Life’s candy and the sun’s
A ball of butter
Don’t bring around a cloud
To rain on my parade
— Barbra Streisand, “Funny Girl”
Drippy, overcast skies and blustery winds threatened, but couldn’t delay, the Seattle Kraken’s opening day parade. It began with a Tuesday morning “blue carpet” walk by Kraken players past adoring fans at Climate Pledge Arena. Check out DJLR’s own Zaiem Beg with the camera positioning that would make paparazzi envious.
Turns out, it was the visiting St. Louis Blues who really rained on Seattle’s parade. And when it rained, it poured. The Blues erased a 2-0 2nd period Kraken lead, powered by Vince Dunn and Eeli Tolvanen tallies, with three late middle-period goals in a span of 1:55. Two of those were scored by Jordan Kyrou, as St. Louis outlasted Seattle in its first-ever season opener at home, 3-2.
In four years of existence, the Kraken have never won their first game of a season.
Pregame
Kraken statesman Jordan Eberle was announced as just the second captain in team history, and the first since Mark Giordano was traded at the inaugural season trade deadline in 2022. Last March the winger inked a two-year, $9.5 million contract extension. A week later, he was honored in a pregame ceremony for playing his 1000th NHL game.
Eberle served last season as one of the leadership group of alternate captains, alongside Yanni Gourde, Adam Larsson and Jaden Schwartz. That trio will continue to rotate wearing the “A”, alongside the newest alternate, Matty Beniers.
Plus, NHL history:
In the justifiable recognition of Campbell’s achievement, let’s not lose sight that she’s an outstanding up-and-coming NHL assistant, who received her groundbreaking assignment on merit.
1st Period
ESPN good news: the network chose Kraken-Blues to kick off the North American opening day of the 2024-25 NHL season. ESPN bad news: the network has ranked St. Louis 22nd and Seattle 26th in its initial power rankings. (ESPN was also the reason puck drop came a little after 1:30 pm Pacific time on a weekday, as this was the first of three games televised today.)
An early scare: Jordan Kyrou’s wrister causes the red light to flash behind starting Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer. But no worries, the shot had slammed off the crossbar and bounded harmlessly away.
Tye Kartye, now wearing #12, sneaks in front and fires a tester off St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington’s pads. Later, Binnington rejects grade-A chances from newcomer Chandler Stephenson and Jaden Schwartz’s follow. When the goalie shrugs his shot into the netting, Schwartz looks up toward the CPA roof.
The Beniers-Eberle-Jared McCann line delivers a dynamic shift which hems the Blues in their own zone. Shots are 9-4 Seattle through 17 minutes of scoreless hockey. Then the Eeli Tolvanen-Shane Wright-Oliver Bjorkstrand line holds a staff meeting at the St. Louis crease. They shove some Blues, but can’t shove the puck into the net.
Vince Dunn semi-blocks a shot into a knuckleball which Grubauer snags. Still scoreless at the horn, with shots favoring the home team, 11-5.
2nd Period
The Kraken, more than most teams, are keeping their fingers crossed for good health. Due to salary cap constraints, Seattle is only carrying one healthy scratch, defenseman Joshua Mahura. NHL rules allow a maximum of three. The much-anticipated offseason trade of a roster player to clear cap room never materialized.
If at first you don’t succeed dep’t: Binnington stops Vince Dunn’s initial shot speeding down right wing, but Dunn alertly pots the rebound. And yes, regular season hockey hugs are more intense than preseason hugs. 1-0 Kraken on the first goal of the season at 27 seconds.
Kraken fans are barely back in their seats when Eeli Tolvanen brings them out again. In as deft a stickwork as you will ever see, Tolvanen manages to deflect Ryker Evans’ left point shot. Tolvanen was gliding through the low slot and actually had his back to the net. 2-0 Kraken at 2:20.
You know who’s enjoying the Kraken’s fast start? A 34-home run, 100-RBI MLB catcher is, that’s who.
Former Seahawk Jon Ryan and former Sonic Detlef Schrempf are also in the house.
A third Kraken goal gets waved off because the puck escaped the St. Louis blue line, but at least it was called (correctly so) on the ice, not by video review. Regardless, CPA’s “Ref you suck” chant is in mid-season form.
While the rest of the Kraken plead their case, Vince Dunn gets mugged by a passel of Blues at the Seattle blue line. Dunn and Nathan Walker receive matching roughing minors. Gourde, sticking up for his teammate, gets five for fighting, as does the Blues’ Alexey Toropchenko.
Binnington, who’s keeping the Blues in the game, commits glove-hand daylight robbery – it is daytime, after all – to rob Bjorkstrand.
The 2024-25 Kraken aren’t taking any #$%&@. Adam Larsson steps into the next push-and-shove, but puts Seattle a man down. St. Louis narrows the deficit to 2-1 at 13:42 on Kyrou’s non-traditional power play marker.
It takes the visitors just 95 seconds to get even, as Philip Broberg knots the scored 2-2.
The alarm clock must have finally rung on the Blues bench. Kyrou scores his second goal in short order, converting a breakaway at 15:37. Three goals in a 1:55 span puts St. Louis in front for the first time, 3-2.
Seattle trails 3-2 after 40, despite a 28-19 advantage in SOG.
3rd Period
The Kraken start the period with 1:38 left to kill of a Gourde hook taken late in the 2nd. Just after the penalty expires, Grubauer makes his best save – getting a glove on a Nick Leddy sizzler from 20 feet out.
New players, still shades of last season: the Stephenson line applies extended pressure, but not a serious scoring chance. The Kraken then fail to convert on their first power play, even with free agent additions Stephenson and Brandon Montour on the first unit. Binnington, falling forward, fights off a deflected Vince Dunn shot as the PP ends.
Another Kraken bugaboo: with 10 minutes left, Seattle has won fewer than 40 percent of draws.
Seattle pulls Grubauer at the end, but can’t find the equalizer. An announced sellout on a Tuesday afternoon watches their heroes fall, 3-2. Final shots are 32-25 Seattle.
Up Next
Seattle doesn’t play again until Saturday night against the Wild in Minnesota, the start of a three-game road trip which will also take them to Dallas and Nashville. The Kraken return home Oct. 17 when they host the Philadelphia Flyers.
I simply gotta march
My heart’s a drummer
Nobody, no, nobody
Is gonna rain on my parade!