Three takeaways – Kraken move into first place in Pacific Division with win over Blackhawks
The Seattle Kraken defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 on Monday night. The win pushed Seattle into sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division with 16 points.
It was Andre Burakovsky’s first trip back to Seattle since being traded to Chicago during the offseason. The move has worked out well for Burakovsky so far—he scored the Blackhawks’ lone goal and now has 10 points this season (five goals, five assists).
But even with Burakovsky’s goal that temporarily closed the gap to 2-1, Jamie Oleksiak opened the scoring in the second period, and the Kraken really never looked back.
Matty Beniers scored on the power play, and captain Jordan Eberle added an insurance goal to put the game out of reach. Beniers and Eberle assisted on each other’s goals, giving both two-point nights. Eberle now leads Seattle with five goals, while Eeli Tolvanen picked up an assist to extend his point streak to three games. Tolvanen has four assists through the first 12 games but has yet to find the back of the net.
Here are Three Takeaways from a 3-1 Kraken win over the Blackhawks.
Takeaway #1 – Offense!
After a lackluster offensive effort against the Rangers on Saturday, when Seattle recorded a franchise-worst 13 shots on goal, the message was clear: get pucks on net. Head coach Lane Lambert shuffled his lines before facing Chicago.
Tolvanen moved up alongside Beniers and Eberle. Kaapo Kakko joined Chandler Stephenson and Jaden Schwartz. Jani Nyman, scratched against the Rangers, rejoined the lineup with Shane Wright and Mason Marchment. Berkly Catton centered the fourth line between Tye Kartye and Ryan Winterton.
Based on the morning skate, it didn’t appear Catton would play, but the coaching staff opted to give him a look at center. The fourth line stood out with its energy, though Catton logged a team-low 7:07 of ice time.
Seattle started with urgency, firing eight shots in the first eight minutes. They slowed down after that and finished with 24 total shots. Still, it was encouraging to see the coaching staff identify a problem from the previous game and make changes that delivered results.
As John Barr noted in Monday Musings, the Kraken are averaging 23.9 shots per game—right on par with this performance, though there’s still room for improvement. Interestingly, Seattle had just five shots in the second period but scored twice.
Takeaway #2 – Special teams
Seattle excelled on both sides of special teams in this game. The Kraken successfully killed all three penalties, maintaining their strong defensive effort. Seattle has now gone two straight games without allowing a power-play goal. Chicago generated some chances, but the Kraken stayed active with their sticks, blocked shots, and leaned on a steady Joey Daccord in net.
In John Barr’s new 10 for 10 series, he noted Seattle’s penalty kill sat at 64 percent through 10 games. After two perfect games, that number is up to 71 percent—still not great, but trending in the right direction.
It only took eight seconds for the Kraken to convert on their first power-play attempt, and they were 1-for-2 on the night.
This goal was fun to watch. All five skaters touched the puck before Beniers buried it. Stephenson tied up his man on the draw, Beniers supported and moved it to Vince Dunn, who slid it over to Tolvanen for the shot. Eberle corralled the rebound and appeared to drift behind the net before sending a perfect backhand pass to Beniers in the slot, who fired it home. A thing of beauty.
After the game, Beniers said of Eberle’s pass: “You know, it’s funny, I knew it was coming. No doubt in my mind. That’s just the type of player [Eberle] is.”
Takeaway #3 – Joey! Joey! Joey!
It was a bit unexpected that Daccord wasn’t among the three stars of the night. He posted a .967 save percentage and allowed just one goal, saving 2.52 goals above expected per MoneyPuck. Connor Bedard led the rush on Chicago’s lone tally, getting around Adam Larsson to the puck along the boards and feeding Burakovsky for a quick five-hole finish.
What made Daccord’s outing so impressive was his calm positioning. He didn’t need to make any highlight-reel saves because he was square to the puck all night. When a goalie doesn’t need to scramble, it usually means he’s in full control.
With Chicago’s net empty, Daccord twice attempted a goalie goal to the delight of the Climate Pledge Arena crowd. His first shot had a real chance but was stopped by defenseman Artyom Levshunov. Fans erupted into a “Joey! Joey! Joey!” chant, encouraging him to try again. His second attempt missed the mark, but the crowd loved every moment. Seattle fans will have to wait a little longer for the elusive goalie goal.
Strong response
This was a strong response to Saturday’s low-shot game. Chicago started backup goaltender Arvid Soderblom, so this was a matchup the Kraken should win—and they did. Next up, Seattle faces the San Jose Sharks on Nov. 5 to close out the homestand.
Photo Gallery – Kraken vs Blackhawks – Nov 3rd
Monday Musings: Is there reason for concern?
The Seattle Kraken managed two out of four possible points in a light week on the schedule. If you had told me that the Seattle Kraken would come away with two points from games against the red-hot Montreal Canadiens and the New York Rangers, I would have been happy. Still, something about these two games left me a little concerned.
Generating offense
We knew this team would look different this season, with a greater focus on structure and a more defensive mindset. Naturally, that means some offensive output would have to take a hit. Gone are the risky offensive-zone pinches or dicey forechecks that might lead to an odd-man advantage the other way.
So far, it’s working. This Kraken team continues to enjoy the best start in franchise history, and as of Monday morning, they’re sitting in a Wild Card spot with a 5-2-4 record.
That said, they’ve struggled to generate much offense. Seattle is averaging 2.73 goals per game, down 0.26 from last season, which ranks 24th in the NHL. It’s hard to call that an “issue,” given their record, but it’s at least an area for improvement.
A big driver behind the lower scoring rate appears to be a lack of shot volume. The Kraken are averaging the fewest shots on goal per game in team history and currently sit dead last in the league in that category.
In a vacuum, that trend is concerning, but given their record, it may just be the cost of winning with this system. It’s also worth noting that Jared McCann has now missed six straight games, and his return could certainly help spark the offense.
Other musings
- One thing I worried about early this season was whether this team could come back from multi-goal deficits with such a defense-first approach. While it didn’t end in victory, the Kraken erased a three-goal deficit in the third period against Montreal, proof that they can still come back. I was pleasantly surprised.
- Saturday’s 13 shots on goal against the Rangers marked the lowest total in a game in franchise history.
- The Rangers’ top line of Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, and J.T. Miller dominated on Saturday. They didn’t get on the scoresheet, but they combined for 11 of New York’s 25 shots in regulation and seemed to play all their shifts in the offensive zone.
- One area that still needs work for Seattle is the penalty kill. The good news: the Kraken killed all three of their penalties on Saturday. The bad news: they gave up a season-high nine shots against while doing it.
- Saturday also marked the sixth overtime game of the season. The Kraken only had 13 all of last year. They’re now 2-0-4 in games that reach overtime.
- The San Jose Sharks have also played six overtime games this season, and they will visit Seattle on Wednesday.
- It was great to see Kaapo Kakko back in the lineup on Saturday, though it’ll take some time for him to look like the Kakko we saw late last season. He played most of the game alongside Shane Wright and Mason Marchment, but about halfway through the third, he ended up playing a few shifts with Matty Beniers and Jordan Eberle.
- One thing that could help Seattle’s scoring woes: getting Eeli Tolvanen going. He has yet to score this season. At this same point last year, he had four goals.
- Joey Daccord started his ninth game of the season. I’ve been a little concerned about him being overworked, but there are actually 14 goalies league-wide with nine or more starts, and the schedule has allowed him time to recuperate between games, so maybe I shouldn’t worry (yet).
- Berkly Catton had just two shifts and 1:17 of ice time in the third period on Saturday. I think he’s shown he can play in the NHL, but once the roster is fully healthy, I’m not sure he gives them the best chance to win every night.
- In case you missed it, Kraken prospect Jake O’Brien was named the OHL Player of the Month for October after posting seven goals and 19 assists in 12 games for the Brantford Bulldogs. He’s already added six more points in two games to start November.
Jake O’Brien was unstoppable this weekend!
The @SeattleKraken prospect tallied 8 points this weekend, earning him the @cogeco #OHLPOTW honours.
DETAILS 🗞️: https://t.co/4A1oSkD2Y3@BulldogsOHL | @Flohockey pic.twitter.com/KiFDfNIRrA
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 13, 2025
Goal of the week
Nice goal by former Kraken Andre Burakovsky
ANDRE BURAKOVSKY GOES THROUGH HIS LEGS *AND* THE DEFENDER’S FOR THIS GOAL 🤯🚨
WHAT. A. GOAL. pic.twitter.com/fLdUOjWY49
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) October 31, 2025
Player performances
Brandon Montour (SEA) – Monty had three goals and one assist in two games this week. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say the Kraken might have come away empty-handed without him.
Julius Miettinen (EVT/SEA) – The big Finnish prospect is off to a strong start with the Everett Silvertips, posting two goals and three assists over the weekend.
Connor Bedard (CHI) – The 2023 first-overall pick had three goals and four assists in his last three games. He enters Monday’s matchup against Seattle riding a four-game point streak.
The week ahead
The Kraken play four games this week, Monday vs. Chicago, Wednesday vs. San Jose, then a dreaded back-to-back road set on Saturday and Sunday against St. Louis and Dallas, respectively.
The Blackhawks and Sharks won’t be easy matchups; both have been playing well lately. Chicago (5-4-3) has been hovering around the wild card bubble, and Monday marks Burakovsky’s first game back in Seattle since being traded to the Blackhawks this summer. Burky is off to his best start since his first season with the Kraken in 2022–23.
I’m especially curious to see how Seattle matches up against San Jose. The Sharks are full of young talent but have struggled defensively, allowing four goals per game, second most in the NHL. Can the Kraken take advantage of that?
It’s still a bit early to throw around “must-win” talk, but this week presents a real opportunity to bank some points. Five out of eight would be solid; six would be outstanding.
And finally…
It’s still early, but the Kraken are above .500 and in a wild card position, and that’s something to be happy about. That said, I’d be lying if I said the lack of offensive production over the last two games doesn’t concern me a little. Based on this week’s matchups, we should get a much clearer picture of whether that concern is warranted.
Are you worried about the offense, or do you think this is just how winning hockey looks with the current roster under Lambert?
Three Takeaways – Kraken earn another point but struggle to generate offense in OT loss to Rangers
The Seattle Kraken lost to the New York Rangers 3-2 in overtime on Saturday, their second straight overtime loss. The game had a different flow from Tuesday’s 4-3 OT loss to the Montreal Canadiens, but the story felt familiar: Seattle again struggled to create much offense, instead sitting back for most of the game and relying heavily on defensive-zone structure and Joey Daccord to earn a point.
Chandler Stephenson scored on the power play, and Brandon Montour’s second-period missile tied the game 2-2, but that was all the offense Seattle could muster. Will Cuylle’s game-winner off a 2-on-1 gave the Rangers the rightful win.
BRANDON BOMBTOUR! 💣🚨
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) November 2, 2025
After some good zone time, Schwartz finds Montour coming off the bench. He fires a howitzer over Shesterkin's glove for his third goal in two games.
2-2 #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/ovLO6HTDoK
Here are Three Takeaways from a 3-2 Kraken overtime loss to the Rangers.
Takeaway #1: Kraken not generating enough
One of the things many things I’ve admired about Lane Lambert’s approach to coaching the Kraken is his postgame honesty. He tends to identify the problem clearly and directly—soft-spoken but precise in his assessment.
After Saturday’s game, in which the Kraken spent most of the night trapped in their own zone and managed only 13 shots on Igor Shesterkin—the fewest in franchise history—I asked Lambert if he was comfortable with how much time his team has spent defending.
Here’s what he said:
“Well, I think the answer’s obvious. We don’t want to spend this much time in our zone. We’re battling when we do, but again, the first period was a classic example of what I’ve been talking about all year long. We’re misfiring on passes, we’re not— at times, I’m not saying all the time. Our guys are working, and they’re giving it everything they have from that standpoint, but we’ve got to find a way out of our zone better and have more composure and more poise. It’s the bottom line. We turn the puck over, and we spend another 30 or 40 seconds in our zone. So, we wonder why, that’s why.”
Good insight from Lane Lambert on the #SeaKraken’s struggles at breaking the puck out of their zone. pic.twitter.com/PI1T0Zmhhh
— Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) November 2, 2025
It was a perfect summation of what we were all seeing, especially in those first 20 minutes when Seattle simply couldn’t get out of its own end. The Kraken defend well when the other team has the puck, but when they finally regain possession, too often they throw a bad pass or bobble the puck, allowing the forecheck to reset and keeping Seattle on its heels.
Problem No. 1: The Kraken aren’t exiting their zone cleanly enough to even put themselves in position to attack.
Problem No. 2—especially on Saturday—is that when they do get set up in the offensive zone, they’re not pulling the trigger. Case in point: In the final 30 seconds of regulation, Seattle had the Rangers pinned. They passed around the perimeter so long it felt like a buzzer-beating winner was inevitable. But with the puck on Montour’s stick at the top of the slot, the horn sounded before a shot was even sent in Shesterkin’s general direction.
“It’s fair to say [we didn’t have a shoot-first mentality],” Lambert said. “I think we passed up too many shots when we did have good opportunities… At the same time, they defend well, they’re in lanes. So it’s easy to say, ‘Shoot the puck,’ but if people are in the lanes, it’s a little bit harder to do. It’s not going to get through. But at the same time, I thought we passed up shots, and we had opportunities to shoot pucks from even bad angles and create a second opportunity, and we didn’t.”
Takeaway #2: Kaapo Kakko returns
It was good to see Kaapo Kakko back in the lineup Saturday, facing his former team for the first time since being traded to Seattle by the Rangers on Dec. 18, 2024. The Finnish winger, who broke his hand on a slash during preseason, played 14:16 in his season debut.
“Always the first game is kind of hard. I mean, I’ve been working out well and skating and doing all those things,” Kakko said. “I think, some good things, but I can be a lot better.”
He skated on a line with Mason Marchment and Shane Wright, which didn’t look all that effective. Lambert began mixing things up in the third period, so we’ll see if that combination sticks moving forward. The three played 8:13 together, though Kakko also logged 2:34 with Matty Beniers and Jordan Eberle. Meanwhile, Berkly Catton’s ice time dipped to 11:36 after playing over 16 minutes Tuesday against Montreal.
“That was my first time playing with both [Wright and Marchment],” Kakko said. “I usually played with Matty last year, so I think it takes, always, some time when you start to play with new guys. But there’s a couple of good things. I think we got one pretty good chance, but yeah, that can be better, also.”
After Kakko arrived last season, he was attached at the hip to Beniers, so it was surprising to see them separated for this game. I’m curious how long it will take before Lambert puts them back together.
“I thought he played well,” Lambert said of Kakko. “Big, strong body. You could see what he is going to add to our team down low in the offensive zone.”
I had high hopes Kakko’s return would provide an instant offensive spark, but that didn’t happen in his first game back. Still, it’s a big boost for Seattle to have him healthy and in the mix again, and continuing to move toward having more of their regular players back.
Takeaway #3: Another standings point
It’s early to start obsessing over the standings (although Blaiz’s story on Saturday noted that Halloween can be an early playoff indicator), but the Pacific Division already looks like a grind. From the first-place Vegas Golden Knights to the sixth-place Vancouver Canucks, there’s currently only a three-point gap.
That means every point matters—even the ones Seattle is “stealing” from games it probably should have lost in regulation. Saturday’s OT point against the Rangers fits that description, as does Tuesday’s comeback against Montreal.
While it’s fair to be frustrated by the lack of offensive zone time, it’s also impressive that the Kraken continue to find ways to collect points. 11 games into the season, they’ve lost just twice in regulation and remain unbeaten in regulation at home.
They’re showing exactly what Lambert promised back in training camp: that if they stick to their defensive structure, they’ll be competitive every night. Even on a night when they didn’t generate nearly enough offensively, they still found a way to come away with something.
Now, if they can just figure out how to play some offense…
Darren Brown
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at soundofhockey.com and the host of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is a member of the PHWA and is also usually SOH’s Twitter intern (but please pretend you don’t know that). Follow him @DarrenFunBrown and @sound_hockey or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
10 for 10: 10 data points in the Kraken’s first 10 games
Introducing a new recurring feature here at Sound Of Hockey called 10 for 10. Every 10 games, we’ll take a step back and look at 10 different stats that tell the story of where the Seattle Kraken are trending.
Some numbers will be straightforward, things like goals, shot attempts, or save percentage, while others might be a little more offbeat or meant to challenge assumptions about the team. Each stat will include a visual and a short breakdown to help make sense (or nonsense) of what’s happening with the Kraken over the last 10 games.
Data Point 1: Pace
It’s been well reported, and often mentioned on broadcasts, that the Kraken are off to their best start in franchise history. Here’s how that path looks compared to other seasons:
As Blaiz pointed out earlier this week, November shapes up as a much softer stretch from a strength-of-schedule perspective, but the 2022–23 team earned 17 out of a possible 20 points in games 11–20. Keeping pace with that group could still be a challenge.
Data Point 2: Rebound goals
I first started thinking about “rebound goals” when I read an article about the Kraken head coach’s vision for the team. It got me thinking more about those gritty, inside-area chances Seattle has been trying to create. For this analysis, I defined a rebound goal as a goal scored within three seconds of another shot on goal.
The chart above shows all situations; two of the Kraken’s rebound goals came on the power play. Worth noting, Seattle has only allowed two rebound goals against, which is tied for the third fewest in the league.
Data Point 3: Shot attempts against off the faceoff
We’ve established that the faceoff stats tracked and published by the league aren’t all that useful, but one thing we can tease out is the number of shot attempts for and against following a draw. That gives us a decent proxy for possession after a faceoff.
I started to worry about this when the Kraken allowed three goals immediately after faceoffs during their road trip. If you want to see the goals, here are some examples:
- Cole Caufield (OT vs. Montreal)
- John Tavares (3rd period, also a rebound goal)
- Jakob Chychrun (2nd period vs. Washington)
Those turned out to be the only faceoff goals allowed by the Kraken this season, but could it be a symptom of a bigger issue? Let’s look at the data.
It doesn’t seem to be as big of an issue as I might have thought. The Kraken are definitely allowing more shot attempts after a faceoff than most other teams in the league but not as many shots are getting through to the goalie. And like I mentioned above, only a few made it in the net.
Data Point 4: Penalty kill success rate and volume
One area that’s gotten plenty of attention is Seattle’s penalty kill. From a percentage standpoint, the Kraken rank 29th in the NHL with a 64 percent success rate. The positive spin? They haven’t been shorthanded often, allowing nine power-play goals—tied for 18th in the league.
Regardless of how you frame it, though, 64 percent is brutally low. If the Kraken continue to play tight games, even a modest improvement toward league average could be the difference in picking up a few extra points in the standings.
It’s also interesting that the PK is among the best in the NHL at limiting high-danger opportunities during the PK, despite the team’s struggles at preventing goals. Lambert spoke about this on Saturday morning.
Data Point 5: Scoring first
Seattle has earned points in all but one game when not scoring first (Philadelphia). Seattle has scored first in seven of its first 10 games, winning five of those. On a league-wide basis, 90 percent of the time, teams that score first get at least a point and 66 percent of the time they win. For further context, last season’s team scored first in just 42.7 percent of its games (35 total).
On the other hand, Seattle has earned at least a point in every game when giving up the first goal (Philadelphia).
Data Point 6: Average goals against
This has been the story of Seattle’s early-season success. The Kraken have tightened up defensively, which gives them a chance to win every night. Last season, they allowed 3.2 goals per game compared to just 2.8 through the first 10 games this year.
On the flip side, Kraken goal scoring is down a bit, but getting Kaapo Kakko and (hopefully) Jared McCann back should help boost that.
Data Point 7: Goal differential (excluding empty-net goals)
One data point I probably over-index to when evaluating teams is their goal differential excluding empty-net goals. My target for the Kraken to remain competitive and in the playoff hunt is around even to plus-five.
Right now, they sit at minus-one, which isn’t great on paper but isn’t alarming either. With the exception of the season opener against Anaheim, all of Seattle’s wins have come by a single non-empty-net goal, which explains why their differential trails their solid 5-2-3 record.
Last season’s Kraken were plus-five after 10 games (5-4-1). Considering this year’s injury issues, I’ll take that minus-one in stride.
Data Point 8: Games lost to injury or absence
It would be irresponsible to talk about the first 10 games without mentioning the injury bug that’s bitten this team since preseason. It started when Kaapo Kakko broke his hand on a slash in an exhibition game, and it’s snowballed from there.
The good news: Ryker Evans and Kakko both appear close to returning, and Freddy Gaudreau is back skating.
Data Point 9: Berkly Catton’s ice time
One silver lining of all those injuries has been the opportunity for Berkly Catton to get NHL reps. His first two games coincided with Seattle’s roughest stretch of the season, but that also meant more ice time for him in situations where the Kraken were chasing offense rather than protecting leads.
Catton is just four games away from burning the first year of his entry-level contract, so it’ll be interesting to see how the team handles him over the next few weeks. He’s clearly shown flashes of NHL skill, but he still makes the occasional high-risk mistake. With margins of victory this thin, every decision on his usage matters.
Data Point 10: Goalie starts
I was hoping these 10 games would clarify how the Kraken plan to manage their three-goalie situation, but honestly, it’s still hard to tell. For now, it looks like they’re just riding Joey Daccord except in back-to-back situations.
Wrapping it up
This series is a bit of an experiment, so I’d love to hear your feedback. Which metrics helped you understand the Kraken better, and which ones left you wanting more? I’ll adjust and evolve 10 for 10 as we go, so tell me what should make the cut for Games 11–20.