Final Buzzer: Boston Shocks in Overtime

Kraken goalie Phillip Grubauer made handfuls of big saves to keep his team in the game, essentially earning his team a standings point. Boston forward Jake DeBrusk's second goal of the night one shift into overtime fueled a 3-2 Bruins victory. Boston is now 13-3-3 in its last 19 road games.

DeBrusk scored on a deep-angle shot that leaked through Grubauer on the short side. It was DeBrusk's second score of the game and he was mobbed by teammates who were clearly thrilled to get out of Seattle with the win.

Third Period to Remember

The third period of Thursday's matchup with "Original Six" franchise Boston started with a 2-2 deadlock and, for quite the change, had no penalties in the 20 minutes.
In between, there were more big saves from Grubauer and one net-front scrum involving the usual skaters on both sides plus 'Grubi' himself getting in the middle of the scuffle.
The fight in the Kraken was apparent from the opening whistle - and the second whistle just 20 seconds later when captain Mark Giordano was called for tripping. Seattle-worthy noise was constant and vibrational for the full game, negating any temptation to wonder about scores of Boston jerseys dotted around the arena (those Original Six teams can travel, even during pandemic times). There were a half-dozen "Let's Go Kraken" fan chants in the third period alone.
"We played our asses off tonight," said Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol, concisely answering media questions after the game. "We played a full 60 minutes."
"We started on time," alternate captain Jordan Eberle said when asked about the difference between going to overtime against a rollicking, highly competitive playoff squad Thursday compared to a 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders, who are a longshot to return to the playoffs this spring.
"Fresh legs," said Hakstol, answering the same question about the Tuesday-Thursday side-by-side comparison. The Islanders game was the second of back-to-back games.

Keeping it Tight

Boston is a potent offensive team (particularly threatening on the power play). Yet, the Kraken continued elite-level penalty killing over recent games.
Seattle also brought its own threats and chances to get a game-winner in regulation. The teams were pretty much even in overall scoring chances and Grade-A opportunities. The skilled Boston forwards (they put on a clinic in stickhandling in the offensive zone) were matched by the likes of Marcus Johansson, Eberle and their linemate, Calle Jarnkrok, filling Jared McCann's spot after he was placed on IR Thursday morning.
Hakstol said he was impressed with Jarnkrok fitting in the top-line center role after playing wing on the second and third lines this season. In fact, Hakstol recalled Jarnkrok played exactly one preseason game at the position.
"Throughout the year he has taken faceoffs," Hakstol said. "He ends up low in the [defensive] zone on the 'Gourdo' line [effectively assuming some center duties]. Considering guys he faced tonight, he was real good for us."
When the traditional "there is one minute remaining in the period" announcement came through in the third period, the Kraken were battling to get a dagger past Boston's Linus Ullmark. Forty-five seconds later, Grubauer countered with a big stop and his teammates cleared the zone and last 15 seconds.
Regulation ended with Boston ahead on shots on goal, 38-27, but it was clearly either team's game to win in the final 20 minutes.

First and Pen-alties

The first period Thursday night was not the opening 20 minutes coach Dave Hakstol and his assistant coaches, Jay Leach and Paul McFarland, drew up on the whiteboard. But the trio, along with goalie coach Andrew Allen, were no doubt accepting of the result: A 1-1 game even though Boston finished the period with 17-8 advantage in shots on goal.
Grubauer was outstanding early and all period. He faced three Grade-A scoring chances and several more legitimate scoring chances for Boston, plus a potential "own-goal" that Grubauer laid out to stop ("he's stopping even his own team," quipped Kraken play-by-play man and future Hall of Famer John Forslund on air). Pick a favorite, one that sticks out is getting front of a David Pastrnak one-timer on a power play.
Kraken players committed four penalties in the opening period for 10 man-down minutes (defenseman Adam Larsson went off for a four-minute high sticking penalty, drawing blood on the infraction against Boston's Taylor Hall). Giordano served the first penalty, then proceeded to join a shorthanded rush with Kraken penalty killer extraordinaire Joonas Donskoi.
Taking an on-target pass from Donskoi, Giordano beat Ullmark to make it 1-zip Seattle less than four minutes into the game - fitting enough since Giordano set what could be a franchise record for years to come by committing a penalty (this one for tripping) just 20 seconds into the contest.
The Giordano "shorty" was the first for a Kraken player at Climate Pledge Arena. It was Giordano's second shorthanded goal in three nights and he has 12 man-down goals in his illustrious career.

Getting the DeBrusk Off

Boston's opening goal late in the period was on the fluky side and, as it turns out, the only way to solve Grubauer during the first frame. Boston center Erik Haula was behind the Kraken net. Haula lifted the puck over the crossbar, Seattle D-man Jeremy Lauzon tried to swat it away from danger.
Lauzon's clearing attempt didn't get farther than Grubauer's left post, where DeBrusk tapped it in. After his overtime tally, DeBrusk now has 11 goals on the year and four in his last three games. As with the subject of season-long trade rumors, the young wing is likely to catch some attention from teams, including possibly his own. He was played on a line with future Hall of Famers Patrice Bergeron (a lock) and Brad Marchand (more likely each stellar season) Thursday.

Trading Goals

David Pastrnak had 27 goals on the season arriving in Seattle and he leaves with No. 28. Early second period, Pastrnak benefited from a clean faceoff win from Haula and a timely cross-ice pass from Charlie McAvoy (his 24th assist) before doing his part with a signature one-timer from the left faceoff circle.
But with Grubauer continuing his strong play - he finished the second period with 29 saves in the first 40 minutes - the Kraken made their way back to even. The seemingly always overdue Eberle (he is so good at generating scoring chances game after game) squared matters with a skill show.
He moved the puck in the offensive zone with first-pair Boston defenseman Mike Reilly on the case. During Eberle's approach, Giordano joined the play (man, he does that so well), giving Reilly and Ullmark more to worry about.
Reilly guessed wrong and Eberle took the puck to Ullmark, who committed left and Eberle countered by scoring on the left with a backhanded shot Kraken fans have seen before on the Eberle highlight reel. It's the alternate captain's 15th goal of the season and entirely welcome with McCann sidelined with an upper-body injury.
The primary assist was credited to Johansson (increasingly productive as the season unfolds). New linemate Jarnkrok started the break and got the second assist. It was the type of comeback goal the Kraken have been missing in a multitude of one-goal losses.

Prospects Alert

Kraken prospect Ryker Evans scored the winning goal for Western Hockey League Regina Wednesday night, breaking a scoreless goalie duel with less than seven minutes remaining in the game. Evans' quick-release wrist shot from inside the blue line was on a power play. Regina won, 2-0, with 16-year-old sensation Connor Bedard (widely considered a potential No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft) adding an empty-net goal.
Evans now has 12 goals and 37 assists in 49 games, ranking him in the top five scorers among all defensemen. He logs big minutes, sometimes up to 30 and always mid-20s, playing on the top pairing plus power play and penalty kill duties.