Kraken swallowed by storm in overtime loss to Hurricanes
By Charles Hamaker
Raleigh, NC – The Seattle Kraken have still not been able to put together consecutive victories so far this season, as they were unable to replicate their overtime success from Tuesday, as they only took one point away from their Thursday night battle at the Carolina Hurricanes. Despite a hot start that saw them jump out to a two-goal lead against a returning Frederik Andersen, the Kraken were unable to score in the two regulation periods and lone overtime period that followed, as Carolina got back into the victory column as Martin Necas capped a three-point night thanks to his winner four minutes and 50 seconds into the extra frame. A superb effort from Seattle netminder Joey Daccord was wasted, and some of the frustrations from the beginning of this 2023-24 campaign continue as the Kraken continue a tough second road trip on the season.
Starting off right in Raleigh
Going into PNC Arena against a Carolina Hurricanes team that had lost their last three contests, the first of which being the first game these two teams played against each other this year, Seattle was looking to start strong. The Hurricanes have more than enough firepower to keep up offensively against anybody in the NHL, and they were getting goaltender Frederik Andersen back from injury. It seemed like things were leaning in the direction of Carolina before the puck had even dropped, but the Kraken were looking to maintain their hot starts as they’ve had this season and did just that. Oliver Bjorkstrand helped to jump start this game, staying alert as he jumped on the ice for his shift and immediately received a pass up the ice into the offensive zone. His alert play helped Seattle to get their two first period goals.
Bjorkstrand received that pass immediately into a shift, which left him in a one-on-one situation against Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burns. Oliver, nicknamed the “Maestro” masterfully moved around Burns just enough to give himself the necessary room to fire a shot over the glove side shoulder of Andersen and get the Kraken on the board. Getting Bjorkstrand off to a strong start will certainly help this offense for Seattle, and that continued as he found teammate Devin Shore a little over three minutes later. Shore started the play, forcing a takeaway in his own defensive zone, before passing it to Bjorkstrand to get the counter started. Bjorkstrand hung around in his zone, seemingly looking for a change, as Shore raced up the ice looking for an outlet pass. He’d receive it, getting behind the Hurricanes defensemen, and beating Andersen by going front-hand, back-hand, five-hole. Seattle had a two-goal lead, despite Carolina seemingly dominating puck possession and the shot column.
Carolina makes a late push
The first period goal from Martin Necas was a sign of things to come for the Hurricanes, as Carolina finally broke through as the first period came to a close. The home side had pressured Seattle from the jump, and it had felt like a matter of time before the Kraken conceded to Carolina considering that amount of pressure. It’s somewhat comedic to mention that the Hurricanes, a team that has been a powerhouse in the regular season for the past few years, continued to apply pressure early onto Seattle, but their first goal of the night came on a mistake from the Kraken, not any sort of highlight reel play from Carolina. Joey Daccord played a puck off the boards behind the Seattle goal towards defenseman Brian Dumoulin on a relatively routine play that seemed to catch the veteran defenseman off-guard. Dumoulin slipped and fell on his backside, leaving the puck in the high danger area for the Hurricanes to come through and sweep it up. Daccord made the initial save off his pads on a puck towards the net, but Necas was ready in the crease to tap the immediate rebound home.
The second period was a scoreless one for both sides, but once again Carolina had applied pressure to Daccord and the Kraken, looking for an equalizer that could help their constant pressure break through. Until late into the third period, both goaltenders traded strong saves as both teams made their push, with Seattle trying to give themselves insurance as Carolina was looking to tie things up and force an eventual overtime. With the Kraken trying to create, the Hurricanes were able to take things the other way and find the equalizer they had pushed so hard for. Brady Skjei brought the puck up ice off a takeaway from Kraken forward Jordan Eberle, finding Necas as he’d followed along the play. Necas opted against a backhanded shot against Daccord who had stood tall, instead finding a wide open Jesperi Kotkaniemi in the slot to smash a one-timer home. Seattle’s forward had not tracked back to help on the play, and as a result left their goaltender out to dry and sent this contest to overtime.
Hurricane heart break in overtime
Seattle’s overtime strategy was what it has been for the times we’ve seen it already (twice prior to this game) be this season: hold on to the puck and if a look doesn’t feel right, circle back and reload for another chance to unfold. The Kraken had a few different chances in the overtime period that looked dangerous and could’ve beaten Andersen for the second game winner in as many games played for the team, but Seattle wasn't good enough. Carolina took note of the sort of play that the Kraken had used, carrying the puck the other way conservatively to make sure that they got the best chance possible. The Hurricanes caught Seattle crashing back and puck watching, leaving Necas wide open in the slot. The Carolina forward looked to make his shot count, allowing teammate Seth Jarvis to screen Daccord in net, and a wrist shot got through to win the game.
Quick notes
Kraken forward Oliver Bjorkstrand has seven points (two goals, five assists) in his last five games played dating back to Oct. 14 at St. Louis.
Kraken forward Devin Shore recorded his first goal with Seattle in tonight’s loss.
Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord set a new franchise record for most saves in a single game with 42.
What’s next?
Following tonight’s overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in the team's second of its four game road trip, the Seattle Kraken will need to make some tune ups before they head down to Florida for the final aspect of said trip. Their next contest is on Saturday, October 28th with a puck drop of 3PM PST when they battle the Florida Panthers at the Amerant Bank Arena. The Panthers are coming off a win over the San Jose Sharks and have won three of their last four games including that victory. The Kraken still have some positives going with their game, but their offensive attack must continue throughout the course of all three frames and a jolt to their power play can continue to do good for them as their season continues.
