Film Study: Daccord Big Saves

Before his starring role in Seattle's dramatic and energetic comeback in Calgary Tuesday, Kraken goalie Joey Daccord had started 12 NHL games since getting drafted in the seventh round of the 2015 Draft. He won a game with Ottawa, the team that selected him after three stellar seasons with NCAA Arizona State. Last season, he appeared in five Kraken games, one each in October, November, December, January, and late April.
Over the past 10 days, with Philipp Grubauer on the injured reserve list, Daccord has practiced with the team, stayed extra time during morning skates with teammates not dressing for that night's game, bringing energy and enthusiasm to every minute on the ice, no matter full squad or a handful of players.
One memorable session included Daccord and new goalie coach Steve Briere doing their version of a goalie hug when Daccord was in net and Briere as a stand-in defenseman "won" a shooting drill with skaters bearing down on Briere, then trying to beat Daccord. No one was left watching at Kraken Community Iceplex but no matter, Daccord was pumped yet lighthearted. It's a common thread for Daccord the teammate and person.

Monday in the Iceplex locker room, head equipment manager Jeff Camelio came to get the boxed cart filled with Daccord's goalie equipment to be loaded on a team truck and delivered to the plane headed for Calgary. Camelio pleasantly asked Daccord if he was about done.
"You know I am always on time, Jeff," said Daccord, smiling, putting in a small bag with AHL Coachella Valley Firebirds markings as his final item. "I'm getting good at this packing thing [as a goalie who shuttled between AHL and NHL this season and last year].
Camelio said something to the effect of yes, you are, appreciate it, and thanks. Then Daccord gently asked if someone had packed his sneakers. Camelio confirmed assistant equipment manager Kris Stierwalt had done so.
Let's agree Daccord was timely in all ways in Tuesday night's win and ready to run the race to his first Kraken victory, whether donning sneakers or skates.
To mark the occasion and anticipate coach Dave Hakstol will now be weighing Daccord's 36-save performance against the Flames on who starts in the next two stops on this road trip, let's open this season's "Film Study" series with a closer look at Daccord's big saves Tuesday:
This is the save (below) Dave Hakstol referenced unprompted during the post-game media scrum as one not to forget when praising Daccord's night. With Seattle holding a 1-0 with less than four minutes left in the first period, Calgary's Mikael Backlund breaks into the Kraken zone with a wall pass to himself and finds an open Dillon Dube. Daccord was tracking Backlund, moved right, and adjusted quickly when Backlund's pass deflected off Carson Soucy's stick and fluttered to Dube (pronounced "DU-bay"). The Calgary forward wristed a shot inside the left post. Daccord's perfect slide met the puck at the knee pad, then toe, and away from the net. Lead protected.

The Flames came out flying in the second period (20 shots overall, the most in one period against Seattle this season). New Calgary center Jonathan Huberdeau (summer trade) zipped a puck on net and Daccord made another leg-pad save with less than two minutes gone (below). Huberdeau scored practically at will against the Kraken last season as a star with Florida. To the credit of teammates in front of Daccord, it was one of only two Huberdeau shots to make it on net.

Calgary is up 4-2 and looking to salt the game with a shorthanded breakaway chance early third period. Even Daccord admitted post-game Tuesday he thought "that might be it" for the night when Calgary scored two goals in 17 seconds early third period. But apparently refreshed from a timely Hakstol timeout after those goals, Daccord, 26, comes up big, fully extending and denying 35-year-old veteran Trevor Lewis (below).

Daccord gets out of his crease to play the puck more than Kraken colleagues Martin Jones and Philipp Grubauer. He said after Tuesday's game, his teammates might need a game or two to fully gather his stickhandling tendencies. With under 14 minutes remaining, no one didn't grasp Daccord coming out of his net to beat Tyler Toffoli to the puck and prevent a breakaway (below). Toffoli scored earlier in the period to make it 3-2 after Daccord robbed Toffoli point-blank less than 30 seconds before that.

Guess we can finish framing Daccord's big night with a bookend save against Dillion Dube, who is the subject of our first video in this Daccord collection. Dube had another point-blank opportunity at Daccord's doorstep almost the same spot as the first-period save. With seven-and-a-half minutes left, Daccord goes full-body again to thwart Dube and keep it 4-4, setting up Matty Beniers' game-winning goal heroics off a superb assist from Jordan Eberle.

After the game, Daccord credited his teammates for blocking shots and "letting me see the puck" by staying out of the goalie's preferred sight lines (something you learn during practices). To wit: SEA defensemen blocked 15 shots, eight by Adam Larsson alone.
"[The Flames] have a lot of big guys and they love to just get it low to high and pound it [to the net]," said Daccord. "For me, I was just trying to see the puck as much as I can. And the guys blocked so many shots tonight. It really made my life easy."