Seattle, WA – The Seattle Kraken were able to get their first pacific division win on December 3rd, 2021 as they held off the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 4-3. While the league's leading scorer in Leon Draisaitl and arguably the league’s best player Connor McDavid would both score for the Oilers, Seattle would be able to hold Edmonton out of goal when it mattered most.
The key word for Seattle in this game would be response. Unlike earlier this season when the Kraken would concede a goal early and then flop for the remainder of the game, the team answered every Edmonton goal. The Kraken would get strike first, thanks to a Yanni Gourde one-timer just 49 seconds into the game. Leon Draisaitl, the NHL’s leading scorer, would be left wide open as Seattle would puck watch bringing the game to a 1-1 tie just minutes later. The former Oiler Adam Larsson would answer for Seattle with a slapshot goal four minutes later, answering his former teammate's goal.
The game would be equalized once again with 11:48 to go in the second, when Evan Bouchard of the Oilers would fire a slapshot that would ricochet off of Vince Dunn’s shin and rattle into the goal. Seattle would again answer Edmonton, this time it would be Colin Blackwell with some tricky stick work to beat Oiler's goaltender Stuart Skinner with slightly under seven minutes to go. The Kraken would extend their narrow lead courtesy of Alex Wennberg, who’s shot would slip under Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner. The goal would give Seattle a four to two lead heading into the final period.
The Oilers would chip away at the Seattle lead when Connor McDavid would redirect Evan Bouchard’s slapshot for the goal, sending it right between the pads of Philipp Grubauer. Seattle’s starting goaltender would be able to find some redemption with 7:07 left to go in the period. Tyson Barrie of the Oilers would fire a slapshot from the blue line that would clank off the goal and fall right in front of Jesse Puljujarvi. Puljujarvi was a split second away from pushing the puck into the net with his stick, but Philipp Grubauer would snag it with his glove to preserve the Seattle lead. The Kraken would be able to hold on for the remaining seven minutes, giving the team their first division win.
Edmonton’s first two goals would come off of issues that Seattle has been able to neutralize as of late, those being puck watching and blocking their own goaltender. But as I mentioned earlier, Seattle would respond each time and stand up to the Oilers, who sit at second in the Pacific division currently. Being able to stay in the game and not back down has been a big part as to why Seattle has wins over Washington, Carolina, Florida, and now Edmonton in their last seven contests.
Going back to that Washington game, the win over the Capitals had the potential to be a building block for this team moving forward. I believe that it is safe to say that’s the case, considering the teams that Seattle has beat since the November 21st win over Washington, as well as how the Kraken have won those games. Yanni Gourde and Colin Blackwell spoke on how the team's growth has shown as of late.
“We’re a much more mature group right now, we’re making much better decisions, we know what to do, we’re confident in our group, and we have to keep pushing,” Yanni Gourde answered when asked about the teams more offensive approach in recent games.
Colin Blackwell spoke about the team's improvement, stating “We had some adversity but we were able to weather the storm. In the beginning of the season, that might’ve happened and we lose the game. We have the identity rolling right now, all four lines are playing well, and the D is blocking shots. We’re getting a lot of good efforts from everybody, and that’s what it takes to win in this league.”
The Kraken welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins to town on Monday, December 6th with a 7PM PST puck drop for their next contest.
Comments