GAME RECAP: Kraken 3, Oilers 2

SEATTLE, WA – Kraken captain Jordan Eberle scored twice on Saturday in a 3-2 defeat for the Edmonton Oilers at Climate Pledge Arena in their first of back-to-back games on the West Coast this weekend.

Defenceman Evan Bouchard scored his first goal of the season on the power play to make it 2-1 in the second period, extending his point streak to three games, but Darnell Nurse's deflection in the final frame for his first goal 2:24 after Eberle restored the two-goal lead for the Kraken wouldn't be enough.

"I thought our process was a little better than the other night, but we forced Stu to make some big saves, especially there off the rush, and probably gave up a few," Nurse said. "For us, we gotta keep plugging away at our game."

Leon Draisaitl had two assists, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins added a helper to extend their point streaks to four and three games, respectively.

The Oilers will finish their back-to-back set at Rogers Arena on Sunday against the Vancouver Canucks.

"Every time we play Vancouver, it's a tough match," Nurse said. "They're a team that comes out and plays hard. So for us, it's that connectedness. We talked about being five players all over the ice, upping our work ethic and winning our battles and those cliché things that allow you to work yourself out of a slump."

FIRST PERIOD

Enjoying their best start of the season as a franchise with a 4-2-2 record through eight games, the Kraken needed only 83 seconds to open the scoring on Saturday through their captain Jordan Eberle, after a pinch at the blueline from the Oilers opened up an early odd-man rush for the hosts.

Forward Berkly Catton chipped it up the boards past Evan Bouchard and Isaac Howard to create a two-on-one, with Matty Beniers putting a pass onto the tape of Jordan Eberle under the defending stick of Mattias Ekholm that he finished past Stuart Skinner under the arm for a 1-0 lead early in this one.

Eberle's tally would unfortunately start the night's trend of the Kraken having the upper hand on rush chances, while taking advantage of those opportunities.

"I thought we had a lot of pressure, just some mistakes on giving up chances off the rush," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "Whether that's a bad pinch or the forwards not coming back, we're just out of sync there. That's where Seattle had pretty much all their chances off plays like that. So most of it was good, but that part is a very important part we need to get better at."

It was only Eberle's second goal in 16 career meetings against the Oilers since being traded to the New York Islanders in June 2017 and selected by the Kraken in the 2021 Expansion Draft following seven seasons with Edmonton as their 22nd overall pick from the 2008 NHL Draft.

David Tomasek had a great look at his second career NHL in as many games after finding his first in the League on Thursday against the Canadiens, spinning in front of goalie Joey Daccord after a few minutes at four-on-four and forcing the Seattle netminder into his first big save with a confident left-pad stop.

Defenceman Jake Walman blocked a shot on the inside of his leg a few minutes later that had him limping to the Oilers' bench before his own effort soon after wound up hitting teammate Vasily Podkolzin in the finger, prompting repairs on the bench, but both players would remain in the game for Edmonton.

The Oilers had to kill off three penalties in the frame, with one of their best looks on the period not even counting as a shot on net when Ryan Nugent-Hopkins dented the crossbar on a shorthanded two-on-one in the final four minutes of the period.

Shots were slightly in favour of the Oilers 12-11 despite trailing 1-0 after 20 minutes.

SECOND PERIOD

The Oilers had the Kraken on their heels to begin the middle frame, but it was the hosts who grabbed the next goal and doubled their lead on a quick combination from Ryan Winterton and Tye Kartye off the rush to make it 2-0 at 13:25 of the period.

Winterton toe-dragged his way out of the Oilers' zone and got in front of Adam Henrique before throwing it across to Kartye for a wrist shot that beat Stuart Skinner after the netminder caught an edge in his crease while coming across to try and make the save.

In the opposite crease, Joey Daccord had been steady in keeping his shutout streak going from Thursday's 3-0 victory over the Winnipeg Jets past the midway mark of Saturday's contest, but there wasn't keeping Evan Bouchard from breaking that or his goalless start to the campaign through eight games.

On the power play with former Oilers defenceman Adam Larsson in the box for tripping, Bouchard stepped into an open slap shot from inside the right circle with under six minutes left in the second period, ending Daccord's shutout streak at 119:59 with his first goal of the season.

Bouchard picked up his first point of the season on Tuesday against the Senators and now has points in three straight games (1G, 2A). With assists, Leon Draisaitl (2G, 2A) and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1G, 3A) extended their respective point streaks to four and three games.

Winger Jack Roslovic had plenty of chances on Saturday night – including a good one-timer in the first period connecting with Draisaitl – but wouldn't have a better opportunity to score his first Oilers' goal with time expiring in the second period, shovelling a rebound off the back boards towards goal and hitting the post with mere milliseconds left on the clock.

The Oilers trailed 2-1 going into the third period and were looking for their second consecutive win when trailing after two periods following their come-from-behind 6-5 win over Montreal on Thursday. Last season, the Oilers had four wins when trailing through 40 minutes.

THIRD PERIOD

Failing to capitalize on their pressure early in the final frame wound up costing the Oilers, who got a goal back from Darnell Nurse to make things interesting late in the game before their attempts to find an equalizer with their net empty came up short.

The Oilers had the Kraken hemmed in their own zone early with nearly two straight minutes of offensive-zone pressure that saw them get a change for fresh bodies and challenge the tired Seattle skaters, but their possession didn't result in any shots on goal before the Kraken came back to squeeze them out.

"There were lots of looks today," Nurse said. "I felt like we got in the o-zone we were creating, and it's just a matter of making that one extra play, bearing down a little bit, and just keep just nailing away at that. There's no secret formula, no secret solution to it. It's just put our hard work hats on and try to put one home."

The Kraken are a counter-attacking team, and Eberle was able to make it 3-1 on a similar play to his opening goal in the first period, capitalizing on a failed keep-in at the blueline by Bouchard and having it pushed up to him by Beniers before going back across Skinner for his second goal of the game.

"They're obviously quick and have a lot of skill, and then you give them opportunities to use that speed and skill and play to their strength," Nurse said. "At some point, they're going to convert. So at least Stu made some huge saves for us and kept us in the game."

The Oilers were able to respond 2:24 later, with Nurse scoring on a rare deflection to make it 3-2 by knocking down Ekholm's chest-high shot from the slot with 5:25 remaining in regulation, but the Kraken were able to hold on for the victory and move into a tie with the Golden Knights for first in the Pacific.