Driedger makes 33 saves, Kraken hold off Sharks

SAN JOSE -- Chris Driedger made 33 saves for the Seattle Kraken in a 3-1 win against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Tuesday.

Ryan Donato, Brandon Tanev and Calle Jarnkrok scored for the Kraken (10-15-3) who ended a three-game losing streak in the NHL expansion team's first game against the Sharks.
"Obviously a team effort," Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson said. "Great goaltending. I thought our overall play today was better and more solid."
Driedger had not played since a 7-4 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 29 because of a lower-body injury.
"Solid performance for him coming back off of injury," Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. "We know that's what he's capable of. He did a great job for his teammates tonight."

Logan Couture scored, and James Reimer made 27 saves for the Sharks (15-13-1) who have lost four of their past six.
"It was a frustrating game," Sharks coach Bob Boughner. "We knew they work hard. They have a balanced lineup. We just couldn't generate enough."
Donato, who played for the Sharks last season, made it 1-0 at 6:23 of the third period when he redirected a shot by Joonas Donskoi and the forward bounced his own shot off of Radim Simek's skate.
"Obviously it's nice to do it against an old team and that kind of stuff," Donato said. "It was a blessing that somehow it bounced off a couple of things and went into the net. I'm happy it went that way."
Tanev made it 2-0 at 14:18 after Morgan Geekie set him up with a backhand shot from the corner.
"The thing that's probably disappointing the most is, they got the 1-0 [then] we've got to keep it 1-0 and try to get that game to 1-1 to get to overtime," Boughner said. "We can't give up the second one and we did."

Couture scored for the Sharks at 17:53 to make it 2-1 and end Driedger's bid for the first shutout in Seattle history.
Jarnkrok scored into an empty net at 19:54 for the 3-1 final.
"Any time you're not scoring a goal until you pull the goalie it's going to be a tough way to win a hockey game," Boughner said. "You almost have to play perfect on the other side of the puck. I don't think we played bad defensively, but we opened it up to give them some chances."
NOTES: Donskoi's assist on Donato's goal was his 400th NHL point. He played for the Sharks for his first four NHL seasons (2015-19). ... Kraken forward Alexander True had three hits and a plus-1 against his former team. He was signed as a free agent by the Sharks in 2018 and spent two seasons with San Jose before being selected by Seattle in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. ... Sharks defenseman Radim Simek led all skaters with 11 hits. He is the third player in San Jose history to have 11 or more hits in a game. The last player was Joe Pavelski (against the Chicago Blackhawks, Dec. 20, 2015). ... The Sharks out-hit the Kraken 43-31... The Sharks and Kraken had seven total face-offs in the first period, tied for the fewest in a first period for the Sharks since Jan. 14, 2016 against the Edmonton Oilers. ... The Sharks and Kraken went 14:58 in the first period before the first whistle.