I tell ya man, these Kraken love playing in Sunrise.
Maybe they get to go to the big mall across the street from the arena (which is not exaggeration, by the way.) after the game and go to the Rainforest Cafe.
But First, the Highlights!
Game Notes
- Your TOI leader tonight was Jamie Oleksiak, who logged 23:19 tonight.
- Seattle still had a good amount of their usual procedural snafus when it came to leaving their zone, but thankfully the Kraken were able to counter the Cats just about all night. They refused to let Florida impose themselves too much, and critically ensured that the Cats couldn’t respond on their single power play, and did just enough in transition to get up and stay up in a tight game. This was a hell of an effort by the Kraken that especially means a lot after getting their captain back after so long.
- Speaking of which, Jordan Eberle’s return! He definitely had a bit of rust tonight, but was otherwise a welcome sight to see.
- Also, the power play did something! Kaapo Kakko was the welcome recipient of a goal thanks to an unbelievable, blink-and-you’ll miss-it keep in of the puck by Vince Dunn, who reached behind him across his body to bat the puck down, and allowed those wonderful kids to go create some magic in tight against Bobrovsky. I think as a unit, those three seem to have a brewing special sauce that Seattle can use for the future!
- Only two penalties assessed for the entire game, which is…unusual for a Panthers contest. Maybe they figured without Matthew around they didn’t need to?
- Joey may have gotten a little help from the stripes to earn it, but Daccord was the star on defense tonight; he finished his night with a .963 SV% on 27 shots!
Let’s Give A Hand To…
- Kaapo Kakko! He got into double digits in goalscoring tonight as the opening tally on the power play, and was by far the most effective player on the ice possession wise. While they didn’t give him a star, I would’ve absolutely given him one just for making the Kraken Power Play do something right.
- Shane Wright! Who had two assists tonight and both of them were fairly critical. People who have terminal ESPN-brain will tell you that an assist doesn’t matter as much as a goal, but Wright’s assists tonight were exactly the reason you give those out as points; he didn’t just find space for the recipients of the puck, he was able to draw the defense away from his intended receiver of the pass and opened up a lane that previously wouldn’t have existed otherwise in the middle of getting the puck off his stick. Excellent stuff from him tonight, well done indeed.
- Jared McCann! The Kraken’s leading goalscorer when given any sort of time and space is a danger to anyone who isn’t wearing his sweater, and he put home a missile to get the game winner and the first star of the game!
- Vince Dunn! Who arguably got all of this started thanks to some key keep-ins of the puck during the 1st period power play. They don’t give points out for stuff like that, but it bears repeating; that takes a LOT of heads up play to get done.
- The Kraken video review team! This game could’ve gone veeeery differently if Mackie Samoskevich’s goal was allowed to count, and Seattle did the right thing by challenging it. Sure, nobody knows what goalie interference really is, but if it’s iffy? Why not just challenge? What’s the worst that can happen, a power play against? You can get those for having your stick in the wrong place. Live a little.
- Joey Daccord! Had to work hard in the 2nd and 3rd to keep the score as it was, but man he kept that door locked tight shut in the final minute and change of the game; doing what he did best: give the Kraken a chance to win a game. Bravo, Mister Mayor.
The Charts, via NaturalStatTrick.com
Did they get outchanced? Sure. Did they win anyway? You bet.
The Kraken continue their little eastern conference road trip tomorrow! They’ll be headed a few hours north to play the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena. That game starts at 3pm PT.
We’ll see you there! Thanks for reading, and as always!
Keep Calm, and Post Zoidberg When We Win.