Final Buzzer: Singular Night

NASHVILLE - The Kraken earned one standings point here Thursday, but Nashville earned two points for winning in a shootout with an official final score of 2-1. Matt Duchene and Philip Tomasino scored the two shootout goals as Predators goalie Juuse Saros showed why he was named first star of the game by keeping a clean sheet in the shootout. The Kraken won't have to wait long for a rematch. Both squads will be back here Saturday at 11 a.m. Pacific time to divvy more valuable standings points.
"Hey, this time of year when there's a lot on the line, that's the type of hockey you know it's going to be," said a composed Dave Hakstol about the Kraken's road winning streak ended at six games. "It came down to the shootout and unfortunately we didn't get the extra point. But we've got to turn the page quickly, look at a couple areas to be a little bit better. You can pretty much expect a very similar game Saturday afternoon. These two teams are going to be fighting hard for the points."
"That's what playoff hockey is like," said alternate captain Jordan Eberle. "We'll take the point but obviously we would have preferred to have both points."

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Going to Overtime

The Kraken were pressuring Nashville goalie Juuse Saros relentlessly for most of the third period but couldn't solve how to get a puck past him. When needed, Joey Daccord fended off a handful of Predators attempts, especially later period, showing the poise that Dave Hakstol admired after Tuesday's win in Dallas.
"Joey didn't have a lot to do in portions [of play], especially the first half of the game," said Hakstol. "They built some momentum in the second period and that's when he had to be his best. He was solid and made pretty good decisions with the puck."
With Kraken fans everywhere biting nails and lacing hands over their eyes as Nashville was in the midst of one of its longer offensive-zone possessions with less than two minutes remaining in regulation, Brandon Tanev was penalized for boarding. Tanev protested the call vigorously but could only look on as Seattle delivered another clutch penalty kill to secure the one standings point. The PK unit was so good (and with penalty-killer extraordinaire Tanev not available), it extended the kill into the overtime.
With the penalty snuffed, the teams played three minutes-plus of 4-on-4 play in OT before the last 29 seconds went back to 3-on-3. By league rules, an overtime period cannot start with 3-on-2. Once the 29 seconds were wiped out, the teams play 4-on-4 until the next whistle.
With the standings point earned, Seattle remains in the first wild-card position with 86 points, one ahead of Winnipeg, which is now at 85 points after beating Anaheim, 3-2, on the road Thursday. The Kraken have two games in hand on Winnipeg.
In his post-game remarks, Eberle mused that maybe the Kraken could have found a way to get a whistle, returning to 3-on-3, noting Seattle has been good in that format this season. The Kraken have lost all four of their shootout decisions this season while prospering in overtime with a 9-4 record.

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Penalty Kills Set Up Intense Third Period

When the third period started at 1-1, it's worth noting both teams killed off a penalty in the second period with little damage from either team's power play units. Nashville killed the Seattle penalty and 30 seconds after the Kraken man advantage vanished, the home crowd cranked up the noise when the Predators scored to even matters.
Soon after, Adam Larsson, arguably the Kraken's best penalty-killer was called for tripping. But his PK colleagues held Nashville to zero shots to set up a hold-your-breath third period. Both teams traded rapid-fire scoring chances and offensive rushes but the Kraken were creating double the chances and six shots on goal, but Saros was particularly strong. He made saves on three Grade-A chances by eight minutes into the third period.

Going Fourth Early

The Kraken fourth line struck again and struck first Thursday. Just two minutes and 32 seconds into the first of two consecutive showdowns against the hometown Predators, center Morgan Geekie took an outlet pass from Vince Dunn at the Predators' blue line. Geekie skated to the left sideboards and backhanded a perfect cross-zone pass to speeding linemate Daniel Sprong. The Kraken right wing arrived pronto at the Predators' crease. Maybe too fast because Sprong veered past the net while still skating with the puck.
But Sprong is a shooter from all geographic locations. In this case, he flung the puck back toward Nashville goalie Juuse Saros. The puck bounced off the back of Saros's right skate and into the net. For a refresher, fellow fourth-line Brandon Tanev opened the road trip in Dallas Tuesday with a goal two minutes and 28 seconds into that road win. These guys know how to get the party started.

It was Sprong's 18th goal of the year and second in two games. He has registered eight points in his last eight appearances (three goals, five assists) while averaging less than 10 minutes of time on ice in those games. He's the third-highest goal scorer for Seattle while averaging just over 11 minutes of time on ice per game over the season. Originally acquired in a 2022 trade deadline deal, Sprong is eighth in overall scoring with 37 points.
For a second-straight game, Geekie made a highlight-reel-worthy backhanded pass to set up a linemate to score a big goal down this playoff contention stretch. During the first intermission, the night's lone Kraken goal scorer Daniel Sprong was being interviewed by ROOT SPORTS' Piper Shaw. Geekie, walking by, chirped, "You talking about me?" Playoff contention is serious business, yes, but having fun is a component too.
"I'm a skilled player, in my opinion," said Geekie about his pair of backhanded strike-gold passes on this trip to date. "I think I can make plays and have a couple of assets that can be used in the offensive zone. That's exactly what I want to do with the puck. Spronger and me, we've got some chemistry playing with each other through the year. He's got a great shot, gets in the offensive zone, and a good mind."
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"That was a big goal for us," said Hakstol.
On the goal, Dunn notched his 45th assist and has now logged at least one point in 13 of the last 14 games.

Fast First

For the opening period, the Kraken registered six shots on goal while Nashville managed just three. But Kraken starting goalie Joey Daccord made solid saves as needed and Juuse Saros countered with quality work himself. Both goalies faced two Grade-A chances. The pace of the period was swift throughout and there were additional scoring chances for each side that didn't end up with shots on net.
In fact, Nashville went 12 minutes and 19 seconds without a shot on goal extending into the second period and the Predators recorded just seven shots total by mid-second period. The Predators did perk up in the second half of the middle period, firing six more shots on goal and tying the game on a rebound shot by left wing Kiefer Sherwood after Daccord made the initial stop on Tyson Barrie. Sherwood was unchecked to Daccord's right and 10 to 15 feet out (Jesper Froden and Alex Wennberg were closest), shades of how Dallas rookie Wyatt Johnston scored from almost the exact same spot to make it a 3-2 game Tuesday.