I think you’re gonna be watching that OT effort in your sleep, boys.
But First, the Highlights
Game Notes
- Your TOI Leader for the Kraken was Vince Dunn, who played 23:32 tonight.
- Honestly, I’m not bothered by this loss. The Kraken still had one of their demons appear at the worst possible time (which we will get to.) but they absolutely kept the Calgary Flames moving and kept Dan Vladar honest; forcing them to work for every step of the way. Sure, would I have liked them to have won, especially given how well they played in the third, but they overcame their own foolishness, clamped the opponent down, and forced OT. If they can do that in the regular season? They can make up for their deficiencies elsewhere. That’s progress.
- That said, if they don’t want to be OT merchants, they absolutely are gonna need to be way, WAY better at backchecking at 3-on-3. Every single one of Dunn, Stephenson, and Burakovsky should try to save face by telling the players who didn’t dress that it was a learning opportunity while they’re getting bag-skated into the Puget Sound. I don’t ever wanna see that kind of listless effort with a second point on the line ever again.
- One for six on the power play and a short-handed goal. I swear, the Kraken should just score on their first power play of the game and then elect to just avoid ever using the man-advantage ever again. Nobody would begrudge them this decision, and I would be much happier as a human being. Might even have less gray hairs. The Refs even thought they were doing Seattle a favor, too; handing them penalty after penalty (which, granted, the Flames earned the hard way) in the vain hope that they would take advantage. You fools. You absolute fools.
- Neither goaltender was ideal, but I think Joey did a decent job with what he was handed; especially given uh…yeah, that Overtime effort in front of him. Just too many options for the Flames to score, and Daccord finished his night with an .852 SV% that I do feel is reflective of…well…the night in front of him.
Was there anything good about this game?
Oh, plenty!
- Ville Ottavainen finished his night with a goal, and frankly I was very impressed with his game all night; he was blocking shots, corraling pucks away from Calgary forecheckers, and being secure with the puck. He was a stellar player tonight, very happy with his game.
- Of course, Shane Wright will likely be staying past Tuesday, finishing his night with a power play goal and at just the right time as well. He was trying just about everything he could to keep himself open all night, he was trying to create plays wherever he could, and was an active net-front presence who didn’t try to cram the net; instead letting the goalie overcommit so he could pot home the rebound. Couldn’t ask for better. Lose your keys to your apartment in Coachella, kid. You’re staying in King County.
- Unfortunately the effort in OT has otherwise disqualified Chandler Stephenson from this part of my recap, so instead I want to highlight the wizardry Eeli Tolvanen made to get that shot through Dan Vladar in the first period. That was awesome. Well done for him.
- Okay I had to double check this, but apparently Ryan Winterton got just about every shot attempt he made on net tonight??? Most of them were even fairly dangerous as well???? It is rare to finish any game, even preseason games, with analytics around 80% and 90%. He was almost guaranteed to score tonight and he didn’t get anything out of it. He even played a reasonable amount of even strength time tonight. Well, I’m not gonna let a performance like that go unheralded. Ryan? I appreciate your effort tonight. Good on you, man. Keep that up.
The Fancystats from NaturalStatTrick.com
Well, I’d like the Kraken to give their goalie an ounce of relief, that’s still a work in progress, but otherwise them cramming their bodies on Vladar’s crease seemed to pay dividends!
Pre-season comes to a close on Wednesday evening, as the Kraken face the Edmonton Oilers back at CPA before they have to acquiesce to the dumbest scheduling decision made by the NHL since the last one. The final dress rehearsal of the 2024-25 Seattle Kraken is set for 7pm PT.
We’ll see you there! And as always;
Keep Calm, and Post Zoidberg When We Win.