What a game! A back and forth game where we saw the very best effort all season from our Seattle Kraken, ended with a Jordan Eberle overtime goal. So much to love, so much to hate about this game. So much.
If for some reason you missed this one, you missed an instant Kraken Classic. This could be the game that turns this season all around.
If you missed this one, let’s take a look at how this game went down.
The first period was a really solid period of hockey. Both teams played fundamentally sound hockey. The Kraken had plenty of scoring chances and kept Detroit on their heels at times. When the Kraken needed, goalie Joey Daccord was electric.
I must admit, I need to get used to the erratic and aggressive puck play of Daccord. He loves to go to the puck, he loves to play the puck, and he loves to leave the net. Dude made some big saves in the first. The game was scoreless after the first.
The second period brought the fireworks. Detroit scored first, Joe Veleno put one in, and former Kraken Daniel Sprong got one of the helpers. About 4 minutes later Jaden Schwartz scored on the power play (Vince Dunn and Matty Beniers with the assists). The period went back and forth until Schwartz scored again, putting the Kraken up 2-1. With less than a minute left in the second Tye Kartye scored a beautiful goal on a semi-breakaway. The Kraken led 3-1 at the end of the second.
Then things changed. Detroit brought it in the 3rd period. Remember, the Wings entered this game 5-1-0, they had scored 17 goals in their previous 3 games. Seattle shot themselves in the foot in the third. Too many penalties.
Shayne Gostisbehere scored a power play goal. This was the first power play goal allowed by the Kraken this season. Two minute later Dylan Larkin scored another power play goal tying the game at 3-3, and six minutes after that, Alex DeBrincat scored a third Detroit power play goal. Detroit led 4-3.
Being honest, at this point I was thinking, “good lord, not again” and “enough of the cute crap Daccord, just stay in the net”. I did say in the pregame post that the Kraken would need to score more than 4 goals if they were to win this game. Down 4-3 with less than 2 minutes left, Jared McCann scored the Kraken’s second power play goal, tying the game up 4-4. Matty Beniers and Eberle got the assists. The period ended and would go to overtime.
Overtime we saw a lot of puck movement, and a few misses that had me yelling at my television. Matty Beniers dropped his stick in the Detroit zone, and the Wings could not do anything. Late in the OT Detroit had an incredible rush that ended with a huge save by Daccord, and just like that, the Kraken had a late (30 seconds left) odd man rush of their own. With 5 seconds left, McCann made a last second beautiful pass to the tape of Eberle’s stick and he buried it to win the game 5-4. What a game!
Positives
- The Kraken won!! We really needed this win, and against one of the best team in the NHL too, on the road.
- The big guns finally showed up! Matty Beniers had 2 assists and 2 points, Jared McCann and Jordan Eberle each had 1 goal, 1 assist, and 2 points, Jaden Schwartz had 2 goals. The team and the leaders of this team needed a night like tonight.
- The power play was clicking. The Kraken went 2/4 on the man advantage. It was about time.
- The Kraken won 52% of the faceoffs. You can’t score if you don’t have possession.
- Seattle out shot Detroit 38-27.
Negatives
- The Seattle penalty kill finally surrendered a goal. Well, they actually coughed up 3. Not their best night.
- Too many penalties. The Kraken nearly beat themselves.
- Goalie Joey Daccord got his second win because of the large goal support from the team (again). Who does this remind us of? Martin Jones, who won 27 games last season, largely due to subpar goaltending, masked by a high scoring offense.
Final Takeaways
Man it feels good to get a win. Tonight was a great game, though I would not be feeling this way if the Kraken had lost. Nothing like a little drama to make you appreciate a win. Just remember, the sweet is never as sweet without the sour, and I know the sour (That was from Vanilla Sky). The Kraken played as close to a complete game as they have all season. The penalty kill was not so good tonight, but they did face a great team in Detroit. Nice W fellas!
Up next , the Kraken head to Carolina for a rematch against a now healthy Hurricanes team. I feel a storm raging.
Fear the deep!