It may have been a game later than originally hoped, but the Seattle Kraken faithful got their opportunity to cheer for a win against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night. Seattle was never down in the contest and there were plenty of goals to celebrate, as the NHL’s oldest franchise was beaten handily by the newest franchise 5–1.
To set things off on the right foot, Seattle wing Jordan Eberle scored his first goal as a Kraken on a nifty zig-zag, odd-man rush just 1:02 into play. Just as his teammate cleared the path to Canadiens goalie Jake Allen, Eberle snapped a shot over Allen’s glove, which sent the home fans into a frenzy.
That lead lasted for 10 minutes, as Habs forward Mike Hoffman picked up a rebound in a goal-mouth scramble and buried it into the back of an open net for the visitors’ only goal of the night. This game was different. Kraken players were buzzing around the rink and were generally outskating Montreal.
As a result, the home team refused to let that Montreal goal discourage them. Kraken cult hero and goal-scoring leader Brandon Tanev grabbed the lead back four minutes later, which the hosts never relinquished. Tanev drove hard to the net while forward Jared McCann and defenseman Jamie Oleksiak set up a slick drop play. Oleksiak found Tanev’s open stick and Tanev pushed the pass past Allen in close quarters.
The teams headed into the first intermission with Seattle up 2–1 and leading in shots 11–9.
Seattle was buzzing in the second period as well. Center Yanni Gourde had a beautiful goal, then assisted on Tanev’s second of the night just two minutes apart before the game was half over. As it turned out, the Kraken were well on their way to a commanding win.
The bad news on the night was that Kraken wing Mason Appleton went down awkwardly along the boards when Canadiens defenseman Sami Niku fell on Appleton’s right leg toward the latter half of the second period. Appleton needed help off the rink and did not return.
Just for good measure, the Kraken added a third-period breakaway goal by Ryan Donato, but the damage was done. The Kraken outshot the visitors by a 26–24 margin to give their home fans a night to remember and celebrate.
Anchor points
⚓ The Kraken were much better at the faceoff dots, winning 60% after getting beaten pretty easily in the dot during their home opener. This showed in the possession numbers as well. The Kraken were over 50% in both Corsi and Fenwick metrics.
⚓ Philipp Grubauer was very good in this game. His only goal against was a fluke that left Hoffman wide open. He saved 23 of 24 shots and made a couple of highlight-reel stops, including a splits save in the first period that temporarily kept the Canadiens off the scoreboard.
This Grubauer save hurts my groin pic.twitter.com/v6jzg7Tk0X
— World Hockey Report (@worldhockeyrpt) October 27, 2021
⚓ The Kraken have adjusted their shot focus to attack the slot area (as shown on this heat map) rather than their perimeter shots from early games.
⚓ All of the Kraken players, except three, were positive in 5-on-5 puck possession, led by Joonas Donskoi’s very nice 69%. Donato, Morgan Geekie and Riley Sheahan were the only players under water.
⚓The Kraken are off today but right back at the grind Thursday, as they host the Minnesota Wild at Climate Pledge Arena. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. PDT.