
Since the Seattle Kraken present isn’t bright, fans at Climate Pledge Arena Tuesday were at least treated to the promise of a better future.
2022 1st round draft pick Shane Wright scored twice in a 5-4 shootout loss to the Detroit Red Wings. Wright extended his points streak to six games. 2021 1st round draft pick Matty Beniers added a goal of his own. For good measure, Beniers’ tally was assisted by Kaapo Kakko, 2019 2nd-overall pick by the Rangers.
What killed Seattle was too many visits to the penalty box against the NHL’s 4th-ranked power play. Moritz Seider and Jonatan Berggren scored extra-man goals, and Elmer Soderblom potted another early in the 3rd period, four seconds after another Kraken penalty had expired.
Later in the final frame, Wright’s second goal brought Seattle within 4-3, and Chandler Stephenson forced overtime with a tying 4-4 tally on a solo rush at 17:04.
1st Period
The Red Wings are where the Kraken wished they were; revitalized by a coaching change and in the thick of the playoff chase. Since Todd McLellan took over as coach on Dec. 26, his team has posted a 14-4-1 mark. At puck drop, the Wings sat one point out of a Wild Card spot.
For the Wings, one shot on goal, one shot in goal. A wicked wrister from a severe angle by Lucas Raymond, his 21st, beats Daccord over his shoulder and below the far post-crossbar elbow at 3:36.
If Matty Beniers plays long and successfully enough to earn a statue outside Climate Pledge Arena someday, we know what pose they’ll use. It’ll be the signature Beniers from one knee, getting every ounce of power behind his shot. Fans at CPA got to see Matty display the real thing for his 12th of the season, on a pinpoint feed from Kaapo Kakko at 9:28.
Chandler Stephenson goes off for a trip at 19:26, but doesn’t stay off for long. Four seconds into their 4th ranked power play, Moritz Seider’s long-range laser beats Daccord for a 2-1 Detroit lead. The sizeable and loud contingent of Red Wings fans see their team take that lead into intermission.
2nd Period

The latest Kraken “Common Threads” theme night honored Black Hockey History. The team website says “Rae Akino’s reimagined Kraken “S” is a fusion of the traditional and the future; traditional African tribal patterns with bold, repetitive geometric shapes are combined with Afro-futuristic patterns, incorporating mechanical style lines almost resembling a circuit board.”
Jared McCann, who can’t McBuy a goal, fires into Wings netminder Cam Talbot on a Kraken rush.
Remember that post-crossbar elbow Raymond scored into for Detroit when the game started? Shane Wright found that same space into the same net at 6:29 for a 2-2 tie. The Detroit bench erupted at the lack of a tripping call moments earlier.
What the Kraken can’t keep doing against a top-5 NHL power play is take penalties. If Seattle got away with one earlier, they don’t when Vince Dunn trips Vladimir Tarasenko. Daccord turns aside shot after shot on the Wings PP, until Jonatan Berggren (YAN-a-ten BER-gren, if you’re wondering) is left open in the slot and fires for Detroit’s third lead of the game at 12:07.
3rd Period
Here’s the thing about taking minor penalties. Technically, they last two minutes. But the man-advantage doesn’t really end until the player escaping the penalty box can return to the play. The Wings don’t score while Wright is serving a penalty. Four seconds later, Elmer Soderblom puts a rebound past a down-and-out Daccord at 3:21.
All year, the 3rd period has been Seattle’s best. Wright’s second of the game brings Seattle back within 4-3 on his 11th of the season at 10:10. The game-tying goal comes from a relative graybeard, Chandler Stephenson, who swoops in from the left wing and beats Detroit goalie Cam Talbot with 2:56 remaining. The Kraken have rallied for a 4-4 tie.
Brandon Montour remarkably denies a Detroit 2-on-1 (Raymond and Dylan Larkin) by breaking up the pass with just over one minute remaining in regulation.
Overtime & Shootout
The Kraken dominated possession in the five minute OT, with defenseman Montour having the two best scoring chances. He shot barely over the net on one, and Talbot then denied his point-blank shot. Daccord did his part, turning away Larkin’s open look with seven seconds remaining. For the 65 minutes, Daccord made 36 saves, Talbot 23.
In the shootout, the only goal was scored by Detroit’s 36-year-old multiple Cup winner Patrick Kane. Beniers, Wright and Kakko did not score.
Up Next
Seattle has two games remaining, one home, one road, before the league break for the 4 Nations Face-off. The five game homestand concludes Thursday with a visit from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Then it’s a brief road trip to Calgary, for a rematch with the Flames, who edged Seattle 3-2 on Sunday.