Final Buzzer: Kraken Go Three for Three

• Rookie Kole Lind opens the scoring 72 seconds into the first period and veteran forward Jordan Eberle doubles the lead before the six-minute mark.
• Matty Beniers notched a primary assist on Eberle's goal, sets franchise record (four games) for point-streak to begin Kraken career. Also, first rookie this season with four-game point streak to start NHL career.
• Colorado is second in the NHL in goals scored and entered the night co-leader in standings points across the entire league. Kraken hold on and hold off furious late rally for 3-2 win.

The night started fast for the Kraken, who scored two goals in six minutes, added one to go three-up before Western Conference leader Colorado sawed the deficit to 3-1 before first intermission. Goal lights didn't illuminate again until the Avalanche punched in a second score from just outside Philipp Grubauer's goal crease with just over three minutes remaining.
When Jared McCann attempted to nail an empty-net goal with 21 seconds left on the clock, the shot went wide and resulted in icing. Danger loomed in the Kraken end, but Climate Pledge Arena fans got a chance to exhale and inhale regularly when Colorado called a timeout to set up in the offensive zone with six attackers.
But the crowd went clench-mode 12 seconds later after Grubauer saved and froze an open-look shot from Colorado wing Valeri Nichushkin. The final nine seconds were double-clench, hold-your-breath and successful. The game ended on the back wall with Kraken players scraping and scrapping for the puck, throttling the potent Colorado attackers. Grubauer, named First Star, beats his former team for the first time this season.
"'Grubi' did a really good job tonight," coach Dave Hakstol said. "They only had power plays twice but they know what they are doing on the power play. It starts there, Grubi has to be our best penalty killer. It was a solid performance. He did his part, and it was nice to see him get the win against his former team."

Crowd Pleasers

Goal scorers Kole Lind and Jordan Eberle were effusive about winning Wednesday before the Seattle noise-worthy crowd. Same for Hakstol who began and ended his media comments talking about how the fans have "stuck with us for six to seven months."
"The guys are playing pretty hard for one another," Hakstol said. "And they're playing really hard for the people in the stands who have been there for us."
Eberle went straight to praising the fans in his post-game meetup with the media.
"It's nice to finish off this homestand three in a row, give fans something to cheer about," Eberle said. "They have been with us all season. It's kind of a tribute to them.
"The fans are first class, honestly the best I've had in my career in the aspect of how the team is doing and they've been with us every night."

Positively Productive

There are optimists among us, present company included, but chances are even the staunchest Kraken supporters didn't dream up a two-goal Seattle lead less than six minutes into Wednesday's game. Best guess, young defenseman Will Borgen didn't figure it likely his rink-long dump pass would take a lively bounce off the Colorado south end boards, pinballing right to the stick blade of a charging Lind.
Fighting off Colorado veteran forward J.T. Compher, Lind deked on his forehand and then went backhand and back of the net for a 1-0 Seattle lead. It is Lind's second goal since being called up for good in March. He was leading scorer for the American Hockey League affiliate Charlotte Checkers (stocked with Kraken and Florida Panthers) when he departed.
"We wanted to use the building's energy, how loud it is here," Lind said when asked by ROOT SPORTS Northwest's Piper Shaw about the quick start during a first-intermission interview. "It's a huge advantage for us."
Four minutes later, the Kraken extended the goal margin to two on a laser-accurate shot by Eberle, notching his 19th goal of this inaugural season. Eberle went high short-side corner, ricocheting the puck off the near goalpost and far crossbar corner before dropping past the goal line. Linemates Ryan Donato and Matty Beniers scrummed the puck to Eberle, beating two Avs defenders.

Second Chances - and Saves

After an active first period for the goal judges, the second period was remarkably long on solid defense, including seven saves from former Colorado goaltender Grubauer, his best on Avs forward Andre Burakovsky net front to maintain the two-goal margin going into second intermission.
"They have almost five forwards out there [with defensemen such as Cale Makar and Bowen Byram]," said Grubauer, who should know, facing those D-men and others in Colorado practices over the last few seasons.
The Avalanche backup goalie, Pavel Francouz matched with 12 saves of his own, faring favorably to the Kraken's three-goal first period.
Noteworthy through the first 40 minutes: According to NaturalHatTrick.com, the Kraken logged seven Grade-A scoring chances to three for Colorado.

Believing in Beniers

Beniers, recruiting more believers every game, earned the primary assist on Eberle's goal. He is the first rookie in the league this season to register four points in his first four NHL games. Plus, Beniers now stands as the first player in Kraken franchise history to notch a point (two goals, two assists) in each of his first four games wearing the "S."
He's also the first rookie since the 1979-80 season when Bernie Johnston did so for the first-year Hartford Whalers. OK, just sayin' ... the record number of games in which an expansion-draft rookie scored at least a point at the start of his career is six. The record holder? Wayne Gretzky, who did it earlier that same season.
The points are hard to ignore - and certainly have been noticed by fans around town, if for real-life examples count, including conversations with season-ticket holders outside a Queen Anne coffee shop, a downtown parking attendant showing off his cell-phone video of the Kraken's pre-game show to pretty much every customer (saw it twice this week already) and a former college football player and Olympic sprinter hopeful who raved about Beniers' ability to step right into the lineup.
But what might not have been discussed, even in the deep catalog of prospect scouting reports, is Beniers' creativity with the puck. Passing backward between his legs looks natural, not showy. He appears to cycle back into play at the offensive end in varying circle sizes depending on how soon he can touch the puck or be a decoy for a pass. There's more, and the feeling here is it will be a joy to watch for those details in games and seasons ahead.

Three-Goal Stance

Seattle upped the lead to three when McCann lived up to the credo, "put the puck on net, especially from closer range, and good things happen." He sent a hard shot-pass net front from his off-wing, resulting in the puck deflecting off 20-year-old Colorado defenseman Bowen Byram's skate, then redirecting once more off Yanni Gourde's boot. Gourde was credited with his 18th goal of the season.