Seattle Kraken versus Minnesota Wild 7 p.m. Pacific time Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington TV: ROOT Sports Radio: 950 AM KJR
Tuesday was a big step in the right direction for the Kraken, who won convincingly over a struggling Montreal Canadiens team, 5-1, for the franchise’s first victory on home ice. After the game, coach Dave Hakstol indicated that he was mostly pleased with how the team played, but there was still plenty of room for improvement based on the odd-man rushes Seattle gave up and some sloppy play at times.
Speaking somewhat anecdotally, Hakstol sounded more positive after the team’s 4-2 loss to Vancouver on Saturday than he did after the team’s 5-1 win over Montreal on Tuesday. He called the team’s execution in transition “sporadic at times.”
Perhaps that’s all part of the messaging to help the group recognize that their win came against a team that did not play well and is rightfully off to a terrible start to its season. He’s indicating that the team needs to play even better than it did on Tuesday to beat stronger, hotter teams. NHL coaches love to focus on how their team played, rather than the outcome of games, because there is always a level of puck luck that is beyond the control of the players. What you can control is your effort level and playing within the structure the coach has implemented, and that’s where Hakstol sees opportunity for the Kraken.
Still, the never-a-doubt victory has to be a big confidence booster for a group that was struggling to prove it could score goals and win games.
Seattle gets one of those stronger, hotter teams on Thursday, as the 5-1-0 Minnesota Wild visit Seattle.
Goals from goal scorers
Of course it’s been awesome to watch Brandon Tanev’s meteoric rise to Seattle fan favorite, as the man teammates call “Turbo” has potted five goals in seven games. That’s two goals shy of his 32-game total from last season.
A breakout from Tanev is feeling more realistic with every passing game, but him serving as the team’s top goal scorer for an 82-game season is probably not sustainable. And if he does remain the top scorer, that likely means that guys who should lead the team are not having great seasons.
Two of Seattle’s more skilled forwards, Jordan Eberle and Yanni Gourde, got their first respective goals on Tuesday. Eberle was admittedly snake-bitten coming into that game against the Habs, and his play after notching an early goal looked looser and more confident than we had seen in the several contests prior.
For a team that is expected to sometimes have difficulty scoring, getting their top guys going is extremely important. Let’s see if Gourde and Eberle can build off that production on Thursday.
Appleton out, Bastian in
We were surprised to see Nathan Bastian come out of the lineup Tuesday after he was right in the middle of several near-miss chances on Saturday against Vancouver. But Ryan Donato didn’t really deserve to sit either, and… well… somebody had to do it. Healthy scratches do not always come fairly.
Now Mason Appleton has been ruled out after Sami Niku dragged him down and fell with all his weight on Appleton’s foot Tuesday. Appleton was helped off the ice and was putting no weight on his right leg as he went down the tunnel.
As a result, Bastian will slide back in. During line rushes Wednesday, he skated with Riley Sheahan and Morgan Geekie, while Donato—who scored a beautiful breakaway goal against the Habs—was with Tanev and Jared McCann.
Haydn Fleury has been swapping in and out of the lineup with Carson Soucy to start the season, but Fleury played well on Tuesday and took line rushes with Vince Dunn Wednesday. He also addressed media after Thursday’s morning skate, so it feels likely that he will be back in against the Wild.
Said Hakstol on Tuesday, “[Fleury] came in and I thought he skated really well tonight. I thought he was moving with the puck and getting up ice and most importantly on our half of the red line, he played a pretty clean hockey game. That’s a real positive. That’s what we need out of our guys on the back end. You gotta defend well, get us out of the zone, and everything from there is a bonus, and I thought he was good tonight.”
Minnesota Wild
The breaking news from Wild practice on Wednesday was that… there was no Wild practice on Wednesday. That’s because there had been a few cases of COVID among members of Minnesota’s staff, and after tests were performed on the team, players are now being impacted. The Wild announced on Thursday morning that Mats Zuccarello and Rem Pitlick had been placed into protocol.
NEWS: The #mnwild has recalled Connor Dewar, Kyle Rau and Jon Lizotte from the @IAWild.
Additionally, Rem Pitlick and Mats Zuccarello are in the NHL’s COVID-19 Protocol.
Kyle Rau, Jon Lizotte, and former Everett Silvertip Connor Dewar were being recalled from AHL Iowa. Dewar is expected to make his NHL debut just a few miles down I-5 from where he was beloved while playing in the WHL. It will certainly be a big moment for him and his billets, who will be in attendance.
The Wild have evolved dramatically over the past couple of seasons. Gone are Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, and here are Kirill Kaprizov, Kevin Fiala, and Joel Eriksson Ek. They’re a faster, more exciting team than in years past, and in the early stages of this campaign, they have been comeback kids on several occasions, which has helped them to their impressive start.
Budding superstar Kaprizov is the centerpiece for this team, but word around the Wild campfire is that he has gotten off to a slow start. Though he doesn’t have any goals, he does have five assists in six games. Meanwhile fellow skilled winger Fiala has a goal and two assists so far, but has been noticeable every night.
For the Kraken’s sake, Seattle fans should hope that Kaprizov and Fiala do not choose Thursday as their night to get rolling statistically.
The Wild are coming off of a 3-2 victory in Vancouver on Tuesday.
Seattle’s practice was lively and competitive. The players were in good spirits and a lot of chatter and friendly chirps could be heard, proving that winning remains undefeated when it comes to inducing good moods.
Mason Appleton was not a participant Wednesday.
The winger was injured during the second period against Montreal and did not return to the game. Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said Wednesday that they were still evaluating Appleton’s status but didn’t have an update. He would not guess at a time table for recovery but hinted that Appleton could miss some time.
Hakstol added that as of Wednesday morning, there was not a player on his way from AHL Charlotte but that there will be “discussions” about a call up if necessary.
Wild potentially dealing with COVID
Seattle is scheduled to play the Minnesota Wild Thursday at 7 p.m. at Climate Pledge Arena. The Wild were at the arena Wednesday but as reported by The Athletic’s Michael Russo, the team may be dealing with a COVID issue.
Getting sense #mnwild dealing with expandinh COVID-19 issue. Wild cancelled practice 30 minutes before scheduled practice while at the arena they’re supposed to practice in on a testing day here in Seattle. 3 assistant coaches (not on the trip) and GM Bill Guerin have had COVID.
There was still a buzz in the arena Wednesday about the hot start of Tanev. With two goals during Tuesday’s 5-1 win against the Canadiens he leads the team with five. Last season he scored seven and has never had more than 14 in the NHL — which he did with the Winnipeg Jets in 2018-2019.
“He’s a guy that plays with pace,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “He plays hard with passion every shift and is confident when he has an opportunity. He expects to be able to find the back of the net. It’s not like he’s just out there hoping for or looking for an offensive opportunity, he’s working 200 feet. Usually when you do that, good things happen. And that’s the way he’s been generating.”
During practice, Tanev scored with a hard, low wrist shot which generated a cheer from the rest of the team.
Scary moment of the day
The team worked on its transition game Wednesday and the drills would end with forwards shooting on goal off the rush. Jordan Eberle lost an edge on one of these rushes and slid into goalie Joey Daccord wiping him out along with the net.
Eberle slid into the boards and Daccord lay face first on the ice. Both players were able to get up quickly and were not hurt in what was a close call.
There are no moral victories in the NHL, but… One could argue that there were some moral victories for the Seattle Kraken in their first-ever game Tuesday, a 4-3 loss at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights.
We at Sound Of Hockey came into the game cautiously optimistic, especially when we learned that Marcus Johansson, Jamie Oleksiak, Jared McCann, and Joonas Donskoi had remarkably cleared Covid protocol and arrived in Vegas in time for the game. But the cynical side of SOH was also bracing for a crushing defeat, because frankly, Vegas is good. Seattle could end up being good as well based on the small sample of exhibition hockey we had seen, but a successful preseason does not a regular season make.
So, like we said, we were bracing.
We braced even harder when the Kraken found themselves down 2-0 just 6:36 into the first period and then down 3-0 before the midway point in the second. To Seattle’s credit, it battled back, and in the end lost by one very questionable goal.
“I saw what I saw,” said coach Dave Hakstol of Chandler Stephenson’s game-winning goal, and what he saw was a distinct kicking motion propelling the puck past Philipp Grubauer.
Losing on a goal that probably shouldn’t have counted after the Kraken battled back from being down three is a real… kick… in… the… tentacles.
Takeaway #1: Better starts needed for Seattle
We saw this a couple times in the preseason as well, where the Kraken come out making sloppy plays with the puck and quickly find themselves in a deficit. That is exactly what happened on Tuesday, after an immediate 30-second buzz from McCann’s line that led to a power play.
Once that game-opening penalty ended, the Kraken were getting decent zone time and some pucks through to Robin Lehner, but it was Vegas that got higher quality chances in the first 20 minutes and went to the dressing room with a two-goal cushion.
We try to avoid making excuses, but Seattle did have a frenzied 36 hours leading up to Tuesday’s contest and was playing the first game in franchise history in one of the most hostile buildings in the NHL on opening night.
So if ever we were to make an excuse for a slow start, this might be the opportunity to do so. There was a lot happening off the ice for Seattle before this one.
Captain Mark Giordano said before the game that the team wasn’t looking for excuses, though, so let’s stick with that line of thinking. No excuses. Seattle needs better first periods moving forward.
Takeaway #2: Morgan Geekie can shoot the puck, allegedly celebrate
A wise man once said, “You can’t out-pizza the hut.” That wise man was Morgan Geekie in a press conference while he was still with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Geekie’s theory looked to be holding true 12 minutes into the third period Tuesday when he took a pass in the neutral zone and skated up the right side. He looked for a teammate to pass to, but learned he was all alone on what would surely turn out to be a nothing play, right?
Recognizing he was all alone with nowhere to go, the 23-year-old center loaded up and fired his heat-seeking missile of a snapshot from the top of the right circle. Vegas netminder Robin Lehner looked caught off guard by how quickly the puck got to him. It beat him cleanly over the glove, hit under the crossbar and went straight down to level the score at 3-3.
We didn’t see the celebration (we were tweeting in all caps), and ESPN did not capture it on the broadcast. SinBin.Vegas did see it, and said it was akin to the stick twirl and sword sheathing that Geekie did when he scored against Vancouver in Seattle’s first preseason game.
The Vegas bench noticed the celebration and apparently didn’t love it. With renewed vigor, the Golden Knights retook the lead 35 seconds later.
Hakstol responded Wednesday.
Dave Hakstol on how Vegas reacted to Geekie’s goal celebration: “I know Morgan really well and that’s not his personality… I looked at it on tape just to try to confirm or see it, and there's really nothing there. There’s certainly no intention, there never would be.”
So in a way, it turns out you can out-pizza the hut after all.
Takeaway #3: Control what you can and give nothing back
The “give nothing back” portion of this takeaway title is superfluous, but there was a very Pirates of the Caribbean flavor to a lot of the Vegas game presentation Tuesday, and we wanted this one to sound as plunderous as possible.
The “control what you can” chunk refers to the fact that the Kraken may have gotten hosed (depending on your bias) by NHL officiating for the first time in franchise history, a true milestone in the journey.
One thing newer hockey fans will learn as we go is that the sport is inherently chaotic. Some nights the puck will bounce your way, and some nights it will not. Similarly, calls will sometimes go your way, but usually they will not.
All you can do is work to be the better team every night, and when you do that, you will win more often than you lose, chaos be damned. Seattle showed tenacity by climbing out of a 3-0 crater, but Vegas had the better of the chances in a sloppy first period for the Kraken and dominated the beginning of the second.
Even with that tenacity, every bounce and every call had to go Seattle’s way in the second half of the game for the Kraken to come out on top. That surprisingly almost happened, but chaos ultimately reigned supreme.
Control more of the game and limit the impact of the chaos, because the chaos will be be ever-present.
Bonus Takeaway: What a night
I’m switching to first-person mode here, because I need to tell you about my own experience from Tuesday’s game.
I will never forget it.
I will never forget being on the plaza outside T-Mobile Arena before the game, surrounded by hundreds of partying Kraken fans, as Seattle’s players and coaches slowly trickled by en route to the arena. Seeing them react with surprise and appreciation as the revelers called out their names and urged them on was special to witness.
Inside the building, 18,000 jaws hit the floor when a three-dimensional Kraken rose out of the ice and was eventually burned back to the depths by a heroic knight in a show that locals called the best production ever by a franchise known for its over-the-top theatrics.
The gameplay was riveting. The atmosphere was intense. The night was unforgettable. Now imagine if Seattle would have completed the comeback.
That’s Game 1 out of 82 (and hopefully way more). Welcome to the NHL, folks.
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
The first step is often the most difficult and the Seattle Kraken took a strong, yet clumsy, first step Tuesday night in Vegas against the Golden Knights. Seattle dropped the opener 4-3 thanks to slow first steps during the first and second periods.
After an early shift flurry right off the opening faceoff, the Kraken got sloppy defensively.
It led to goals by Max Pacioretty and Jonathan Marchessault just over a minute apart and before the season was seven minutes old the Kraken found themselves in a 2-0 hole. It could have been nerves or adrenaline, but the Kraken and goalie Philipp Grubauer looked out of sorts early in the period.
Seattle settled down after the two scores and carried the majority of possession the rest of the first period. Despite being down two, the Kraken led Vegas with shots on goal by 9-6 and by shot attempts at even strength by 19-12. Overall, the Kraken would hold a 51-43 shot attempt advantage on the night.
But the second period started much the same way the opening 20 started. Seattle took two penalties in the first three minutes and was on its heels. The Kraken killed off both penalties – ending the night 3-for-3 on the kill – but Pacioretty would score his second shortly after the second power-play to build an imposing 3-0 Golden Knights lead.
Twice in the preseason the Kraken came back to win games and it looked like they might do it again on Tuesday.
Ryan Donato would score for Seattle just after the midway point of the period to cement himself in franchise history with the first goal. More importantly, it gave the Kraken energy and life. Just over a minute later, Jared McCann would score after a slick passing play from the top line.
Heading into the third period, down one, the Kraken would tie the game on a Morgan Geekie snipe. The play looked rather benign as Geekie glided into the Vegas zone alone while his teammates changed behind him. Rather than dump the puck in and skate off the ice, he unloaded a deadly wrist shot that found the net over Robin Lehner’s shoulder.
The Kraken had come back to tie at 3-3.
Any momentum from that goal created was sullied 35 seconds later and it came with a bit of controversy. Off the rush, Vegas center Chandler Stephenson scored to put the Golden Knights ahead. Immediately, Seattle players looked to the officials and complained that the puck was kicked in.
It was reviewed and called a good goal as the replay judges ruled that while Stephenson turned his skate to have the puck deflect off it, he did not do it with a distinct kicking motion.
That would prove to be the game-winner and the Kraken fall to 0-1-0.
The good from the Kraken on opening night
There were things to like out of Seattle’s game Tuesday.
Erasing a 3-0 lead against a top team on the road is impressive. The Kraken aren’t built with dynamic scorers and falling behind by a trio of goals is tough to come back from. Seattle didn’t panic. They stuck with their systems and were able to walk the Golden Knights down. Early results indicate that this could end up being a resilient team.
The comeback was even more remarkable considering the club went through a COVID scare over the previous 24 hours. On Monday five players were put into the NHL’s COVID protocol and it was unclear if they would play. The players, including McCann, Jamie Oleskiak, Joonas Donskoi, and Marcus Johansson, were cleared with just enough time to get to Vegas and play.
After a shaky start, Grubauer found his legs and kept the Kraken within striking distance. Specifically, during the two early Vegas power plays in the second period. The Golden Knights had some of their best looks and Grubauer made six huge stops. He would end with 18 saves on 22 shots.
Seattle needs to find some secondary scoring and got it Tuesday. The top line with McCann, Jaden Schwartz, and Jordan Eberle did their thing to score but the Kraken also got goals from Donato and Geekie. It’s a great start for those two and the Kraken will need them as contributors.
Another potential source of secondary scoring played very well. Seattle’s second line centered by Alex Wennberg with Johansson and Donskoi logged 9:16 of ice time together at 5-on-5 and dominated. They were on the ice for 13 Kraken shot attempts and three from Vegas. Their expected goals (xGF) percentage was 89. They didn’t score but that kind of puck possession moving forward will lead to scoring.
What the Kraken need to clean up
Seattle struggled at times to manage the puck. Vegas’ second goal, scored by Marchessault was the result of a turnover by Vince Dunn deep in the Seattle end. The Golden Knights first goal was helped by a poor read on the forecheck by Nathan Bastian. Pacioretty’s second goal that made it 3-0 came after the Kraken threw it away in the neutral zone.
Giving the puck away not only leads to chances but results in Seattle chasing. When the Kraken chase, they can’t get into their forecheck which is a vital part to their attack.
Expect that to be a point of emphasis for Seattle head coach Dave Hakstol over the remainder of the opening road trip.
By the numbers
Defenseman Mark Giordano, who was just named team captain, led the Kraken with 23:20 of ice time. Jaden Schwartz led Seattle forwards with 20:20.
Donato will go down in history as the first goal scorer, but Vince Dunn will forever be known as the player with the first assist as he set up Donato’s goal.
Vegas had 10 takeaways to the Kraken’s five. Seattle led in giveaways 7-6.
The Kraken led in hits 33-26.
Up next for the Kraken is a Thursday night tilt in Nashville against the Predators.
There’s an old theory in hockey that a team’s best penalty killer needs to be its goaltender. Seattle Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer proved that true and then some Tuesday in Vancouver.
Grubauer made 38 saves during a 4-0 shutout against the Canucks, but it was on the penalty kill where he was at his best. Vancouver outshot the Kraken 29-17 through the first two periods but would end the night 0-for-4 on the power play, thanks to Grubauer.
He was especially brilliant during a second period Canucks power play where Vancouver blistered the Seattle net with 7 shots. These weren’t chances from the outside or bad angles. They were in close, and they were of the ‘Grade A’ variety. Grubauer stopped them all and didn’t appear to break a sweat in doing so.
It was like that all night for Grubauer who would end with 12 saves while his team was shorthanded.
The exceptional goaltending allowed the Kraken to score three goals in the second period, two coming on their own power play, in a game that was filled with special teams as the two teams combined for 11 power play chances. Grubauer’s play was a continuation of his performance all through camp and the fact he looked dialed in Tuesday suggests that the Kraken goal crease is in good hands.
Vince Dunn paces the Kraken offense
With Grubauer keeping the puck out of his net, defenseman Vince Dunn was filling the Canucks cage.
He got the scoring going with a power-play goal in the second period on a big slap shot from the point. Dunn put Seattle up 2-0 later in the period when he jumped into the rush and found space in the high slot. Jared McCann got him the puck and he scored with a snap shot.
Having Dunn scoring is big news for the Kraken, who need to find secondary scoring. In the six preseason games they have leaned on the McCann, Jaden Schwartz, and Jordan Eberle line and have yet to get consistent scoring from anyone else. Getting Dunn or Mark Giordano chipping in from the blue line will be a big boost.
Dunn, 24, has always been an offensive threat and with three goals in six preseason games, he appears ready for another strong season.
Special teams clicking for Kraken
Seattle scored on two of its seven opportunities Tuesday and looked dangerous all night. The team didn’t spend too much time in camp working on special teams, but they played well during the six exhibition games.
Along with Grubauer, special teams were key to the win against the Canucks because at five-on-five, which accounted for 36 minutes of game play, Vancouver held a 42-26 advantage in shot attempts.
Mark Giordano continues to be a beast for Kraken
The 37-year-old defenseman led all Kraken with 22:39 of ice time and did it at high energy. He’s on the top defensive pairing, top power play, and is one of Seattle’s top penalty killers. Giordano shows no signs of slowing down.
With seven power-play chances, the Kraken’s top unit got a workout in. Schwartz logged 7:50 of time on the power play while Eberle, McCann and Alex Wennberg each joined Schwartz for over seven minutes.
Other notes
The NHL is emphasizing calling cross-checking penalties to the letter of the law. As a result, it’s become the trendy preseason penalty. Tuesday, Seattle and Vancouver combined for five cross-checking penalties.
Seattle ends its preseason schedule with a 4-2 record.
While the Kraken preseason is over, they will continue to put the work in. The team has practice scheduled every day but this coming Sunday in preparation for the Oct. 12 season start in Las Vegas.
Ryan Donato scored the Kraken’s third goal, on a second-period power play, and led the team in shots with five. Vancouver’s Bo Horvat put eight shots on Grubauer.
SEATTLE – Yanni Gourde caused a bit of a stir at the Kraken Community Iceplex Monday. It wasn’t for his all-out relentless skating but rather for the color jersey he was wearing during practice as the Seattle Kraken prepared for their final preseason game Tuesday in Vancouver.
Gourde was wearing a light blue jersey.
It was the first time all training camp that the center was not wearing a no-contact red jersey. Did this mean that he was ready to play? That he had completely recovered from off-season shoulder surgery that was supposed to keep him out of the lineup until December?
No.
“When I wear red, guys are super careful out there and you don’t do much, so I need to get a little bit more bumps in,” Gourde said. “It just doesn’t mean much. I mean it’s just a different color. We’re still working. It’s a work in process to get back in shape and get back, ready to play, but we’re not there yet.”
So, we still don’t know when Gourde will take the ice in a game. He later mentioned that he is not approved for full contact yet but quipped that maybe it was ‘half contact.’
On the ice, he was a ball of energy, flying around the zone during special teams drills. Worth noting, Gourde was killing penalties.
Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said that they are following the process laid out by the team’s medical staff and refused to speculate about a specific return date for Gourde. But he did like what he has seen on the ice out of him.
“We know what he is as a player and what he brings skill wise and ability wise,” Hakstol said. “You see it every day what he brings energy wise, and those are all great things that right now he’s able to apply to get himself ready, he’s just one of those guys. Everything he does is at 110%.”
Early in practice we got a glimpse perhaps of where Gourde will play when he does come back.
Hakstol had Gourde centering a line with Joonas Donskoi and Ryan Donato Monday. Those wingers had previously played with Morgan Geekie and have had some success during the preseason. Monday, Geekie was with Mason Appleton and Calle Jarnkrok.
Kraken get some special teams work in
Seattle spent the bulk of practice Monday working on special teams. It was the first time during camp that they’ve done so.
Previously, the only power play and penalty kill work had been brief and in morning skates on game days. The two units on Monday looked familiar.
The first power-play unit started with Mark Giordano on the point, where he has played in the preseason. Along with him was Alex Wennberg on the half wall and Jared McCann, Jordan Eberle, and Jaden Schwartz up front. Vince Dunn handled the point for the second unit with Geekie on the wall while Donskoi, Jarnkrok and Marcus Johansson manned the forward positions.
With the roster trimmed down and one last preseason game left on the schedule, the lines and combinations feel close to being finalized.
But Hakstol, as most coaches will do, wouldn’t commit to that being true.
“I think it would be a mistake to say this is a projection of what we’re gonna see seven days down the road,” he said. “There’re more pieces and combinations that fit together that are likely. We have a limited amount of time to try things. There’re still one or two more things that we want to take a look at, there’s still competition at different positions. So, all of those three factors are going to be at play tomorrow night.”
Kraken waive two
During practice the team announced that Carsen Twarynsky and Alex True had been placed on waivers, with the team intending to assign them to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. Twarynsky was picked up at the NHL Expansion Draft from the Philadelphia Flyers while True, a former Seattle Thunderbird, was selected from the San Jose Sharks.
Practice play of the day
During the power play drills, Geekie found the puck along the wall. He looked up and flung a seeing-eye pass, through a maze of skates and sticks, that found Jarnkrok who scored with a one-time slap shot.
