The Seattle Kraken set a new franchise record by winning its 9th game in a row with a 7-4 victory over the Blue Jackets in Columbus. The club’s unbeaten-in-regulation streak is now at 13 games.
Both Jared McCann and Yanni Gourde reached the career 300 point mark in the game.
The Kraken lost forward Andre Burakovsky to injury in the first period. He’s already missed time this season on two previous occasions after missing two months plus the playoffs last spring.
1st Period
It only took 1:41 for the home team to jump on the board. Blue Jackets D-man Ivan Provorov fired a shot from the point that deflected off Kraken forward Oliver Bjorkstrand’s stick, found its way through traffic and past Joey Daccord.
The next three goals came in a hurry.
Off a 140-foot stretch pass from D-man Adam Larsson, Kraken forward Jordan Eberle gloved the puck down at the Columbus blueline, skated into the right wing circle and ripped home a wrister, blocker side on Daniil Tarasov. The goal came at 11:37.
Just 33-seconds later Provorov would get lucky again and give Columbus the lead again with his second goal of the night and fourth of the season. This time his shot that was going eight feet wide of the left post caromed into the net off Kraken defenseman Brian Dumoulin’s knee.
McCann would tie the game for Seattle 3:21 after that. A tenacious forecheck led to Dumoulin keepin the puck alive, finding Eeli Tolvanen in the left circle, who found McCann in the slot for a one-time.
2-2
2nd Period
The Blue Jackets took their third lead of the evening at 4:43 of the second period when Kirill Marchenko scored on a two-man advantage. He ripped home a team-leading 6th power play goal from the left wing circle on a one-timer with Seattle having picked up a holding call and a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty at the same time at 3:58.
Yet again the Kraken would answer. Off a clean face-off win by Gourde in the offensive zone, Vince Dunn fired a shot from the left point that Tye Kartye tipped home at 9:45. It was the rookie’s 8th goal of the season.
At 12:03 Blue Jackets forward Cole Sillinger boarded Seattle center Matty Beniers and picked up a two-minute penalty. Dunn took exception to the hit and dropped the mitts with Sillinger, the two of them earning five minutes for fighting. Dunn essentially beat the crap out of him.
On the ensuing power play, Seattle would take its first lead of the evening on a goal from former Blue Jacket Bjorkstrand. The Kraken’s representative in the upcoming NHL All-Star Game fired a wrist shot past Tarasov from the top of right wing circle.
The Kraken blocked 20 shots through two periods to the Blue Jackets’ five.
4-3 Seattle
3rd Period
The Kraken added all of the insurance they needed before the first half of the period was over.
McCann tallied his 2nd goal of the night when he flew into the Columbus zone and unleashed a twisted wrister from the slot at 6:17.
Just 2:11 later, Dumoulin seemingly put the game out of reach with a snap shot on the rush to make it 6-3.
Moments after Daccord made a big glove save on Sillinger, the Blue Jackets showed some resilience. Swedish winger Emil Bemstrom tallied to cut into the lead, ripping a slapper from the right slot.
Down two, Columbus pulled their goalie for the extra attacker with three minutes remaining.
Eeli Tolvanen scored an empty-netter for Seattle. It gave the Finnish winger a five-game point streak.
The shots-on-goal finished even at 36 aside. Power plays: Seattle 1-for-2, Columbus 1-for-3.
Kraken 3 Stars:
1) Jared McCann – Adjusting to playing center over the last week, tallied two goals and an assist.
2) Oliver Bjorkstrand – A goal and an assist against the team that drafted him.
3) Tye Kartye – A beautiful tip-in, a physical presence in just more than ten minutes of ice time.
Earlier Kraken:
— Kraken March Through DC, Beat Capitals 4-1
