The Seattle Kraken got their guy. On Tuesday the team announced that Jared McCann had signed a five-year contract extension that will pay him an average of $5 million per season. Barring a trade, the deal will keep McCann in Seattle through the 2026-27 season. It is the first contract extension ever to be signed by a Kraken player.
With an expanded role, McCann has had a breakout season in this inaugural Seattle campaign and leads the team in both goals (21) and points (33). His 21 goals represent a career high for him, and the team still has 23 games left to play, so his stats could certainly increase before the end of the season.
His impressive year made some wonder if McCann and his agent, Joe Resnick, would be looking for the type of deal that could cause negotiations to drag on. But the 25-year-old forward continued to indicate that he was very happy with Seattle and the opportunities he was getting.
General manager Ron Francis said there had been conversations about an extension between the team and Resnick throughout the season and that the dialogue picked up steam just before the All-Star break. “Working with Joe and Jared was never contentious,” Francis said Tuesday. “It was always having the open, honest discussions, and getting to the point we felt that both sides were covered with the deal. That’s why it got done the way that it did.”
The extension shows that the Kraken view McCann as part of their core as they continue to build out the franchise. “It sends a message,” Francis said. “Certainly in Jared’s case, he’s excited to be in Seattle, excited—as a lot of our players are—the way the ownership and management treats the players. [They’re] excited about the passionate fanbase and the city itself and want to be here as we build this thing and become more and more successful.”
McCann himself seems thrilled to have some security. “It’s a lot of pressure off my shoulders,” McCann said of the extension. “I can just focus on playing hockey, and obviously it’s a huge honor to get that deal and to be a part of this for the future.”
Sound Of Hockey reaction
We’ve seen fans in the Kraken Twittersphere calling on Francis to get a deal done with McCann, who has proven to be arguably the best find of the entire Expansion Draft. What sometimes gets lost, though, is that a player going to RFA status has very few options, and the team holds most of the leverage in those scenarios. With the very few options available to a player in RFA status, we knew a McCann extension would get done at some point. The question was always simply about the term and money needed to complete the transaction.
We also believed from talking to McCann on several occasions that he was not interested in a knockdown, drag-out type of negotiation. He always seemed to be very happy in the Pacific Northwest and genuinely thankful to be getting consistent top-line minutes for the first time in his career.
As far as the number is concerned, five years at $5 million is a perfect landing spot. It shows a long-term commitment by the club but doesn’t hamstring Francis or preclude him from going after high-end free agents in the offseason. From McCann’s point of view, it gives him the security that has been lacking in his career—this is technically his fifth NHL organization, though he never played a game for Toronto—and is a nice, deserved raise from the $2.94 million AAV that his current contract is paying him.
We love this deal, we love this player, and we are pleased that this got done well in advance of any possible offseason drama.
The script Saturday was much the same as it was the night before. The Kraken scored twice but allowed two power-play goals against which again made the difference during a 3-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena.
Unlike Saturday’s loss to the Washington Capitals, the Kraken scored one power-play goal of their own but only managed one five-on-five score and would lose another close game.
“They won the specialty teams by one, that obviously makes a difference in the hockey game,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said.
Seattle has allowed four power-play goals over its past five attempts to start the road trip, but Hakstol doesn’t think they need to change up the strategy on the kill.
“We’ve got to complete the kill so we’re not going to overreact,” he said. “There’s no major adjustment that needs to be made, it’s a competitive scenario. We don’t like the way it’s gone for the last five, we’re gonna push that the other direction. We’re playing against, tonight, this is a good power play unit. We’re going to see another good one coming up in two days. So,we just got to make sure we get our heads clear.”
After playing to a 2-2 tie over the first two periods, Carolina got what would turn out to be the game-winning goal off the stick of Martin Necas, who found a loose puck in the slot, spun, and scored his ninth of the season at 10:22. The Kraken could not generate enough the rest of the way and dropped their ninth game out of the past 10.
“I feel like we have momentum in the game, we’re pushing and right now it’s just that we really can’t convert those chances,” Alex Wennberg said. “Obviously a tough loss yesterday and we wanted to get a win, we wanted to come out with a win, but like I said, there’s a lot of good things in the game as well. So obviously now we have a couple days here to get ready for our next game and we’re excited for that.”
Seattle has failed to score more than two goals in eight of its past 10 games.
“This is the first night we’ve been out chanced in several nights so we’re going to stay with the formula,” Hakstol said. “We got to stay with the formula and there’s no overreaction there. Last night we out chance our opponent probably nearly two to one. We can’t go and manufacture the puck going in the net, we’ve got to keep generating the opportunities, we got to keep playing hard, and our group has done that.”
Nino Niederreiter and Teuvo Teravainen each scored, and backup goalie Antti Raanta made 28 saves for the Hurricanes (39-12-5).
Calle Jarnkrok had a goal and an assist for the Kraken (17-36-5), who got 30 saves from Philipp Grubauer.
The Kraken had their chances
Wennberg gave the Kraken a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 3:12 of the second period when he flipped a rebound off Raanta’s pads and in. Seattle ended the night 1-for-3 on the power play.
Carolina tied the game 1-1 at 7:10 with a power-play goal when Niederreiter got a quick pass in front of the net from Jesperi Kotkaniemi and scored easily into the empty net.
“If we get the puck out and win the draw,” Grubauer said. “A couple of tough bounces over the last couple of games, but we’ve got to win the special teams. They make such a huge difference in every game.”
The Kraken had a response goal in their bucket, however. At 8:16 Adam Larsson flung a stretch pass through the middle of the ice that found Jarnkrok’s stick in behind the Carolina defense. Jarnkrok was alone and snapped a shot past Raanta on the stick side for his second in the past three games, and Seattle had a 2-1 lead.
Another Seattle penalty would lead to the Hurricanes tying the game at 2-2. Right off the face-off on the power play, Teravainen found a rebound to score his 16th of the season.
The Kraken will next play at the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday night.
Tentacle Tales
+ Wennberg’s goal gives him two over his past three games.
+ The Kraken are 4-5-0 against teams that are top-ten teams in points.
+ With an assist, Sebastian Aho recorded his 378th career point and moved past Blaine Stoughton (377) for sole possession of eighth place on the Hurricanes/Whalers all-time list. He is now just one shy of Jeff Skinner.
One nice thing about back-to-back games is that if your team loses the first one, you get to go back out the following night and try to make up for it. The Kraken have that opportunity on Sunday against the Hurricanes, as they look to bounce back from a hard-fought loss to the Capitals on Saturday.
The Kraken played a good game against Washington, but the special teams battle went 2-0 in favor of the Caps, and that was the difference.
Can Seattle get back in the ‘W’ column after snapping a seven-game losing streak two games ago? Let’s find out.
Kraken versus Hurricanes
Against Carolina, Seattle faces another good team, but it did have success against the Canes in the first meeting between these squads at Climate Pledge Arena on Nov. 24. That night, Seattle fell behind 1-0 at the end of the first period, tied it in the second, and got a winning goal from Marcus Johansson with just 3:09 left to earn a 2-1 victory. Philipp Grubauer was outstanding that night.
Goalie Frederik Andersen is dealing with a minor injury, so Seattle will face Antti Raanta. The 32-year-old backstop has dealt with myriad injuries in his career, but he has been decent this season in 14 starts, posting a 8-3-2 record with a 2.50 goals against average and .909 save percentage.
The Canes are on a 10-game home point streak and are coming off a 3-2 win over the Penguins at PNC Arena on Friday. Watch out for Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho, who have 51 and 57 points respectively and drive the bus offensively for Carolina.
Bodies in, bodies out
Seattle got two important players back in the lineup Saturday in Jaden Schwartz and Jared McCann, both of whom were impactful in driving offensive opportunities for the Kraken, though neither found the scoresheet. The simultaneous returns meant the Kraken had to place Austin Czarnik on waivers, and Czarnik got claimed by his old team, the New York Islanders, on Sunday. Czarnik had two assists for the Kraken in six games.
Lineup
The Kraken are bringing a similar look, except Johansson will skate with McCann and Jordan Eberle, and Calle Jarnkrok will move down to play with Schwartz and Alex Wennberg. Grubauer is in net.
First period highlights
There were some nice stops at both ends of the ice in the first period, but nothing doing on the scoreboard, so there’s not much to report here.
The Kraken had a slight advantage in shots on goal, but they weren’t getting much in dangerous areas.
The frame ended with the score tied 0-0.
Alright, welp… 0-0 after 20 min, which is a good place for Seattle to be against a club like Carolina.
Kraken hold a 11-9 advantage in shots on goal, but CAR has a 1.1-.0.58 advantage in expected goals for.
The Hurricanes took their second penalty of the game early in the second period, this one for too many men. Early in the power play, Yanni Gourde shot from the right circle. The rebound got kicked by Jaccob Slavin right onto the stick of Alex Wennberg, who just lifted it over the outstretched pad of Raanta and made it 1-0 at 3:12.
Joonas Donskoi took a high-sticking penalty at 5:21. The Kraken penalty kill did a good job on the ensuing Hurricanes power play, but with 11 seconds left on the advantage, Nino Niederreiter scored a similar goal to Wennberg’s. Seth Jarvis shot from the right circle. Grubauer stopped it but lost sight of the rebound, and it rolled right to Niederreiter at the side of the net. Niederreiter deposited the puck to make it 1-1.
There was some REAL patience going on amongst the unit, but finally Jarvis lets one fly from the circle.
Just over a minute later, Adam Larsson made a world-class stretch pass from his own zone to the far blue line and hit Calle Jarnkrok in stride. Jarnkrok flew into the zone untouched and beat Raanta to re-establish Seattle’s lead, 2-1.
NHL Video Highlight – Calle Jarnkrok scores against the Carolina Hurricanes to make it 2-1. pic.twitter.com/b5yvd972Zj
— Seattle Kraken Gamebot (@KrakenGameBot) March 7, 2022
The Hurricanes got another power-play goal to level the score again at 17:22. With Wennberg in the box for hooking, Teuvo Teravainen put back a rebound off a shot by Aho and made it 2-2.
The interesting thing that happened in this period was Vince Dunn blocking a shot with his… uh… tentacles. He was down on the ice for a bit, while Carolina had sustained pressure, but eventually got up and dragged himself to the bench.
The period ended with the score level.
Third period highlights
Soon after the Hurricanes killed an Aho penalty, they took their first lead of the game. Martin Necas found a loose puck in front, spun, and snuck it past Grubauer to make it 3-2 at 10:22.
Fantastic knockdown at the blue line by Brett Pesce to keep the play alive.
The Necas goal would prove to be the game winner. Seattle again fought hard in this one, but didn’t produce enough offensively and came up short in the end.
The return of Jaden Schwartz and leading scorer Jared McCann to the lineup Saturday didn’t make a difference, and the Seattle Kraken offense was stymied by the Washington Capitals during a 5-2 loss at Capital One Arena.
Washington scored twice on the power play while the Kraken were 0-for-3 and that’s what separated the two clubs.
“I thought 5-on-5, we did a lot of good things,” Schwartz said. “I think we controlled the play for the most part. Special teams? I think they might have been 2-for-2 or 2-for-3 on the power play and we were 0-for-3. So, that’s pretty much the difference in the game.”
Alex Ovechkin scored the dagger on the power play, 47 seconds into the third period when he found the net from his familiar spot in the left face-off circle to make the score 4-2. His one-timer was his 34th goal of the season and 764th of his illustrious career.
“He’s obviously one of the, if not the, biggest threats out there,” Joonas Donskoi said. “You always try to make plans, try and take him away but It’s not easy. And unfortunately, he was able to score one again today. So, it’s not an easy job, but I think there was a lot of things we could have done better.”
Conor Sheary scored an empty-netter at 17:50 for the 5-2 final.
Ovechkin added two assists on the night, Sheary had two goals, and Tom Wilson had a goal and an assist for the Capitals (30-18-9), who won for the first time against the Kraken. Vitek Vanecek turned away 29 shots.
Colin Blackwell and Joonas Donskoi scored for the Kraken (17-35-5), who celebrated game 1000 for defenseman Mark Giordano. Chris Driedger made his second start in a row and made 20 saves.
“I really liked our work ethic throughout the entire 60 minutes,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “I don’t think we gave up 30 shot attempts at even strength tonight. So defensively, we played really hard… defensively we worked hard in terms of our play with the puck. We generated enough offensive zone time for sure. You don’t win a game because of offensive zone time but we had some opportunities out of that as well.”
It was a frustrating night for the Seattle offense which dominated the play at 5-on-5 by taking 62.5 percent of the unblocked shot attempts for the night. When it came to quality scoring chances at even strength, the Kraken excelled and had 55 percent of all shot quality.
“I thought five on five we did a lot of good things,” Schwartz said. “I think we controlled the play for the most part.”
Coming off a game where they scored four goals, three at even strength, the Kraken played well enough to score more, but once again, struggled to top the two-goal mark. Seattle is 27th in the NHL in goals scored averaging 2.55 per game.
At least for one night, the return of Schwartz, who logged 18:12 of ice time and led the Kraken with six shots on goal, did not lead to more scoring.
“My legs felt pretty good for being out so long,” Schwartz said. “Near the end of the shift, you could tell that you don’t have this the same jump after 30-35 seconds, so try keeping them short. But overall, the timing and everything was pretty good. I tried not to think about it.”
Schwartz didn’t land on the scoresheet, but he did create offensive opportunities, and the Kraken will hope that leads to more goals the rest of the season.
“I thought he was all over the puck,” Hakstol said. “I think we’ll look back at this on tape and find him around a lot of scoring chances. Somewhere affecting the play to create scoring chances. For his first night back and going on what has got to be close to 10 weeks, I thought his performance was really good.”
How the scoring played out
Wilson opened the scoring at 11:30 of the first period to make it 1-0 after he crashed the net, scooped up a loose puck and scored on a backhanded shot.
Washington doubled the lead, 2-0, 34 seconds later at 12:04 when Dmitry Orlov one-timed a pass from Nic Dowd from the top of the face-off circle.
Joonas Donskoi cut the lead to 2-1 at 16:56 with his second of the season. Riley Sheahan had a backhand chance that was stopped by Vanecek, but the rebound was free and Donskoi buried it for his first goal in 11 games.
Colin Blackwell continued his hot play with a goal to tie the game 2-2 at 58 seconds of the second period. He intercepted a Capitals pass at the Seattle blue line and turned up ice with Yanni Gourde, but Blackwell held it, fumbled it briefly, got it back, and scored on a wrist shot.
“Wasn’t worried about it going downhill and this group hasn’t gone downhill,” Hakstol said. “They haven’t gone away. I liked the response. I really liked our work ethic throughout the entire 60 minutes.”
Washington snatched the lead back, 3-2 on a Sheary power-play goal at 11:48 when he was able to knock in a bouncing puck on a rebound off Driedger.
Mark Giordano is skating in his 1,000th career game, Jared McCann and Jaden Schwartz are both back in the lineup, and our good friend Alison Lukan is doing color commentary for ROOT Sports! This game between the Kraken and the Capitals should be a fun one.
We normally combine a semi-robust game preview with the liveblog on game days, but with so much Kraken news lately, we thought it would be best to do a separate story to prepare you for Saturday’s game. So, for all the latest Kraken news, please give this story a read.
For live updates during the game, stay right here!
Kraken lineup versus Capitals
This lineup looks a heckuva lot better with Schwartz and McCann back, doesn’t it?
First period highlights
As was the case the first time these teams played each other, Tom Wilson got the game’s first goal. Ovechkin broke into the Seattle zone and lost the puck, but it rolled right to Wilson. The big-bodied Wilson barreled toward the net and fired it past Driedger to give Washington a 1-0 lead.
It took just 34 more seconds for the Capitals to extend their lead to 2-0. Nic Dowd passed low to high to Dmitry Orlov at the top of the left circle. Orlov one-timed the pass, and it squeezed right through Driedger’s five hole. Not a great goal.
Joonas Donskoi got the boys back in the game at 16:56. Jamie Oleksiak shot from the point. It got deflected and didn’t make it all the way through to Vitek Vanecek, but instead landed right on the stick of Riley Sheahan, who was planted at the top of the crease. Sheahan tried to tuck it around the outstretched pad of the Capitals netminder, but he stopped it and kicked a rebound right to Donskoi. Donskoi tucked it into a wide-open net for just his second goal of the season, bringing Seattle back within one.
The Kraken had some great offensive zone time in an exciting opening period, but conceded two goals in quick succession. Seattle held a 10-7 lead in shots on goal and had 57 percent of shot quality in the opening frame.
Second period highlights
Early in the second, the Mason Appleton-Yanni Gourde-Colin Blackwell line struck again, after a great game on Wednesday. Off a rush, Blackwell carried the puck into the Washington zone, and looked like he was going to dish to Gourde. But he opted to go hard to the net, nearly lost it to John Carlson on the way, got it back and snuck it around Vanecek to make it 2-2.
Schwartz was racing for a puck with Orlov and accidentally took him down in a dangerous position, sending Orlov hard into the end boards at 9:55. A melee ensued, but Schwartz got the only call for hooking. That gave the lethal Capitals power play its first opportunity of the game, which the Kraken almost killed off. But with seven seconds left on the man advantage, Ovechkin shot into traffic. It pinballed onto the stick of Wilson, who shot into the pads of Driedger, and that rebound went right onto the stick of Conor Sheary. Sheary had a wide-open net and gave the Capitals a 3-2 lead.
Ovechkin wasted no time stretching Washington’s lead back to two to start the third period. With Carson Soucy still in the penalty box after taking a holding penalty late in the second, Carlson put the puck on a tee for Ovechkin, right in the area where Ovechkin has scored so many of his 764 career goals. Ovi one-timed the pass and blasted it by Driedger to make it 4-2.
Sheary scored an empty-net goal, his second marker of the game, to make it 5-2 and seal the deal for Washington.
The Kraken played well in this one, but special teams were the difference. The always dangerous Capitals power play connected twice, while Seattle came up empty in that area.
It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, and the Seattle Kraken are feeling good. That’s because they finally snapped their seven-game losing streak on Wednesday against the Predators, Jared McCann and Jaden Schwartz are likely to return to the lineup, and Kraken captain Mark Giordano will skate in career game No. 1,000 when Seattle visits the Washington Capitals on Saturday.
A milestone for Mark Giordano
We’ve recently been joking on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast about how the hockey world celebrates players for hitting “round number” milestones, even though we may not necessarily understand the significance. Is 300 goals really that good? What about 500? Why don’t we celebrate No. 501 instead? It all feels somewhat arbitrary, when you think about it.
Jokes aside, we do understand the significance of 1,000 games. Yes, it too is simply a round number, but the longevity required to reach that number is something that all players strive for and only a select few achieve.
“It means a lot,” Giordano said at morning skate. “It was an up-and-down journey for me to get into this league, but I feel like I put a lot of hard work and a lot of years in, and [it’s] definitely a milestone that I’ve been looking forward to and feel a huge sense of accomplishment.”
The early portions of Giordano’s NHL path were winding. After going undrafted, Giordano was set to attend York University, but received an invitation to Calgary Flames’ prospect camp and earned an AHL contract in 2004. He got called up to the Flames for the first time in January 2006 but couldn’t come to an agreement with Calgary for a one-way contract after that season. A two-way deal would have made it more likely that he would get sent back to the AHL, which he did not want. So Giordano bet on himself in a big way and signed with HC Dynamo Moscow in Russia. He then came back to Calgary for the 2008-09 season.
In all, he played parts of 15 seasons with the Flames before being selected by the Kraken in Seattle’s Expansion Draft. The former Norris Trophy winner has 149 career goals and 383 assists. The captain has served as a great role model for the Kraken’s younger players and has been the perfect ambassador to help shepherd Seattle into the NHL.
“It’s well known that I sort of came into my own a little later than the average guy, so I still feel like I do have game left, and I still can contribute in a positive way,” Giordano said. “I still have a really good passion, and I feel like I still love hockey. I love watching hockey, I love playing, so I have no intention of not playing in the near future.”
“Playing No. 1000 today, he’s just the absolute model of character, of competitiveness,” coach Dave Hakstol said of the team’s captain. “He shows leadership in everything that he does, so for him and for our team and for his family, this should be a pretty special day.”
A ceremony to honor Giordano is expected to be held at Seattle’s next home game on March 16. Here’s hoping he doesn’t get traded before then.
Schwartz and McCann returning (we think?)
Hakstol implied there were still lineup decisions to make, but he projects Schwartz and McCann will be available Saturday.
McCann’s absence hasn’t been terribly long, as he has only missed three games with an upper-body injury, but any time your top scorer goes on the shelf for any stretch, it is impossible to replace him in the lineup. So, his return will be a welcome one.
This also feels like a great time to remind you that we spoke with McCann on the latest SOH Podcast, and it was a fantastic interview, so give it a listen if you haven’t already.
Schwartz back in a Kraken jersey will be a sight for sore eyes. The veteran forward has missed a whopping 25 games with a hand injury sustained on Dec. 29 against Philadelphia. It happened on an innocuous-looking play, but Schwartz got up grimacing, and news came out a few days later that he had undergone surgery.
Before going on injured reserve, Schwartz was a staple on an effective top line with McCann and Jordan Eberle and was the bumper on Seattle’s top power-play unit. He had six goals and 14 assists in 29 games.
The first time these teams played each other on Nov. 21 was one of the most memorable nights of the inaugural season at Climate Pledge Arena. Facing a star-studded Capitals lineup, the Kraken played phenomenal team defense, got a goal and three assists by Schwartz and a power-play goal by McCann, and Philipp Grubauer made 37 saves to help snap a six-game losing streak.
On Saturday, Seattle will again face netminder Vitek Vanecek, who was selected by the Kraken in the Expansion Draft and then traded back to Washington. Vanecek is having a good season with a 11-7-5 record, 2.26 goals against average, and .920 save percentage.
Chris Driedger will get his second consecutive start for the Kraken. Driedger didn’t have his best outing of the season on Wednesday, stopping 19 of 22 shots, but he played well enough to get the win. So, Hakstol is rewarding him with another nod tonight in our nation’s capital.
The Capitals as a whole are solidly in a playoff spot with 67 standings points. Alex Ovechkin, who has been in the news lately after facing questions about his support of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is having yet another insane season. Ovechkin has 33 goals and 32 assists, and he did score one of Washington’s two goals against Seattle in November.
In part 4 of this series, I looked at how the Kraken attempt to exit their defensive zone after gaining possession. In this part, I dive into how the team schemes its transitions through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone.
Last time I posited that Hakstol’s coaching point from the moment a Kraken player gains control is: prioritize the puck. Hakstol wants closely managed, low-event hockey with fewer risks, fewer turnovers, and fewer rapid counterattacks for the opposition.
Similarly, Hakstol’s schemes appear to emphasize driving the puck away from the high-danger areas where a counterattack can quickly manifest if things go awry.
The team’s actual performance in avoiding dangerous counterattacks has been mediocre. The Kraken have committed too many defensive zone turnovers and too many goals have resulted. But the schematic intent is clear.
The same approach carries over into the Kraken’s neutral zone transitions. More time, possession, and passing in the neutral zone increases the risk of a turnover and controlled re-entry by the opponent into the Kraken defensive zone. Therefore, the Kraken lean on schemed set plays originating in the defensive zone designed to minimize time and possession risk in the neutral zone.
When pressure foils the team’s planned approach, the Kraken err on the side of dumping the puck deep into the opponent’s zone. 200 feet away from the Kraken goal is the safest place for the puck.
Hakstol’s scheme #1: the neutral zone stretch pass
There are many instances within the flow of the game where the Kraken gain clear, unchallenged possession in their defensive zone. It may be the result of a desperate dump in by the opponent or a change in opposing lines, or it could be from the Kraken creating the clear threat of a controlled zone exit, which causes the opposing team to retreat into their neutral zone forecheck.
In these situations, the Kraken commonly look to control and delay with their defensemen to allow their forwards time to flow deep into the neutral zone in a three-across formation just north of the center line. The defenseman in possession scans the neutral zone coverage, looking for an opening for a long stretch pass to one of the forwards.
Diagram: Stretch pass and three across forward positioning.
The intention is for the forward to receive the pass with possession and the ability to move immediately into the offensive zone. But most often the distance and speed of the pass means that the forward tips the puck into the zone, ideally while carrying momentum toward the offensive zone to immediately chase and retrieve.
When the opposing defense collapses on the three high forwards or otherwise denies passing lanes for the stretch pass, the schematic alternative is for the defenseman in possession to skate the puck. If that happens, he looks to carry momentum forward seeking a controlled advance while the three across forwards pin the neutral zone defense deep. The puck possession skill of the Kraken defensive unit is below average. So, most commonly, a controlled advance by a Kraken defenseman has the goal of achieving the center ice red line for a dump in that gets retrieved by the attacking forwards.
Clip 1. NZ Offense: The stretch pass.
In clip 1, Adam Larsson hits Marcus Johansson with a stretch pass mid-line change, and Johansson tips the puck into the zone. Since the other forwards aren’t yet in position, only Johansson is left to chase and attempt retrieval. The Rangers easily recover and clear.
Clip 2.NZ Offense: The stretch pass.
In clip 2, Haydn Fleury delays in his own zone, allowing the forwards to establish three across near the opposing blue line. Fleury fires a stretch pass to Jordan Eberle in the center of the ice, but the puck leaks off Eberle’s stick weakly and right to the Rangers defense. Fleury and Eberle do not accomplish a controlled entry or get the puck past the defenders and below the goal line for a puck battle. Instead New York easily takes possession.
Clip 3.NZ Offense: The stretch pass.
In this clip, again the defenders delay, reversing the puck. Adam Larsson attempts to connect with Jared McCann on the right wing, but McCann is only able to deflect the puck into the offensive zone.
Clip 4.NZ Offense: The stretch pass according to Vince Dunn.
I include this last clip mostly because it encapsulates the Vince Dunn experience and because it shows why Seattle continues to try for stretch passes. Dunn is skilled at executing the stretch pass, and his significant stick talent leads him to attempt passes others would not.
The stretch pass is not drawn up to start from behind the net with a forechecker in close coverage. But Dunn connects on a relatively high-risk pass and generates a controlled entry. This is what talent can bring, even if it bends the scheme in a way that probably makes Hakstol uncomfortable.
Hakstol’sscheme #2: three-across rush
When the Kraken gain possession in the neutral zone, either off a controlled defensive zone exit or a neutral-zone turnover, the team will often look to set up a “three across” line rush of its forward group. The rush is supported from behind by the two defensemen, typically with one defenseman available to jump into the offense off the rush for a high slot shot if the defense collapses. The other defenseman trails and guards against a rapid counterattack.
Upon successful, controlled zone entry, the Kraken forwards are looking for a net drive. If there are no openings, the team will often set up a 2-1-2 offensive zone formation (as will be discussed further in the next part in this series).
Clip 5: NZ offense: three across line rush.
In clip 5, F1 Ryan Donato possesses the puck into the offensive zone in the center of the ice before passing to F2 Alex Wennberg, who participated in the rush on his off wing. Wennberg recovers a difficult pass with his skate and funnels it back to the trailing D1 Jeremy Lauzon. Lauzon has an opportunity for a shot at the top of the circle, but instead attempts a further cross-ice pass to F3 Morgan Geekie on the weak side. While the idea is probably the right one, a quality Panthers stick check ends the rush without a shot on goal.
Clip 6: NZ offense: three across line rush.
In clip 6, a similar sequence plays out. Eberle, Johansson, and McCann form a three-across rush. With F1 Johansson and F2 Eberle successfully exchanging passes, the defense collapses, and the Kraken enter the zone with possession. When Eberle hits the top of the right circle, he lays the pass back for the trailing D1, Dunn. Here again, the trailing defenseman finds and passes to an open F3 on the weak side. The pass connects this time and F3 McCann has a prime chance.
Clip 7: NZ offense: three across line rush.
In this last clip, we see a three-across line rush form from behind. (You can also see the standard side view here.) Calle Jarnkork and Alex Wennberg drive to the net with Yanni Gourde in possession on the left wing entering the zone. The collapsing defense leaves an opening for a cross-ice pass from Gourde to Jarnkork for the easy tap-in goal. If the defense had closed that passing lane, Dunn was moving into the high slot as the trailing D1 and a passing option for Gourde. Lauzon trails the play farther back as D2 to protect against rapid counterattack and ensure the Kraken get established in the offensive zone.
Scheme scorecard: very few rush opportunities
While almost every team will have some version of the stretch pass in the scheme, the Kraken look for this play very frequently if there is not an immediate opening for controlled advance. This may be Hakstol’s strong schematic preference or it may be a concession to the limited puck handling talent on the roster.
Either way, the 2021-22 Seattle Kraken have intentionally minimized player possession through the neutral zone. This approach decreases time spent in the neutral zone and the risk of turnovers. It also effectively achieves offensive zone entries.
Furthermore, as seen above, the tactic tends to result in fewer controlled offensive-zone entries than other schemes. As it has played out, the Kraken rank sixth from the bottom of the league in entering the offensive zone with possession. Instead, the scheme leads to more offensive-zone board battles for puck retrieval. (More on that in the next part of this series.)
By implementing a scheme that de-emphasizes quality, possession-driven zone entries in favor of a larger quantity of dump-and-chase entries, the Kraken are effective at setting up offensive zone board battles but struggle to create transition scoring opportunities. In fact, they are the second worst in the league at creating rush opportunities. Only the New York Islanders are (very slightly) worse.
Here, again, I should note that the schematic emphasis could be due to the lack of puck possession skill in the skater group, particularly since the team has lost Brandon Tanev and Jaden Schwartz for much of season.
At the end of the day, the scheme, and the players implementing the scheme, have struggled to create offense. The Kraken have scored the fifth fewest goals per 60 in the league and have generated the second fewest expected goals per 60 in the league.
We just had a feeling this was coming. Every long losing streak has a “bottoming out” moment, where the team plays so badly, you start to think it might never win again. But it gets past that moment, then takes little steps toward the win column. We thought the bottoming out on this seven-game streak happened in the first 20 minutes of the Kraken’s game against the Islanders last Tuesday. They played much better in the second half of that game, then had two good performances against Boston and San Jose but didn’t get results. If they could just score a few goals, we thought Seattle was bound to get a win soon. Lo and behold, the Kraken knocked off the Predators 4-3 on Kraken Day.
Here are our Three Takeaways from Seattle’s first home win since Jan. 23.
Takeaway #1: …And then the floodgates opened
For the majority of this painful streak, the Kraken had that “can’t buy a goal” look to their game. They scored two or fewer goals in every contest but one, and that night, they fell 5-3 to the Winnipeg Jets.
On Wednesday, the team was playing decently through the first 26 minutes but again found itself trailing by two and staring right down the barrel of a potential eighth consecutive loss. But 29 seconds after Matt Duchene had extended Nashville’s lead, Alex Wennberg scored a nice goal off an even nicer Marcus Johansson pass, and suddenly the floodgates were open.
The Kraken notched three goals in the course of just three minutes, and Climate Pledge Arena got back that electric feel that has been so noticeably absent for the past month.
“It’s a great feeling, obviously,” said Wennberg. “It’s great too, it’s three different lines that go in and score, so I feel like that’s good for the team as well that you have everyone chipping in, doing their part.”
After the third unanswered goal, Seattle had all the momentum in the world. Nashville coach John Hynes astutely called a timeout, which worked wonders to settle things down. His team actually took back the momentum after Duchene scored his second of the period to tie the game at 14:36, but for the first time since the start of its seven-game losing streak, Seattle had more than three goals up its sleeve on this night.
Takeaway #2: Yanni Gourde and Colin Blackwell were the heroes
Coach Dave Hakstol has done plenty of line juggling this season for the Kraken, but one trio that seems to keep coming back together over the last few weeks has been Gourde, Blackwell, and Mason Appleton. The three feed off each other nicely, and Gourde and Blackwell played huge roles for the Kraken in defeating the Predators.
Blackwell passed to Gourde to contribute to the three-goal barrage in the second period, and Gourde then returned the favor in the third to set up the game-winning goal while Seattle was shorthanded.
We saw a massive celebration from Blackwell, after he was initially robbed by Juuse Saros but continued whacking away at the puck until it finally snuck over the line.
“That one felt good,” Blackwell said. “A team that I used to play for, those ones always feel good, like they may have given up on you or something along those lines, so scoring against them, and it was a big goal, a shorthanded goal, late in the period. That one definitely sticks out for this year and felt really good.”
That trio seems to enjoy playing together, and Hakstol seems to trust them together.
“Gourdo and Apps, I got nothing but good things to say about them,” Blackwell said of his linemates. “They’re really straight-line, hard-working players, and I thought we’ve had some pretty good chemistry together… The three of us complement each other pretty well.”
Added Hakstol: “With some of the injuries that we’ve had, that was a combination we went back to. They grind and they’ve taken on some of the heavy minutes in terms of playing against other teams’ top lines… They’ve done a good job of working hard together so as we go forward, certainly it’s a combination that we’ll consider holding and keeping together.”
Takeaway #3: Kole Lind has entered the chat
Kole Lind has played just a handful of games with the big club this season and still has just 12 career NHL games under his belt. In six previous appearances with the Kraken, we didn’t find the 23-year-old winger to be particularly noticeable, but on Wednesday, he was everywhere.
He led the Kraken in shots on goal with five and had the second assist on the Wennberg goal, giving him just his second NHL point of the season and in his career.
“Lindy, he’s been in our lineup before, but coming back and getting an opportunity tonight on the right side with [Wennberg], those guys did a nice job,” Hakstol said. “Lindy was a good part of that. His puck management was good, I thought he was strong on the puck, was in good spots to support a lot of plays getting up ice and getting into the zone. He had a couple decent opportunities and might have missed the net on his best opportunity in the third period.”
For a team that is so thin on NHL prospects, it is good to see a flash of what the former second-round draft pick can bring in the future.
He also continues to kiss his netminder after victories, and we are big fans of this practice.
Bonus Takeaway: A memorable night off the ice at Climate Pledge Arena
Before the game, the public address announcer at Climate Pledge Arena stated that the Kraken condemn the aggressive actions that Russia has taken over the past week. The Ukrainian flag was projected onto the ice, and singer Roman Vashchuk was welcomed to perform a stirring rendition of the Ukrainian national anthem.
Vashchuk got a massive cheer after, as the crowd showed its support for the people of Ukraine.
“I thought that was definitely a very emotional way to start the game,” Blackwell said. “With everything going on, I think sometimes as hockey players we can be in a little bit of a bubble and not realize how good we have it. You know, there’s players that we play with from different countries that might not necessarily be as lucky as us, so to have that and have Ukrainian citizens be in our community, I think it means a lot for the city of Seattle to show that much emotion and stand with them tonight.”
That was another one of those moments in this inaugural season that got the goosebumps going, and one we won’t soon forget.
As if that wasn’t enough, one of our founders, John Barr, was recognized as a Starbucks Community Star for his work in helping to bring the NHL to Seattle. Knowing John, this acknowledgement was an enormous honor for him, and we are so appreciative of the Kraken for including him in the Kraken Day celebration.
Is Wednesday the night that the Seattle Kraken collectively get off the schneid and finally get back in the win column? It feels like it’s been a loooooooooong time since we’ve seen the Kraken celebrating on the ice at Climate Pledge Arena, and that’s because… well… it has. It has actually been more than a month since the last home win. Yes, not only is Seattle on a seven-game losing streak, but the team has not had a victory on home ice since it beat the Florida Panthers way back on Jan. 23.
That’s a long time. It’s also the last chance for the Kraken to get a win on home ice before they go on a two-week road trip, so an already long home winless stretch could become much longer.
The good news for the Kraken is that they’re facing a team in Nashville that has been up and down of late, going 4-5-1 in its last 10 games. The Kraken have also looked much better in their last two and a half games, so here’s hoping they can put it all together for their fans on Kraken Day.
A weird day for the Kraken
Kraken Day got off to a very strange start for Seattle. Just before morning skate was scheduled to begin, team representatives notified media that the skate had been canceled and availability had been moved from in-person to Zoom.
We at Sound Of Hockey assumed the worst, but the news wasn’t as bad as it initially seemed, at least in terms of player availability. Coach Dave Hakstol indicated that the cancellation was only a matter of “readiness,” noting that the team has been on the ice a lot lately. The added precautions were the result of a “concern” with one of the members of the Kraken’s traveling party, as the team prepares for its long east coast swing.
Hakstol also stated there is no change in availability from Tuesday’s practice. Based on what he said and what we saw at that practice, we are expecting Kole Lind to draw in for Austin Czarnik, while Chris Driedger is expected to start in net for the Kraken.
Projected lineup
On Tuesday, Morgan Geekie was elevated to the first line with Calle Jarnkrok and Jordan Eberle. Geekie scored in Sunday’s 3-1 loss in San Jose, his first goal since Dec. 11, and has generally played very well of late.
The latest
Before the game, Ukrainian singer, Roman Vashchuk, sang the Ukrainian national anthem, and the PA announcer said the Kraken denounce the recent actions of Russia.
The Kraken had a couple decent looks in the first period, including a great opportunity for Alexander Wennberg, which Juuse Saros denied with a diving glove save.
The Predators’ fourth line broke a scoreless tie at 13:13. Off a Roman Josi forecheck, Michael McCarron got the puck behind the net and passed it into the crease. Driedger got a piece of the pass, but then seemed to lose track of it a split second. Philip Tomasino was there and banged it through to make it 1-0.
With Yanni Gourde in the box for the game’s first penalty, the Predators made an elite play through the neutral zone. Ryan Johansen got to the Kraken blue line and didn’t like what he saw, so he bumped it back to Josi. Josi found Matt Duchene streaking across the blue line, and sent him in on a partial breakaway. Duchene buried it with a beautiful shot to make it 2-0.
The Kraken answered just 29 seconds later, though, and once they broke through, the floodgates opened. First, it was Wennberg getting revenge for the earlier robbery. Off a two-on-one, Marcus Johansson made a great pass around a sprawling Matt Benning, and Wennberg fired it home to bring Seattle within one.
NHL Video Highlight – Alexander Wennberg scores against the Nashville Predators to make it 2-1. pic.twitter.com/U0cRQKdoyd
— Seattle Kraken Gamebot (@KrakenGameBot) March 3, 2022
A minute and a half after that, the Kraken got some extended zone time. Jordan Eberle found himself with the puck to the right of Saros. He passed to Calle Jarnkrok, who was being dragged down in the slot. While falling, Jarnkrok still got enough mustard on the shot to beat Saros and tie the game at 2-2.
NHL Video Highlight – Calle Jarnkrok scores against the Nashville Predators to make it 2-2. pic.twitter.com/vJP8dUSFcw
— Seattle Kraken Gamebot (@KrakenGameBot) March 3, 2022
The momentum continued to swing in Seattle’s favor, as they took their first lead at 10:02. Off a three-on-two, Colin Blackwell passed to Gourde, who scored his 12th of the season.
The Predators immediately took a timeout, which effectively stopped the bleeding for them. With things calmed down, they tied it at 3-3 at 14:36. Eli Tolvanen deflected a shot wide, but it hit the endboards and caromed back out in front. Driedger thought Tolvanen was going to shoot the rebound, so he slid back to cut that off. But Tolvanen whiffed, and it instead went right onto the stick of Duchene, who had a wide-open net for his second goal of the game.
The Kraken regained the lead at 3:19 of the third period with a shorthanded goal. Off a dump in, Gourde won a puck battle with Filip Forsberg below the goal line. He got it out to Blackwell in front, who was initially denied by Saros. But Blackwell kept whacking away until the puck finally snuck over the line. The greasy goal made it 4-3.
On the latest Sound Of Hockey Podcast, the guys welcome Seattle Kraken leading scorer, Jared McCann. John and Darren have a fantastic conversation with Jared about his journey to the Kraken, his experiences with the team in its inaugural season, the Trade Deadline, and so much more. Whether you’re a Kraken fan or just a hockey fan in general, you won’t want to miss this one.
Also on this episode, the guys break down the two most recent Kraken games, and Andy shares his thoughts on the Battle of the Sound game between the Thunderbirds and the Silvertips.
Before they get to the interview with McCann, the guys shift gears and discuss how the hockey world is responding to the crisis in Ukraine.
After the interview, the show transitions into its segments, which this week feature Goalie Gear Corner, Weekly One-Timers, and Three Stars.
