The Kraken took another big step toward their first playoff berth Thursday by downing the lowly Ducks at Climate Pledge Arena. In a favorable matchup, Seattle just had to have the standings points in this one, as things had tightened in the Western Conference ever so slightly.
There was a significant slowdown from the Kraken in the second period, but in the end, they took care of business once again and registered their 89th and 90th points in the standings.
Jaden Schwartz, Matty Beniers, Daniel Sprong, and Alex Wennberg (empty-net goal) scored, and Martin Jones made 15 of 16 saves to earn the win.
Here are our Three Takeaways from an important 4-1 Kraken win over the Ducks.
Takeaway #1: That was an awesome game for Matty Beniers
Prior to scoring his 20th goal against the Predators on March 25, Matty Beniers had been stuck on 19 for more than a month, dating all the way back to Feb. 23. But he did get one by Juuse Saros to end the drought in that game, and against the Ducks at home on Thursday, he played like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
We can’t help wondering if the $250K “Schedule A” rookie bonus that kicks in at 20 goals could have been in the back of Beniers’ mind for a bit. Now that he has hit that threshold, it is not surprising that the floodgates seem to have reopened.
“Honestly, I think I was playing good before and after [getting my 20th],” said Beniers. “Sometimes it just doesn’t go in, and that’s how the game works. And, you know, you get one, and then they start falling. So I think everyone goes through it. I think I was playing a good game before, and I think I’m playing the same exact game now; they’re just going in.”
Beniers was everywhere on the ice against the Ducks, setting up his linemates for scoring chances, lugging the puck through the neutral zone, and making play after play that exuded confidence.
Case in point, his goal to make it 2-0 at 10:37 of the first period was both started and finished by Beniers. He hustled to track down a loose puck in the neutral zone, spun, and banked a perfect pass to send Jared McCann in for a quality chance. McCann took a high shot that got stopped by Lukas Dostal, retrieved his own rebound, and swung behind the net.
While McCann was doing all that, Beniers got himself back into a scoring area, where McCann found him standing wide open.
Once McCann got Beniers the puck, he could have overreacted and quickly shot into Dostal. Instead, he waited for Dostal to fully commit, and even after he lost the puck momentarily, he gathered it and tucked it inside the post.
MATTY MAGIC! 🚨
Beniers shows some razzle dazzle, loses it temporarily, but sticks with it and makes it 2-0.
Beniers also registered a primary assist on Sprong’s crucial power-play goal late in the third, although on that one, Beniers took a one-timer that missed the net and rimmed around to Sprong. So, that one was less impressive, but still, it was a hell of a night for the kid.
Takeaway #2: Kraken could use more of a killer instinct
Don’t get us wrong, here, the Kraken did what they had to Thursday and earned two critical points in the standings. BUT… It got too close for comfort at the end of the second period and well into the third, as Brock McGinn scored late in the middle frame to make it 2-1.
“All of a sudden, it’s a 2-1 game,” said Hakstol. “We just had to come in and reset and settle down and go back and play a good third period.”
The Ducks continued to hang around and kept Seattle at a wing’s length all the way until Sprong got his 20th of the season at 15:41 of the third. It was a big goal in the game and a big goal for Sprong personally.
“Yeah, it feels pretty good,” said Sprong. “We played a good game. We’ve been struggling at home before going on the that road trip.”
A game that felt like it was very much on the rails after 20 minutes shifted to feeling like it could go either way after 40. Against a team that’s in the basement and didn’t even have its top players in Troy Terry, Trevor Zegras, or John Gibson in the lineup, another goal or two for Seattle in the second period would have made that one feel a lot easier.
After how the first period went, we would have liked to see the Kraken run away with that game in the second. But like the eventual 7-2 win in Nashville last week, the opponent hung around until Seattle was finally able to deliver the knockout blow.
“Other teams are pretty good too,” coach Dave Hakstol said with a chuckle. “They’re trying to win; like, it’s the National Hockey League. You build wins through 60 minutes… Everybody’s pretty good, everybody’s playing for something, everybody is motivated by something.”
We get where Hakstol is coming from; wins are never easy in the NHL, and playing a perfect 60 minutes almost never happens. Still, we would like to see a little more killer instinct when the Kraken have control of games, as they did against the Ducks before they got temporarily off track.
Good on ’em for figuring it out in time to get the win.
Takeaway #3: Martin Jones did what he had to do
If it wasn’t perfect for the Kraken players, it wasn’t perfect for goalie Martin Jones either. It was a positive outing for the him, though, as he stopped all but one of Anaheim’s shots to earn his first win since Feb. 28 and hopefully build some confidence.
The McGinn goal came from an angle after Jones was a hair late in getting over to cover his post. He bounced right back, though, and made some key saves down the stretch.
Hakstol talks a lot about timely saves, and Jones had a few of those Thursday. In the opening minutes of the game, he faced two or three point-blank shots that could have set a negative tone had they gotten through. But Jones was in good position and made solid butterfly saves to keep the game scoreless in those first few minutes, leading to a mostly dominant period by the Kraken.
Jones’s most important stop came after a miscue from the players in front of him in the third period. With the Kraken holding a tenuous 2-1 lead, Jamie Oleksiak, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and McCann were all briefly within a stick length of the puck, but none of them actually scooped it up.
It came back the other way in hurry, and Jones was facing a partial two-on-zero. Frank Vatrano took a quick shot, and Jones made a big kick save to keep Seattle in the lead. Soon after that stop, the Kraken seemed to find their game again and ultimately skated away with a key win.
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.
With the WHL playoffs starting up, we thought it would be fun to look at regular season attendance numbers across the entire league. The last four seasons have been anything but normal, which makes evaluating attendance a challenge. Traditionally, March tends to have the highest attendance of the season, so even when COVID shuttered the league in early March, 2020, it had a material impact on attendance figures for the 2019-20 season.
WHL league-wide attendance
Here is a look at the average attendance across the WHL since the 2010-11 season.
As you can see, league-wide attendance has still not fully recovered to 2019-20 season numbers, but it is nice to see the increase of 18 percent from 2021-22. During the 2021-22 season, hockey teams were still challenged with COVID-19 restrictions and trepidation from fans to be part of large gatherings. This explains the low numbers for that season.
Team by team changes
As I mentioned above, analyzing attendance over the last four seasons is challenging. Below are two charts, one showing the percentage change since last season, and the second showing the change from 2019-20, which was the last mostly normal season for a comparable.
It’s nice to see Portland, Seattle, Spokane, and Tri-City up over 30 percent compared to last season, with Everett being the only US Division team with an increase of only 10 percent compared to last season. What’s even more encouraging is seeing Everett up 2 percent from the 2019-20 season, which means they are exceeding pre-COVID numbers. Meanwhile, the Seattle Thunderbirds and Portland Winterhawks have had a decrease in average attendance of -8 percent and -19 percent respectfully, compared with the last “normal” season.
WHL US Division
When rumors of Seattle possibly getting an NHL team started to surface, there was a lot of concern that the arrival of a new franchise could lead to the demise of WHL hockey in the Puget Sound. Our stance was always that it would benefit the junior teams in the area over time, because of more participation and interest of sports fans that would otherwise not be exposed to hockey. While it is too early to say whether local WHL teams have benefitted from the Kraken, we do not believe it has hurt the local junior teams. COVID aside, all US Division teams seem to be very close to pre-Kraken attendance numbers.
Note that Everett, Portland, and Spokane have much bigger arenas than Seattle and Tri-City, so comparing them to each other is not perfect.
Connor Bedard’s impact on WHL attendance
The Western Hockey League had something else going for it this season, Connor Bedard. In case you did not know, Bedard has been widely regarded as a generational talent that will most likely go first overall in the NHL Entry Draft this summer. He has been playing for the Regina Pats and has been an attraction all season when the Pats hit the road.
It is incredible to see what an impact one player can have on attendance. We saw a similar impact when Connor McDavid was playing for the Erie Otters his final year in the OHL.
Here is the breakdown of the Bedard impact by team:
Evaluating WHL attendance numbers remains an imperfect analysis. Ticket prices, arena capacity, and strength of the team all impact the figures in various ways, but directionally, we feel it is still a fair way to get an idea of the overall health of the league and individual teams.
WHL playoffs start Friday, so if you are lucky enough to live near a team that made the playoffs, go check out a game. It has and will continue to remain one of the best values to watch elite-level hockey.
For the first time in two weeks, the Kraken were home for a spirited practice Wednesday at Kraken Community Iceplex. The group worked on high-speed game situations and had all players present and accounted for… except, of course, for Andre Burakovsky. The high-scoring winger has not practiced with his teammates since suffering a lower-body injury in Seattle’s game against the Islanders on Feb. 7.
Head coach Dave Hakstol was asked for an update on Burakovsky and said there has been no change in his status. We didn’t get the sense Burakovsky is particularly close to readiness, and in fact, Hakstol said whenever Burakovsky does join the team for practice, he will still require significant time before he can play a game.
“It’s not ideal as you get to this time of year,” said Hakstol, recognizing there are only two weeks left in the regular season. “We may not have the luxury of the ideal pathway towards [his return].”
The bench boss declined to give any timeline for Burakovsky returning to practice or game action.
The Kraken play timelines close to the vest anyway, but what’s interesting about Hakstol’s update (or lack thereof) is that general manager Ron Francis said in an interview with ROOT Sports on Feb. 26 that he hoped Burakovsky would be back within a couple weeks. Then, we saw Burakovsky skating by himself on March 8, so it seemed like we were marching toward a return. But now three more weeks have passed, and we’re still in “status quo” mode.
That tells us either Burakovsky’s injury has continued to linger and isn’t getting better at the rate the team expected, or he had a setback in his recovery.
Morgan Geekie finding temporary home in Burakovsky’s spot
With Burakovsky out of the lineup, Hakstol has tried several different line combinations to fill the top-six winger role. Brandon Tanev, Jesper Froden, and Oliver Bjorkstrand all got looks there, and of the three, Bjorkstrand was the most natural fit. But moving him up meant breaking up an effective third line of Eeli Tolvanen, Yanni Gourde, and Bjorkstrand.
So, it wasn’t surprising to see the third line reunited recently, but it was a bit surprising to see Hakstol trying out Morgan Geekie—typically a center—on the line next to Jaden Schwartz and Alex Wennberg. From what we saw Wednesday and from what Hakstol said, Geekie could be the guy that fills that role for the foreseeable future.
“We liked the combination with Morgan moving with Wenny and with Schwartzy,” said Hakstol. “It’s looked good offensively. They’ve generated an awful lot of zone time. They’re generating some good offensive looks from down low in the zone, which— that gets Schwartzy back in his office a little bit where he’s able to spend time down low.”
Geekie seems to be relishing the elevated opportunity. We’ve heard him say on several occasions over the past two seasons that if he’s given a chance to contribute on a higher line, he can do it. One of his best games of the year came when he was filling in for an injured Matty Beniers, just before the All-Star break. So when he’s gotten games in top-six roles, he has done well.
“Obviously Wenny and Schwartzy are pretty good players,” Geekie said. “I think the game well enough to play on that spot, for sure. And I know I can make plays, personally. I’m just trying to take the opportunity to create as much as I can for those guys, space and plays alike. So, just try to play my game and try to get comfortable with those guys.”
Morgan Geekie is taking advantage of an elevated role with Andre Burakovsky out of the lineup. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
Moving from fourth-line center to a top-six wing role is a change for Geekie, who says he prides himself on being a good defensive centerman. Now, he has Wennberg—who Geekie calls a great defensive center in his own right—to do some of the tougher work low in the defensive zone. That frees up Geekie to get up ice and try to stretch out opposing defenses.
“I want to be strong in our own end and things like that, but there’s a little more opportunity to jump the zone and kind of spread it for the other guys,” Geekie explained. “Any opportunity that I can get to be the first one out [of the defensive zone], if it’s coming up the other side, I’ve got good speed and I can kind of push the zone and spread it for other guys.”
Daniel Sprong closing in on 20 goals
We’ve written and talked a lot about Daniel Sprong and the offensive success he’s had this season. It has been fascinating to watch, mostly because he has had to clear hurdle after hurdle to get a contract, a spot on the NHL roster, and even now, a spot in the lineup. Yet, here he sits, just one goal away from 20 for the first time in his career, despite never being elevated off the fourth line.
Daniel Sprong is closing in on 20 goals for the first time in his NHL career. (Photo/Brian Liesse)
“It’s not bad for a fourth-line guy,” Sprong joked. “No, I try not to think about it. Of course, being one away— you saw Matty [get his 20th] in Nashville. We were kind of joking around when we were both at 19, I said, ‘You go get 20, and then I’ll go right after you.’”
Sprong has been especially hot of late and scored goals in three straight games between Dallas and the two games in Nashville. He was held off the board in Minnesota on Monday, but it wasn’t for lack of trying.
“I think in Minnesota, I had 13 shot attempts,” Sprong said. “I’m gonna get my looks and hopefully find one here. It would be nice to do it against my old team [Thursday] night; that’d be a bonus.”
Sprong tied Schwartz for most shots on goal across all skaters in the Minnesota game, despite playing just 13:18 of ice time.
Fourth line success
Although Geekie has been temporarily elevated to a top-six role, he and Sprong have been key cogs in the machine that is Seattle’s fourth line this season. Almost every night, that bottom trio has been some combination of Tanev, Sprong, Geekie, and/or Ryan Donato.
It has been impressive to watch them drive play and produce offensively, especially when you consider that the usual role of a fourth line is simply to check, provide energy, and wear down opposing defenses.
“We’re a little different than most fourth lines,” Geekie said. “We’re not as much crash and bang. We’re more or less an offensive line, for sure.”
Despite limited minutes on a lot of nights, the four players that typically rotate in and out of that line have combined for 54 goals this season.
“Some nights we might only get nine minutes, and we know we’re only gonna get a handful of times where we can create offense,” Geekie said. “So we try to make the most of that.”
Geekie and Sprong agree the secret to the group’s success is that they’ve all spent plenty of time together at this point, and they’re a good fit with one another.
“I’m more the offensive guy that will take the chances, I’ll make the risky [plays], and then if it works out, you know we’re off to the races,” Sprong said. “And if not, Geeks— he’s great down the middle with us, and he sometimes saves my ass a little bit so it doesn’t look bad. But, no, we complement each other really well. And that’s the biggest thing as a line.”
Added Geekie, “Obviously, Spongey’s got a shot, Tans is kind of making space for everyone else, and Donny’s hard on pucks. So everyone’s kind of got the role, and when I’m there, I just try to complement those guys as much as I can and give them the puck in spots where they can do damage with it.”
Hakstol recognizes the value that rotating group of fourth-liners has brought to the team this season as well.
“They’ve played a lot of minutes together,” Hakstol said. “I’ve got my evaluation of what each of those combinations of three looks like and what the numbers say. At the end of the day, whoever has been part of that, it’s been a good productive line for us.”
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.
It’s been an up-and-down week for the Kraken, but they are still in a good spot for making the Stanley Cup Playoffs. So, on the latest Sound Of Hockey Podcast episode, John and Darren discuss the postseason landscape and where the Kraken might fit into it.
They start the show with a breakdown of the latest Kraken games, then give some updates from around the Western Conference.
Next, they go over to the WHL for some info about the upcoming playoffs, then to the PHF for a recap of their Isobel Cup championship game, and finally to the NCAA for a quick preview of the upcoming Men’s Frozen Four.
Once they’ve gotten through all that stuff, they shift to segments, which this week include:
It’s been an up-and-down week for the Kraken, but they are still in a good spot for making the Stanley Cup Playoffs. So, on the latest Sound Of Hockey Podcast episode, John and Darren discuss the postseason landscape and where the Kraken might fit into it.
They start the show with a breakdown of the latest Kraken games, then give some updates from around the Western Conference.
Next, they go over to the WHL for some info about the upcoming playoffs, then to the PHF for a recap of their Isobel Cup championship game, and finally to the NCAA for a quick preview of the upcoming Men’s Frozen Four.
Once they’ve gotten through all that stuff, they shift to segments, which this week include:
We don’t want to jinx anything, because we know as well as anyone that nothing is clinched until it is clinched. And the Kraken still have some road to cover before they can say they’re in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time. BUT… Even with a 5-1 loss to the Wild on Monday, things are looking pretty good for the Kraken and their chances of earning their first postseason berth in franchise history.
According to MoneyPuck.com, the Kraken now hold a 98.5 percent chance of making the playoffs. With 88 points in the standings and nine games remaining, they are seven points ahead of Calgary with a game in hand and eight points ahead of Nashville. The Kraken just need to stay ahead of those two clubs.
With a day off for the team Tuesday, we thought it could be a fun exercise to consider Seattle’s various possible first-round playoff matchups, which we can narrow down to five (or maybe six if you include the Edmonton Oilers, though we did not include them in this exercise) different opponents. Heck, maybe we’ll even get a little crazy and make some predictions.
Let’s consider the options and how the Kraken could stack up against each possible adversary.
Reminder of how playoff seeding works
Here’s how the seeding works, which will help us understand who are the possible opponents in Round 1. The top three teams from the Pacific Division and the top three from the Central take the “automatic” qualifier spots to make up six of the eight positions. The other two spots are “wild card” teams, meaning the two teams in the Western Conference with the most points that didn’t earn an automatic qualifier spot. So, the wild card teams can come from either division, making it possible one division could have five teams in the playoffs in a given season.
It is looking more and more likely that the Kraken will take the top wild card spot, with the Winnipeg Jets taking the second spot. If the Kraken take the first wild card, they play the division winner with the lowest point total, meaning—based on current standings—Minnesota would be the opponent. Should the Central winner end up with more points than the Pacific winner, then Seattle would face the winner of the Pacific.
We will order these opponents based on what we see as the most likely scenarios.
Make sense? Great. Let’s get into it.
Minnesota Wild
Season series: Kraken lost series with 1-2-0 record
With Minnesota atop the Central Division and trailing Vegas by three points, the Wild are the current matchup for the Kraken if the season were to end today. We saw these teams play each other Monday, so comparing the squads feels fresh and easy right now.
Why the Kraken can win against the Wild
Despite the recent 5-1 loss, the Kraken could compete with Minnesota in a seven-game series. They were the better team for a lot of Monday’s game, but Marc-Andre Fleury played great at one end, and Philipp Grubauer had a bad night at the other end.
Seattle played fast and had the Wild on their heels for most of the first 40 minutes but couldn’t capitalize on their opportunities, while Minnesota very much did. If Seattle can get the balanced scoring it has gotten throughout the season, it will have a good chance to upset the Wild, who—by the way—love a good first-round playoff exit.
Why the Kraken can lose against the Wild
We’re going to get this one out of the way now, and this will stand for almost every possible matchup, even if we don’t directly mention it moving forward: goaltending.
The goal crease remains a thorn in the Kraken’s tentacle, and even though the club has had good stretches from both Martin Jones and Philipp Grubauer this season, the consistency just hasn’t been there. In the last couple weeks, the only goalie that has really given the team quality outings has been Joey Daccord, who is now back in the AHL.
This is an area in which the Wild would have an obvious advantage, especially if Grubauer doesn’t get things rolling in these last couple weeks of the regular season. Worth noting, Fleury only makes up part of a two-headed goaltending monster, sharing the crease with Filip Gustavsson. Gustavsson has been quietly sensational, with a 2.01 goals against average and .932 save percentage in 34 appearances.
Another thing that concerns us about this matchup is that Minnesota has some big, tough customers that could push Seattle’s smaller players around in a seven-game series. Outside of Jamie Oleksiak, the Kraken really have no answer for guys like Ryan Reaves and Marcus Foligno, who will surely be looking to stir things up against a smaller Kraken squad. Physicality isn’t everything in a playoff series, but it is a big part of it. Having John Hayden healthy would sure be nice…
Oh, and worth noting, Minnesota’s superstar forward, Kirill Kaprizov, did not play Monday, but should be back in time for the playoffs. Yippee!
Colorado Avalanche
Season series: Kraken won series with 2-0-1 record
Two of Seattle’s most memorable wins of the season came against the defending Stanley Cup champion Avalanche. The first one was back in October on what would have been Grubauer’s best outing of the early going, had he not gotten injured that night. Believe it or not, Karson Kuhlman was the hero in that game, scoring 12 minutes into the third period to break a 2-2 tie. The second win came more recently on March 5. That night, Seattle overcame a late 2-1 deficit and earned the W thanks to a Yanni Gourde breakaway goal.
Why the Kraken can win against the Avalanche
For some reason, Seattle has matched up pretty well against the Avs this season, though there have been injuries to key Colorado players during those games. Grubauer seems to really like playing against his old team and has posted a 1.70 GAA and .928 save percentage in his three outings against them.
If Seattle can roll four lines and get contributions up and down the roster—as the team has done all season—we actually like the forward depth of the Kraken better than that of the Avalanche. If they can also come up with an effective strategy for checking Nathan MacKinnon, there is a path to victory for Seattle in a seven-game series.
Why the Kraken can lose against the Avalanche
While Seattle’s forward lines are deeper, the top-end skill of the Avalanche is among the best in the NHL. In two years of covering the Kraken, Nathan MacKinnon is one of two players—besides Connor McDavid—who gets the puck and instantly makes us hold our breath. He operates at a different level from his teammates and opponents. Teamed with Mikko Rantanen and Val Nichushkin, that top line is scary, as is the top defense pairing of Cale Makar and Devon Toews and the potent power play that clicks at 25.7 percent.
This would be a classic matchup of a top-heavy, highly skilled forward corps against a more balanced attack.
Also worth noting, Colorado got over the hump last season and won hockey’s biggest prize. The experience of that kind of playoff run goes a long way, and while Seattle has plenty of playoff miles from individuals in the room, the group has never been there together.
Vegas Golden Knights
Season series: Currently tied at one regulation win apiece, two games left to play
It’s a bit of a tossup as to who would be the next most likely matchup for the Kraken. We don’t foresee a Central team catching Vegas to take the top spot in the conference, but if Minnesota, Colorado, or Dallas does that, and Seattle holds its current position, then the Kraken would play the Golden Knights. The other possibility in the tossup is that Dallas sneaks by both Colorado and Minnesota to win the Central, but doesn’t catch Vegas. We think it’s more likely that Seattle plays Vegas, as opposed to Dallas.
How fun would this matchup be? The two newest teams in the NHL, which have some natural rivalry tendencies, duking it out for expansion supremacy.
Why the Kraken can win against the Golden Knights
If it weren’t for Seattle proving it can win against Vegas on Nov. 25, we would have hated this matchup. Way back in their Oct. 15 game against the VGK’s at Climate Pledge Arena, the Kraken got run out of their own building in a 5-2 defeat. That brought Vegas to a perfect 5-0-0 all-time record against the Kraken, but thankfully, the boys bounced back for an impressive win later in the fall.
A lot has changed since those early season games. Vegas has had a very impressive second half of the season, but questions remain around their health and goaltending. They traded for Jonathan Quick at the trade deadline, which gives them another option, but they’ve had a carousel of five different goalies in net for them on any given night. Meanwhile, Mark Stone remains out indefinitely after undergoing a second back procedure in nine months in January.
We also wonder if the excitement of a series against one of their closest rivals could lift the Kraken to a higher level of play in this one.
Why the Kraken can lose against the Golden Knights
Vegas is generally a scary team. Their building is tough to play in, they have star-caliber forwards, and—even as they have rotated through so many goalies—all of their netminders seem to be having success in coach Bruce Cassidy’s system. They’re very patient in their approach, keeping shots to the outside and taking advantage of turnovers, and they have a more balanced attack than a team like Colorado.
If they can get Seattle to run around, and their goalies make the saves they’re supposed to make, the Golden Knights are better than the Kraken. There’s a reason this team has been red hot in the second half of the season.
The Golden Knights and Kraken play each other for the last two games of the regular season. By then, most of the playoff matchups will be largely decided. Wouldn’t those two games be interesting if a Round 1 matchup between Vegas and Seattle was on the horizon?
Dallas Stars
Season series: Kraken are 1-1-1 against Dallas
Like Vegas, we would have hated this matchup for the Kraken, had they not pulled off a win against Dallas last Tuesday. Twice in 10 days, Seattle gave up late tying goals against the Stars in six-on-five scenarios, and it sandwiched in an ugly 5-2 home defeat between those two games. Thankfully, the Kraken did escape with an overtime win in Dallas when Adam Larsson showed off some silky mitts to score on a breakaway.
Why the Kraken can win against the Stars
Call us crazy, but for some reason, Dallas feels like a less scary opponent than others we’ve mentioned here, even though Seattle hasn’t been all that successful against that group. There is plenty of skill on the roster, with Jason Robertson, Miro Heiskanen, and Roope Hintz leading the way, and with veterans Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin now playing more supporting roles, this team is less top heavy than it used to be.
Their record also doesn’t look great, but the Kraken had every opportunity to beat Dallas in their first matchup and threw it away late. Had it closed out that game, Seattle would have a 2-1-0 record against Dallas, even with the dud performance on March 13.
Why the Kraken can lose against the Stars
We just mentioned Benn and Seguin playing lower in the lineup now, with the young guns taking over the bulk of the production. But that’s a pretty good mix of young skill and veteran presence, and Benn and Joe Pavelski are quietly having impressive campaigns with 31 and 21 goals respectively.
Dallas also may be in the Kraken players’ heads a bit, after those two late goals in as many weeks. If the Kraken find themselves ahead by a goal, they may be questioning their ability to close out a game.
We also can’t forget the impact goalie Jake Oettinger can have on a series after he dazzled and nearly singlehandedly stole a playoff round from the Calgary Flames last season.
Los Angeles Kings
Season series: Kraken hold a 3-0-0 record against the Kings, one game left to play
This would be another super fun series that would surely involve some nastiness. It would take the Kings winning the Pacific Division over Vegas but also finishing behind the winner of the Central Division for this matchup to come to fruition. OR, the Kraken would have to drop to the second wild card spot, and the Kings would need to have the best record in the Western Conference.
Why the Kraken can win against the Kings
All three of their contests against one another came in the first two months of the season, but the Kraken certainly hold a psychological edge over the Kings by winning all three. That could become a real advantage if the Kraken manage to knock off Los Angeles in their final regular-season meeting on April 1.
The Kings are beatable, in large part, because a couple of their mainstay players—while still productive—have gotten older, making Seattle’s speed a valuable weapon. Meanwhile, members of the Los Angeles youth movement are unproven in the playoffs; the Kings lost in the first round to Edmonton last season.
The Kings have a nasty top line of Kevin Fiala, Phillip Danault, and Viktor Arvidsson. Fiala has struggled in playoffs past, but if that line is clicking come playoff time, they will be tough to stop. Adrian Kempe has also had a breakout season playing with Anze Kopitar and has scored a whopping 36 goals.
LA has had a lot of power-play success this season, too, with similar numbers in that area to Colorado.
Our prediction
Do we think the Kraken can win a playoff round? Yes, we do.
They have proven throughout the season that they can skate with anybody, and if they get Andre Burakovsky back by then (he’s gotta come back by then, right?), they have the depth to roll four effective lines.
They also have proven to be an excellent road team; that is a good sign for Seattle, which—as a wild card team—is unlikely to have home-ice “advantage” for any round of the playoffs.
Do we think the Kraken can make a “deep” playoff run? Probably not yet.
Seattle’s success in the playoffs this season will depend on which version of the team shows up. Will it be the group that dominated in November and January? Or the one that fizzled in December and February? Either way, we just don’t think the Kraken have the combination of skill, grit, and goaltending needed to make a run at a Stanley Cup yet.
If the front office thought this was the time to make a deep run, they would have made moves at the trade deadline.
The Kraken closed out their four-game road trip with five out of a possible eight points, dropping a 5-1 result to the Wild on Monday. It was an odd game, because although Seattle came out flying and peppered Marc-Andre Fleury with shots, they couldn’t get anything past him until it was way too little and way too late.
In a preview of a potential first-round playoff matchup, we saw both how the Kraken could theoretically beat the Wild, but also how they could get knocked around and outgoalied. By all statistical metrics, the Kraken were the better team, yet on the scoreboard, the Wild cruised to a lopsided win.
“Not the result we wanted,” said coach Dave Hakstol. “It was one of those nights where we weren’t rewarded for some of the good, hard work we did offensively. And we made a couple too many mistakes that ended up in the back of our net.”
Here are our Three Takeaways from a confusing 5-1 Kraken loss to the Wild.
Takeaway #1: Goaltending was the (main) difference
Typically, when your team loses 5-1, there are poor performances and low levels of effort throughout the lineup. That wasn’t necessarily the case Monday, as the Kraken dictated the play for the entire first period and a lot of the second period. They looked fast and put Minnesota on its heels, especially in the early stages of the game.
Where things went sideways for Seattle was in the goal crease at both ends of the ice. We don’t blame Philipp Grubauer for three of the four goals he allowed, but when a netminder is facing a future Hall-of-Famer at the other end, and that opposing goalie is feeling it and stopping everything, you too need to come up with some key saves.
Grubauer didn’t do that Monday, and although the Wild were putting perfect shots off posts and in, a .692 save percentage doesn’t look good, no matter how you slice it.
“We did a lot of good things,” said Jaden Schwartz. “I thought they were pretty opportunistic with their chances, and we were’t tonight with our looks. That’s kind of the way it went.”
The one goal we really didn’t like from Grubauer was Matt Boldy’s second of the night, which came at 14:59 of the second period and made it 3-0. There was traffic in front, but the shot does not come from a scoring area. Grubauer was back on his goal line, giving net to shoot at, and as Boldy was loading up, Grubauer actually pivoted like he was going to push across for a pass. Grubauer’s body opened up, and instead of staying square to the puck, he retreated farther into his net.
Oh, boy. 3-0 Wild, despite the #SeaKraken outshooting them 24-11. Boldy's second of the game.
It's through a lot of traffic, but that's a tough one for Grubauer, who looked like he was reading pass. Got way too deep in his net and wasn't square to the shot. pic.twitter.com/CMw6kUrABa
Meanwhile, at the other end, Marc-Andre Fleury stymied the Kraken. Through 40 minutes, he had stopped 26 of 26 shots of all varieties, and he turned away 35 of 36 in all.
“It didn’t feel like a 5-1 game, it felt closer than that,” said Schwartz. “I don’t know how many shots we had, 35, 40 shots. Fleury made some big, timely saves early, and we just weren’t quite there for the second chances tonight.”
Fleury seems to love playing against the Kraken. In his last two starts against Seattle, he is 2-0-0 with a 0.50 goals against average, .984 save percentage, and 63 out of 64 saves. Overall, Fleury is 4-1-1 in six career games against Seattle, dating back to his time with Chicago. In those games, he has a 1.97 GAA and .935 save percentage.
Takeaway #2: Matt Boldy was the other difference
21-year-old winger Matt Boldy is on quite the heater for the Wild, now with 11 goals in his last nine games and 28 on the season. He potted three against the Kraken Monday, with all three coming off shots that hit posts and went in. If a shooter is aiming with that kind of precision, pucks are going to go in a lot, and that is happening for him.
2-0 #mnwild. Power-play goal by Matt Boldy with a snipe off a nice dish from Marcus Johansson. Two assists for Johansson against his former team. #SeaKrakenpic.twitter.com/3lOggPJDpI
Interestingly, former Kraken Marcus Johansson has been a big catalyst for Boldy’s recent hot streak. Johansson was acquired from Washington in a deal at the March 3 trade deadline. It was an under-the-radar move for a player going back to another of his former teams, and the second season in a row Johansson was moved for a draft pick.
Jojo has quietly racked up almost a point per game since joining the Wild and has connected with Boldy regularly, showing great chemistry with the budding star. We know Johansson can be an excellent passer and a productive player in the right role, and he is showing that in his second stint with the Wild. Johansson assisted on each of the Wild’s first two goals Monday.
Takeaway #3: Not sure about that playoff matchup for the Kraken
Entering Monday, in “if the regular season ended today” scenarios, the Wild would have been the first ever playoff opponent for the Kraken. Earlier in the year, we would have liked that matchup. Seattle showed very well at Xcel Energy Center with a 4-0 win on Nov. 3. The Wild won in Seattle a week later, but that was another game stolen by MAF and a 1-0 result that could have gone either way.
Minnesota is a different team than it was in November, though. The Wild made some nice adds at the deadline, including Johansson and John Klingberg, and also got tougher earlier in the season by bringing in Ryan Reaves. Both of their goaltenders have been excellent, and they seem to be taking standings points almost every night.
“Obviously not the way we wanted to end [the road trip] at all, but we’ve got to learn,” said Ryan Donato. “This is a great team that we played tonight, and there’s a lot to learn from it. Hopefully we can make the most of it and be ready for our little homestand here.”
The goaltending battle is a big area of concern in a matchup with Minnesota, but on top of that, the Kraken could get pushed around by guys like Reaves and Marcus Foligno in a seven-game playoff series. Physicality is exactly the reason Seattle called up John Hayden recently, but he quickly got injured in a fight and isn’t expected back this season. He was one guy Seattle could have leaned on for some grit in the lineup, but he is no longer an option.
Donato and Yanni Gourde answered the physical bell Monday by fighting Connor Dewar and Mason Shaw, but outside of Jamie Oleksiak, who really doesn’t get involved in rough stuff very often, Seattle has no answer for Minnesota’s heavyweights.
All that said, the Kraken really did dominate a lot of the play Monday. So, do we read into the 5-1 result? Or, do we tip our caps to Boldy and Fleury and say Seattle would win more often than not if it keeps playing like that, especially when it takes almost 70 percent of the quality shots in a game?
It has been a good road trip as the Kraken have taken care of business with five out of six points in the standings so far, including a dominant performance in Nashville Saturday. That 7-2 win created even more space between the Kraken and Predators in the standings. The win over Nashville might have been the most convincing win of the trip, but I feel the Dallas win to kick things off was the most impressive.
The Dallas game
Just over a week prior to the Tuesday night Dallas game, the Stars dominated the Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena in a 5-2 win. Philipp Grubauer left that game with an illness and was replaced by Martin Jones. It was one of those “bottom of the rollercoaster” moments that had me skip a breath when I looked at the standings. When the boys rolled into Dallas, I was more than a little nervous.
Adding more fuel to my nervousness, we found out Joey Daccord would be getting the start in net instead of Jones, as Grubauer was still recovering from his illness. That game also featured another late six-on-five goal against the Kraken, this one coming with just 0.7 left in regulation, forcing overtime for the Stars. It had all the makings of another squandered opportunity for a Kraken win. To the boys’ credit, they were able to bounce back with a silky overtime victory on a stretch pass to Adam Larsson. That’s right, a stretch pass to Adam Larsson.
NEVER A DOUBT! LARSSON WINS IT IN OT! 🚨
Incredible bank pass by McCann to send the Big Cat in on a breakaway. Great patience, puck protection, and hands by Larsson to tuck it behind Oettinger.
Mathematically, the Nashville Predators appeared to be the biggest threat to the Kraken’s playoff chances. But realistically, the Preds are cooked, which is why I do not think Saturday’s 7-2 beat down was as impressive as the Dallas game. The Predators were missing Roman Josi and Filip Forsberg, not to mention they traded away Mattias Ekholm and Tanner Jeannot at the trade deadline. Seattle should have expected to take at least three out of four points in Nashville, and they took care of business there.
Leading or trailing
The Kraken have scored the first goal in each of the last three games, and they have five out of six points in those games. The prior five games, the first goal of the game was scored by the opponent, and they were just 1-3-1 in those contests. In his post-game press conference after last Saturday’s Edmonton game, coach Dave Hakstol alluded to the fact that it is hard to play from behind in this league.
This is obviously an oversimplification and is more of a symptom than a cause. It is something to keep an eye on in future games.
Other Kraken musings:
Since January, the math to get into the playoffs has always been on the Kraken’s side, but I will not sleep easy until they clinch. That said, I did sleep a little easier on Saturday night.
The Kraken scored seven goals against Predators goaltender Juuse Saros on Saturday. This is the first time in his career he has allowed seven goals in a game.
Morgan Geekie moved to wing versus Nashville on Saturday. He seemed to fit in well with Jaden Schwartz and Alex Wennberg, but this is still a placeholder for when Andre Burakovsky comes back.
Even though Geekie plays limited minutes when centering the fourth line, he is an important center to have in the lineup. He leads the team in face-off percentage since Jan. 1 and is the only right-handed center on the Kraken’s roster.
The Kraken have not trailed in the last three games.
Joey Daccord has done everything the Kraken organization has asked of him since they selected him from Ottawa in the Expansion Draft. He deserved the opportunity in Dallas, and it was nice to see him get a second start and put in another solid performance in the first Nashville game.
I was lucky enough to make the trip to watch both Nashville games in person this week. I have been to Nashville several times and have thoroughly enjoyed it every time. If you are a hockey fan, put Nashville on your list to catch a game someday; you will not regret it.
There can be a case made for Jared McCann being the most underrated player in the league right now. He notched his 35th goal of the season Saturday and has 16 points over 12 games in the month of March. We all know him well, but he just does not get talked about nearly enough, and the coolest thing about it, he does not care. I love seeing his interviews because he seems to only care about winning.
Daniel Sprong leads the NHL in 5v5 scoring per 60 with 3.36 goals per 60.
The Kraken have one of the worst differentials between their home and away records, and I have no explanation for it.
Kraken themes for the week ahead
This will not be an easy week for the Kraken. Monday, the Kraken are in Minnesota for a tough matchup against a hot team, and the Los Angeles Kings visit Climate Pledge on Saturday. Both the Wild and the Kings have a lot to play for as far as playoff seeding impacts, and both teams are possible first-round matchups for the Kraken.
On Monday, I want to see how well the Kraken compete against a Wild team playing excellent hockey without its best player in the lineup, Kirill Kaprizov.
The Kraken-Kings game on Saturday should be fun. I feel the Kraken stack up well with the Kings and envision an excellent Stanley Cup Playoff matchup, should those teams square off in rounds one or two. In the second game of the season, the same matchup got a bit nasty. While I am not ready to declare the Kings as the No. 1 rivalry with the Kraken, they are one of the frontrunners. A playoff matchup could cement the rivalry. Saturday night could be a preview of that playoff matchup and could get some of the nastiness we might see in the playoffs.
Sandwiched between the Wild game in Minnesota tonight and the Kings game on Saturday is the Ducks at Climate Pledge on Thursday. There are no automatic wins in hockey, especially this time of year, but it would be nice to see the Kraken take care of business again, facing one of the worst teams in the league.
Player Performance / Stick Taps
Daniel Sprong (SEA) – Sprong has three goals in the last three games on the alleged fourth line. With 19 goals on the season, he is making a convincing argument to stay in the lineup, even when Burakovsky returns.
Carson Soucy (SEA) – Soucy had only two assists over the last three games, but I felt he played extremely well in the two games in Nashville, shutting down the Predators and making good decisions with the puck in the Kraken defensive zone.
Shane Wright (SEA/WIN) – Wright has a nine-game point streak playing for the Windsor Spitfires, with 18 points in that stretch to wrap up the regular season in the OHL. Windsor ended the season as the top seed of the Western Conference and will face the Kitchener Rangers in the first round of the playoffs. That series will kick off Thursday.
Goal of the week
Another Seattle Kraken prospect is having a heck of a season. Fifth-round selection from the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, Jacob Melanson notched his 50th goal of the season with this snipe.
On the final day of the @QMJHL season, @PhoenixSherbroo forward and #SeaKraken prospect Jacob Melanson reached the 5⃣0⃣-goal mark!
Jacob Melanson a marqué son 50e but de la saison, samedi, lors de la dernière journée du calendrier régulier! 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/8QmosLTFhg
Melanson has already signed his entry-level contract with the Kraken and will more than likely be playing in Coachella Valley next season.
Chart of the week
The game against the Dallas Stars featured another goal against for the Kraken with the opposing team’s goalie pulled, which caused a bit of a “here-we-go-again” vibe on Twitter. The Kraken ended up winning the game, which seemed to cool the angst, but it made me want to pull the numbers on how common these goals are against the Kraken.
As you can see, the Kraken are one of the worst in the league at a pure volume standpoint of allowing a goal with the opposing goalie pulled. Important to note, though, this stat is not a perfect proxy for really evaluating the Kraken’s play when the opposing team has an extra skater, since it does not provide a rate of allowing goals. The Kraken could be leading more one-goal games, which will cause more opportunity for opposing teams to pull their goalie. To simplify it more, the Kraken could be leading in the third period more frequently than other teams, and this would be considered a good thing. I might dig into this a bit deeper in a future post to really evaluate the impact here.
Those are your Monday Musings. If there are any questions, thoughts, or areas you want me to explore in future musings, leave a note in the comments section. Thank you reading. Let’s go Kraken!
The Kraken showed the Predators that they are now ready for that team to go quietly into the night. The pesky group has—despite selling at the NHL Trade Deadline—somehow hung around in the playoff picture and beat Seattle in overtime Thursday. But the Preds got a thorough tentacle lashing from the Kraken Saturday, who got goals from six different players.
“We wanted to challenge ourselves to be a little bit better than we were the other day,” said coach Dave Hakstol. “We had a really good response.”
It was an important win for Seattle’s playoff dreams, which are becoming more of a reality with every victory.
Here are our Three Takeaways from a 7-2 Kraken drubbing of the Predators.
Takeaway #1: Two for Tolvy
As if Nashville didn’t already regret dumping Eeli Tolvanen, he really drove the mistake home Saturday with two goals against his former club. Tolvanen now has 15 markers in 38 games for the Kraken after just two in 13 games for the Predators before they put him on waivers.
It was a big day for the 23-year-old Finn, whose power-play goal at 17:37 of the first period made it 2-0 and gave more worth to Seattle’s outstanding opening frame.
The goal showcased Tolvanen’s hockey sense and wicked shot in one fell swoop. Jared McCann had the puck on the left half wall and was looking for a seam pass to Tolvanen. The Preds’ penalty killers had the middle clogged up, though, so Tolvanen took a few steps toward the blue line to create a lane. McCann put the pass right on the money, and while Alex Wennberg cruised through Juuse Saros’ line of sight, Tolvanen snapped a wicked shot into the top corner of the net.
EELI TOLVANEN SAYS "WAIVE THIS!" 🚨
Back in Nashville, he gets the big power-play goal thanks in part to a moving screen from Alex Wennberg.
Goal No. 14 for Tolvanen since Nashville dumped him and Seattle claimed him.
“I feel like the last couple games, we struggled a little bit getting shots off and getting scoring chances,” said Tolvanen. “But we did a pretty good job on that power play, we got shots through, and we got some traffic there too.”
In the second period, after Tyson Barrie had brought the Predators within a goal, Tolvanen got his second of the game thanks to a gift from his former goaltender. Saros came way out of his net to clear the puck and thwart an Oliver Bjorkstrand breakaway. But Saros made the wrong directional decision and passed it right to Tolvanen, who calmly threw it into the open net from distance.
“[Tolvanen] just keeps working hard,” said Hakstol. “What he did today is what he’s been doing for us all the way along.”
Takeaway #2: Contributions up and down the lineup
It’s no secret that depth has been the strength of the Kraken all season. When they’re winning, different guys are chipping in every game, hence why they have 13 players with double-digit goal totals.
“That’s what we’ve been all year,” said Hakstol. “I don’t think it’s any revelation to anybody inside of our dressing room. That’s who we’ve been all year long; it’s been different people contributing in different ways, and not just the guys on the scoresheet… That’s our group. We don’t have success unless everybody’s doing their part.”
Seattle’s third-leading goal scorer, Daniel Sprong, has occasionally been a healthy scratch this season and has played exclusively on the fourth line. He got the scoring started Saturday by cleaning up a rebound from Ryan Donato—also frequently scratched, despite his 13 goals—who made a great play to drive hard to the net. Sprong’s goal was his 19th of the season and extended his goal-scoring streak to three games.
DING DONG! 🚨
Ryan Donato–back from being a healthy scratch–makes a great power move, and Daniel Sprong cleans it up for his 19th of the year. Third straight game with a goal for Sprong.
NSH challenged for goalie interference and lost, so #SeaKraken to the PP.
Unlike Thursday, though, it wasn’t just the fourth line that got it done offensively. In addition to his primary assist on Tolvanen’s power-play goal, McCann potted his team-leading 35th goal after intercepting a pass at the blue line and racing in on a breakaway. He also had the primary assist on Adam Larsson’s third period goal that made it 4-2 and sent the Kraken on their way to a convincing win.
That Larsson goal was a thing of beauty, by the way. Matty Beniers took a bank pass from Vince Dunn at the half wall and gave it right back to Dunn at the point. Dunn then passed to McCann, who had a mostly open look down low and drew all the Predators players to him. Instead of shooting into Saros, though, McCann slipped it under the arm of a sprawling Yakov Trenin and right onto Larsson’s tape for a mostly open net.
Beniers also got off the schneid with his first goal in more than a month. Yes, you read that right, Beniers hadn’t scored since Feb. 23. The goal gave Beniers 20 on the season and was also his 50th point.
“It felt good to get that one,” said Beniers. “Super happy we won and got the two points. That was big, but definitely happy about that one.”
Beniers should be happy about scoring that one. Hitting 20 goals was one of Beniers’ rookie bonus criteria, so that netted him a cool $231K. We can’t help wondering if, now that he’s hit that bonus, the goals start coming a little more easily for the 20-year-old center.
“He’s gone through a couple of spells, and if it bothers him, he doesn’t show it,” said Hakstol. “He just keeps going, he keeps just pushing the envelope and playing hard, and I think that’s what we all really respect about him.”
Takeaway #3: A thorough Kraken drubbing over the Predators
The Kraken have remained solidly in a playoff position, even as they’ve been through a few slumps in the second half of this season. One of the teams that has kept irritatingly close, though, is the Predators, who beat the Kraken in overtime Thursday and entered Saturday’s game six points behind Seattle for the top wild card spot.
Getting the regulation win was enormous for the Kraken, who stretched their standings lead to eight points over the Predators and maintained a seven-point lead over the Flames. Now, with 10 games left, and the Kraken sitting at 88 points, hitting 100 on the season—and passing the Edmonton Oilers for third place—is still very much within reach.
“It is big,” said Tolvanen. “We knew that this weekend was going to be kind of like a playoff weekend for us, and for them too. You saw, I think they played tough… It’s big points.”
It is encouraging that with plenty at stake Saturday, the Kraken rose to the occasion and played one of their most dominant games of the season. In the first period, they allowed just one shot on Philipp Grubauer, despite being shorthanded twice. When Matt Duchene tipped home a Tyson Barrie shot-pass early in the third to bring the Predators back within one, the Kraken responded with Larsson’s beautiful goal 1:44 later and then pounded Nashville into submission the rest of the way.
In all, the Kraken outshot the Predators 39-16 and cruised to their fifth out of a possible six points on their current road trip.
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.
There was a lot to like from Seattle’s game against Nashville Thursday, but the good guys ultimately fell 2-1 in a shootout. The Kraken had good defensive structure throughout the game, and they got some looks offensively. But they couldn’t break through more than once in regulation, then came up empty in overtime and in a shootout.
Seattle had been consistently closing things out in three-on-three overtime lately, but they actually played almost the entire five minutes at four-on-four Thursday (more on that in Takeaway #2), a situation in which they aren’t as good. The result was a trip to a shootout, where the Kraken remain winless on the season.
“This time of year, when there’s a lot on the line, that’s the type of hockey that it’s going to be,” said coach Dave Hakstol. “It came down to the shootout. So unfortunately we didn’t get the extra point, but we’ve got to turn the page quickly.”
Here are our Three Takeaways from a 2-1 Kraken shootout loss to the Predators.
Takeaway #1: The Kraken aren’t good in shootouts
Shootouts are such a weird thing in the NHL. If you lose in a shootout, it feels different than losing in overtime for some reason, even though it means getting the same single loser point. Dropping a shootout game is usually like losing a coin toss. You think, Meh, it’s a shootout. Could have gone either way.
The thing about coin tosses, though, is that eventually you win one even if you’re on a bad streak. We’re starting to think it’s less about bad luck and more that the Kraken just aren’t very good at scoring in shootouts. Seattle is now 0-4 in the skills competition on the season after going 3-1 in that area last season.
On this night, Hakstol chose Jared McCann and Jordan Eberle as his shooters. He didn’t get to send a third shooter, because by that time, Nashville had already sealed it with goals by Matt Duchene and Philip Tomasino. McCann did hit the post, and Eberle made a nice move, but Juuse Saros made a blocker save.
The players have regularly been practicing their shootout moves since this started to show itself as a problematic piece of the puzzle, but apparently to no avail.
We’ve seen folks saying they’d like to see Matty Beniers get a chance in the shootout, and at this point, we might have to agree. Throw out a whole new look the next time a game gets to this point.
Takeaway #2: A weird nuance to overtime hurt the Kraken
While the Kraken are not good at shootouts, they are pretty good at three-on-three overtime. Seattle is 9-4 in games that end in overtime but don’t make it to the shootout, and that record comes despite the team dropping its first three OT opportunities of the season. Since those three straight losses, the Kraken have shown outstanding patience in three-on-three, and they clearly have a lot of confidence in that situation.
A nuance in overtime rules hurt the Kraken against the Predators, though. Brandon Tanev took a boarding penalty with 1:31 left in regulation—a call with which he vehemently disagreed—and 29 seconds of that infraction carried into overtime. Instead of playing three-on-two in overtime (because that would be dumb), the team on the power play gets a four-on-three advantage. When the penalty ends and the penalized player comes out of the box, the teams then play four-on-four until the next whistle.
After Tanev got out of the box, the next whistle didn’t come until there were only 20 seconds left, meaning almost the entire OT period was played at four-on-four.
The Kraken have proven they are good at playing a rope-a-dope three-on-three, waiting for their opportunity to strike and then capitalizing. But at four-on-four, it’s much harder to hold onto the puck.
“You get into a shootout, anything can happen,” said Eberle. “We’ve been obviously cold in the shootout this year, so we tried to end it earlier. It’s tough with four-on-four, though, but it was a good hockey game. We had our chances.”
This overtime period was a lot more back and forth than what we’ve seen from the typical OT period for Seattle, when each team has just three skaters. They never managed to possess the puck for an extended period with four skaters, and once they got to the shootout, they were cooked.
Takeaway #3: Daniel Sprong and Joey Daccord earned the point
The loss stings, as a regulation win over Nashville would have been huge for solidifying Seattle’s playoff hopes. Instead, Nashville inched closer to Seattle in the wild card hunt and now sits six points behind the Kraken with a game in hand.
Still, every point is crucial right now, and Daniel Sprong and Joey Daccord helped Seattle get one.
Sprong is still one of the most fascinating stories of the season for the Kraken. We’ve talked a lot this season about Sprong making the team off of a professional tryout in training camp, then playing his way into a consistent role. But Hakstol went back to his old ways of periodically scratching Sprong as the season wore on and Sprong’s offensive production dwindled.
Well, back in the lineup for the last two games, Sprong has two goals and an assist playing on the fourth line, and he is now just two goals shy of potting 20 for the first time in his career.
His goal against the Preds was creative. After an elite pass from Morgan Geekie, Sprong ran out of room and looped around Saros. Instead of trying to wrap it around to the other side, he hit the brakes and saw that he had pulled Saros out of the goal crease. He told Piper Shaw between periods on the ROOT Sports broadcast that he was trying to bank it “off his ass,” but instead hit Saros’s skate and got it to carom over the line.
DING DONG! 🚨
Awesome goal by Daniel Sprong, who receives an outrageous pass by Morgan Geekie, then banks the puck in off Juuse Saros.
That's Sprong's 18th of the year and second in two games. Just to remind you, he's a fourth liner… with 18 goals.
Daccord, meanwhile, made his second consecutive start for the first time as a Kraken. He earned the nod after a solid outing Tuesday in Dallas, and he made Hakstol look pretty smart for the decision. The Kraken did a good job of insulating Daccord for most of the game, but when the Predators did get through, he came up big.
“He didn’t have a lot to do in portions, especially the first half of the game,” said Hakstol. “They built some momentum in the second period, and that’s when he had to be at his best. He was sound, he was solid, made pretty good decisions with the puck.”
Daccord’s best save came in overtime, when Luke Evangelista fought through a check and tried to tuck the puck around Daccord’s pad. Daccord flared out his left leg and just got enough of the puck to kick it wide. The lone goal Daccord allowed in regulation came off a big rebound that happened to land right on the stick of Kiefer Sherwood. In all, Daccord stopped 23 of 24 shots and was a key part of Seattle earning a point.
The Kraken will face these same Predators in Nashville in a Saturday matinee. That is a huge game for both sides.
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.
