Kraken’s Comeback Bid Falls Short Against Rangers

The Kraken showed plenty of fight in the third period against the New York Rangers on Saturday afternoon, but the late push couldn’t erase the struggles that put them in a four-goal hole. Seattle scored three times in the final 20 minutes to pull within one but ultimately fell 4-3 to New York at Climate Pledge Arena.

The comeback offered a glimpse of the urgency and execution the Kraken needed throughout the game. For captain Jordan Eberle, however, the response was difficult to celebrate when the team had spent the first 40 minutes struggling to find its game.

“We had a pushback,” Eberle said. “We had an uphill battle to climb going into the third and I liked the battle back. At the end of the day, we don’t get any points out of it [a regulation loss], so it’s frustrating.”

The Rangers took control early, opening the scoring at 1:35 of the first period when Gabe Perreault found the back of the net. Former Kraken forward Tye Kartye doubled New York’s advantage at 9:05, converting on the power play, before Jaroslav Chmelar made it 3-0 at 13:53.

Seattle made a goaltending change during the first period, replacing Joey Daccord with Philipp Grubauer. Head Coach Lane Lambert said he wanted to change the momentum after being unhappy with a couple of the goals allowed.

“It’s really hard for our hockey team to chase games, and we need to do something to change the momentum,” Lambert said.

The Rangers continued to take advantage of Seattle’s struggles in the second period. Pavel Dorofeyev scored at 12:46, extending New York’s lead to 4-0 and putting the Kraken in a difficult position heading into the final 20 minutes.

Through two periods, Seattle had managed just 15 shots on goal, including only five in the second. The Kraken struggled to connect plays, win puck battles and sustain pressure in the offensive zone. New York, meanwhile, had built its lead by capitalizing on its opportunities.

Lambert acknowledged that Seattle had not followed the game plan the coaching staff had put in place. The difference became apparent when the Kraken finally began executing it in the third.

“Once we start to follow it in the third period, lo and behold, we had some chances and we had some time in their zone,” Lambert said. “For me, it’s a good learning experience for our players and for our group.”

The Kraken’s response began with Kaapo Kakko, who scored at 1:50 of the third period. Kakko collected the puck behind the net, recognized that the goaltender was still moving across the crease and took advantage of the opening to put the Kraken on the board with and assists from Brandon Montour and Berkly Catton.

“I saw he [Joonas Korpisalo] was kind of still sliding,” Kakko said. “I wasn’t even thinking I was going to shoot it right away. I thought I could make a play and find somebody else. But then I saw he was still on the other post, so it was an easy job to put it in.”

Eberle brought Seattle within two at 6:38, converting on the power play with assists from Matty Beniers and Chandler Stephenson. Vince Dunn added another goal late in the period, cutting New York’s lead to 4-3 and giving the Kraken a chance to complete the comeback.

The offensive push was a product of a more aggressive, connected effort. Eberle pointed to Seattle’s improved work in puck battles as a major difference between the first two periods and the third.

“It’s that simple. We start winning battles,” Eberle said. “In the third, it was the exact opposite. We started to create, we started to win, started to make plays, create space and had some looks.”

The Kraken finished with 28 shots on goal, 13 of which came in the third period. Their power play finished 1-for-2, while the penalty kill allowed one goal on two Rangers opportunities.

They had one final opportunity to push for the equalizer after killing a late penalty. With roughly 30 seconds remaining, Beniers helped bring the puck back up the ice and create space for Eberle, who got a look toward the short side but couldn’t find the tying goal.

“I thought we did a good job killing penalties,” Eberle said. “Matty did a hell of a job bringing the puck back and then creating space and giving me an opportunity. But we had our chances.”

For Eberle, the third-period effort was not enough to erase the frustration of the slow start. Seattle had shown it could generate offense and compete with the Rangers, but the team needed to bring that same approach from the opening puck drop.

The Kraken entered Saturday’s game with a 9-5-1 record, but Eberle emphasized that the group could not become satisfied with its early-season results or accept inconsistent performances.

“We have to be more consistent,” Eberle said. “If we want to continue to have success this season, that has to be our mentality.”

With Seattle preparing to travel to Finland for the upcoming NHL Global Series, Lambert called the performance a learning opportunity. The challenge now is making sure the lessons from Saturday carry over, particularly the importance of following the team’s game plan from the start.

The Kraken showed plenty of fight in the third period, but their late push couldn’t make up for the hole they dug through the first 40 minutes.