Eight (Rounds) is Great Enough

Taking a one-game breather from a string of five Pacific Division games in ten days, the Kraken made the most of the furlough with a 4-3 shootout win over the Eastern Conference’s New York Islanders Thursday.

The shootout was thrilling in its own way, with Bo Horvat scoring on the second of the first three NYI shooters and Oliver Bjorkstrand nailing his attempt to push into shootout to overtime if you will. Philipp Grubauer made three straight do-or-done saves before Jordan Eberle looked to have a game-winner but NYI tied it. In the eighth round, Kailer Yamamoto, the game’s first star, scored and Philipp Grubauer stoned Noah Dobson to secure the win.

The eight rounds is a franchise record, busting past the seven-round Seattle victory at Montreal during the inaugural season. The Kraken are now 6-8-4.

Early Energy

It marked the second of back-to-back games for each squad with Seattle showing better energy in the first 20 minutes, starting this affair with two goals on 15 shots on goal in the first period. Those scores belonged to Matty Beniers and Alex Wennberg, who both notched their second goals of the season.

Philipp Grubauer got the start in goal after Joey Daccord turned in another points-producing night. For his part, Grubauer picked up his fourth win of the season with 21 saves, including a huge stop on a Bo Horvat breakaway with a minute left in overtime and, of course, those six shootout stops.

The game was up for grabs at the second intermission with both teams at two goals on 22 shots for Seattle and 17 for the visitors. In a recent span during the third period has been a challenge, the outlook did not look promising when the Islanders scored their second power-play goal of the night to take a 3-2 lead early in the final period.

Third Power Play Goal is Charmer, Precursor

Not so fast. Seattle notched its third power-play goal of the night three minutes later to knot the game at 3-3 on, well, threes are apparently wild, Kailer Yamamoto’s third goal of the season. Yamamoto, the Spokane native, took a brisk pass from veteran Jaden Schwartz from behind the net. Eeli Tolvanen earned his second assist of the night, rewarded for an impressive pass and extending cycling of the puck during the power play effort.

In fact, Tolvanen’s cycling efforts and Schwartz’s retrieval of a loose puck effectively wore out the Islanders penalty killers who couldn’t leave the defensive zone to change up shifts.

“We’re seeing continued growth and continued chemistry,” said Dave Hakstol post-game when asked about the ‘special' night for the power play units. “The last powerplay to tie it up ... their penalty kill was gassed because we were able to retrieve pucks and keep possession. It's a real good play by Schwartz getting it back inside with tired penalty killers.”

Yamamoto took it from there with a shake-and-deke to get past NYI goalie Semyon Varlamov, which ultimately set up Yamamoto's second set of moves to beat Varlamov and win it for the home squad when Philipp Grubauer made his sixth save of the shootout.

Yamamoto said he works on shootout moves during morning skate drills: “I’m just kind of just finding my moves there.”

Powering Up and Up

The Kraken started the night with the ninth-best power play in the NHL. Cashing in on three of four man-advantage opportunities that will likely boost Seattle into the top-five category. There was a premium of 5-on-5 play in this contest with four Kraken power plays and six for the visiting Islanders.

Those man-advantage scores in the third period set up a winner-take-all opportunity for whoever could prevail in the final 15 minutes of regulation. Neither team could convert a game-winner, prompting the Kraken’s seventh overtime of the young season and the second in two nights for both teams (the Islanders lost in Vancouver Wednesday).

Dunn Shifts into High Gear

Defenseman Vince Dunn enjoyed a breakout season last year to earn a sizeable contract from the Kraken over the summer. His preseason was limited in playing time due to an injury sustained during summer training. But Dunn clearly benefitted from the offseason conditioning, looking stronger in practices and developing more muscle in his upper body without losing his speed and scoring touch.

Dunn admitted about five games into the season that he was not in peak shape at the season's start because not playing games, even if preseason contests, leaves any NHLer short of full readiness. But Dunn soon started feeling in the zone, more in flow with the action around him. Lately, Dunn has displayed a won’t-back-down toughness that his teammates, coaches, and fans have noticed and applauded.

Perhaps better yet, Dunn has projectiled himself back among the league leaders with assists, picking up his 14^th helper to set up Matty Beniers' second goal of the season on the power play. Half of his assists have come on the power play in his role as the “quarterback” on the first power play unit.

His rise in production and overall performance coincides with his becoming ongoing partners with alternate captain Adam Larsson during the second half of the inaugural season. It appears Dunn is right back to his breakout self, punctuated by six assists in his last five games.

Beniers Scores, Imagination Soars

Some hockey goals you want to mark in your mind at the start of something bigger. When Matty Beniers connected from mid-range on the Kraken’s first power play of the night to tie this matchup at 1-1, that hope/expectation was the first thought here. Beniers’ shooting percentage (goals divided by shots on goal) for his first 90 games (his 10-game debut during the inaugural season and 80 regular-season games last year) was a steady 16 percent. Going into Thursday’s contest, he was shooting under four percent. Simply put, that will change for the better, and Beniers is encouraged by coaches and teammates alike to get his shots (not that he needs the coaxing).

The Islanders’ tying goal in the second period conjured memories for Western Hockey League followers in the arena or tuning in on ROOT Sports or KJR. That’s because NYI center Mat Barzal, a Seattle Thunderbirds legend who led the franchise to a WHL title in 2017, handled the primary assist on the score. Barzal showed his smooth playmaking moves that are fondly recalled by T-Birds fans except for maybe when he puts a dent in a potential Kraken victory.