a wild card spot with only seven games remaining. According to MoneyPuck, their playoff odds have dropped to 1.64 percent. Making matters worse, the St. Louis Blues—who currently hold the final wild card position—have rattled off 10 straight wins.
Seattle will have two more chances to play spoiler in the final weeks. They’ll face the Utah Hockey Club on April 8 and the red-hot Blues on April 12. While their own playoff hopes may be dashed, the Kraken can still shape the Western Conference picture—and maybe, just maybe, build some momentum for next season.
Bonus takeway: Li’l Jani is a big man
Jani Nyman showed he’s not afraid of the moment—or the opponent—in the third period. After a whistle, Nyman gave a solid shove to defenseman Elias Pettersson, sparking a five-player pile-on from the Canucks. Undeterred, Nyman stood his ground. As the scrum cleared, he pointed straight at Pettersson and, based on my admittedly questionable lip-reading skills, appeared to say, “Me and you. Fight.”
Lil’ Jani wants to dance 💃 Mixing it up after the whistle and letting the #Canucks know he’s not backing down. #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/sodZHFswPn
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) April 3, 2025
The bout never materialized, but the moment said a lot. Nyman may be new to the NHL and still finding his footing, but he’s not shrinking from the spotlight. His willingness to mix it up, especially in a blowout game, speaks to the kind of edge and confidence that bodes well for his future.
All around great game with some wicked goals by Shane and Chandler. Great performances by Yani and especially Mickey. Van and the other hand looked completely befuddled and will likely be joining the Kraken for tee times next month which should bring a smile to Kraken fans.
I am so disappointed that Schwartz couldn’t play! He was this close to a full 82-game season. He has been having a career year, and I had so wanted to see him have one injury-free season. I have been silently rooting for it the whole time for fear of jinxing it by actually mentioning that he had not missed a single game. Still, not missing a single game until April makes for a pretty solid season, not to mention that he has been an important part of the best forward line that the team has ever iced. It is just what I had wished for when the team picked him in the expansion draft.
Get healthy soon, Schwartzy. Damn fine work all around. The same goes for Eeli–a career season and an important part of a very effective line with Chandler Stephenson and Jordan Eberle.
I have heard the idea of Seattle pursuing Elias Petterson in the off-season. It doesn’t look like the Seattle players like him too much. Of course, teammates do not have to like one another, (eg. Donato and Grubauer, Tanev and Kartye), but I can’t imagine that it makes for a healthy fit when teammates actively want to fight each other. As such, I suspect that trading for Petterson may not be in the team’s best interests. A bit of dressing room bonhomme may be something worth cultivating, but what do I know? Scotty Bowman made a Hall of Fame career out of doing the opposite.
In contrast, Eyssemont has been a tremendous add. I certainly was not expecting to receive a difference-maker in the Gourde/Bjorkstrand trade. I am not going to claim that it was an even trade in terms of players–Gourde and Bjorkstrand are awesome–but watching Eyssemont ratchet up the intensity of the game whenever he is on the ice is pretty fun. Francis may not be able to stop him from hitting the market, but I do hope that he can entice him to come back next season.
The Canucks have two Elias Petterson’s. The one who Seattle would be intersted in (No.40) didn’t play last night.
I thought it was interesting that John Forslund of all people did not make more of the multiple Petterssons, even without “Skinny Petey” in the lineup. Maybe if Edzo was there…love JT, but sometimes he’s just a little too much of the straight man.
Given their similar ages and the long-standing Sweden-Finland animosity, I’d guess this isn’t the first time Lil Jani and D-Pete have crossed paths.
I do have to say that JT’s comment wondering what McCann was doing in the locker room the whole intermission as he was taping his stick on the bench at period start had me cracking up.
And they have Marcus Pettersson…
Great game last night. Help putting the final nail in the Canucks playoff chances made it worth watching.
The Kraken has played pretty well since the 4 nations break. There are signs next season will be much better, especially with some wise off season moves.
Like Blaiz mentioned yesterday, the Kraken have the very worst record in the NHL against playoff bound teams, worse than the tanking Sharks, Hawks, and Preds. It’s hard for me to be hopeful for next year with that degree of futility against good teams.
If there’s a team the Kraken can spoil – we want it to be VAN! Keeping Hughes to zero goals – what an accomplishment. The rivalry continues!
It seems like the guys are coming into something really special right now. Maybe the pressure is off so they’re playing more relaxed. The next few games will be fun to watch.
Mikey is REALLY fun to watch – especially away from the play. I’m hopeful they’ll give him a good offer this summer.
I hope they all don’t get amnesia after all the golf this summer. Seriously, I’m so excited for the summer acquisitions, draft day, rookie camp!!! Hockey is the best!
I wasn’t a fan of Woods’ comment during the 2nd period intermission about Kartye “needing to learn to play the PK”. In the PK opportunities he’s been given over the past 2 seasons, he’s given up 2 goals. Small sample size, but I’d say that’s not too shabby.
Yeah wth? He had some huge blocked shots on the PK and overall had a great game. Maybe it’s Woods who needs to work on the PK, not Kartye.
I’m not a woods fan but possibly Kartye is not playing the system on the PK as he’s being asked to? Results definitely matter but it would still frustrate a coach if it’s not being done the way they want. Pure speculation but why else would he be calling out a player looking good?
Because he feels he’s on the hot seat and it’s way easier to blame a young player than it is to be better at your job?
Very fair statement, Kartye is young and definitely has made mistakes. He’s the type of player that could turn into a a very good 4th liner and we should be playing him and developing him. Be patient with our youth don’t be filing their roles with almost 30 year old plugs that have no real future with the kraken.
Yes agree, no idea why they keep putting Hayden out there and sitting Kartye. Blaming the kids publicly and sitting them on the bench is very Torts-esque and rubs me the wrong way, not to mention it’s probably counterproductive. If anything, this team needs to be sitting underperforming veterans (eg Burky) more often.
I agree. Woods seems to be flying under the the radar as far as the coaching criticism goes. His answers to questions come across like ” it’s simple they just need to do what they’re supposed to do “. Our defense has not been that effective 5 on 5 or short handed. This is where alot of our loses come from. We have players that can play good defense. For one, why are the other teams’ top scorers constantly standing in front of the net unchecked while we have 3 guys chasing the puck in the corner? There is alot of coaching criticism to go around so don’t leave Bob Woods out of the conversation.