Kraken come within inches, can’t end regular season with win, falling to Golden Knights
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – The Seattle Kraken ended their second regular season in franchise history with a narrow defeat, literally and figuratively, to divisional rival Las Vegas. The Kraken had numerous near misses on scoring opportunities throughout the course of the game and arguably dominated in that category but couldn’t locate the final piece to complete their puzzle. Regardless of the result, Seattle is heading to the postseason, but the loss doesn’t help clear up who their opponent will be in the first round. Following the loss to the Golden Knights, the Kraken will await the result of tomorrow’s Colorado vs Nashville game to determine if they will face the Avalanche or the Dallas Stars.
Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson’s expression sums up the tough loss to Las Vegas (Photo by Liv Lyons)
An odd bounce sets the vibe
The scoring got underway in an unfortunate manner, as Las Vegas got a wacky bounce off Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn trying to clear the puck up the ice. Four ticks below ten minutes into the period, Dunn came around his own goal and looked to throw the puck down the ice to clear it from his zone but was impeded by Las Vegas forward Reilly Smith. The Golden Knights forward stuck his skate backwards in the direction of the puck, redirecting it back towards an unsuspecting Seattle goaltender Philipp Grubauer. It was an odd, bang-bang play that was unfortunate and technically was Las Vegas’ first shot of the night as the Kraken had been dominating with heavy pressure to begin the game. That play and its vibes set the tone for the rest of this contest, in one of the weirder ways that Seattle has lost a game this season.
Seattle forward Jaden Schwartz’s first period goal ended up being the only score for the Kraken (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Schwartz snipes one to bring Seattle back
Veteran Kraken forward Jaden Schwartz scored the only goal in tonight’s game for Seattle, a response to Las Vegas’ odd bounce score earlier in the opening period. One of the teams' alternate captains, Schwartz was seen in full pads for morning skate ahead of the regular season finale which is a rarity as he’s always seen in a track suit for practice. Perhaps the 2019 Stanley Cup champion was feeling it today, as he hammered home one-timer off a pass from Alex Wennberg through heavy traffic to tie things up with under four minutes before the first intermission. Keeping Schwartz’s health as a top priority will be a major key if the Kraken want to go deep into the playoffs.
Coming up just short in the finale game of the regular season
There wasn’t this overbearing feeling of disappointment or sadness after this loss within Climate Pledge Arena, largely in part to the facts that the Kraken had already clinched a playoff berth and that the result of this game ultimately didn’t impact their seeding anymore after the result of the Los Angeles Kings win became official. The fight that Seattle showed (literally, in Yanni Gourde’s case) and the waves of offensive pressure that they displayed showed everyone clearly that the Kraken belong and can hang with the best of them. We’ve already seen that throughout the course of this year, but an effort like this in the final game of the regular season in a game that technically didn’t mean that much? It’s great to see, especially with the playoffs next up.
A grinding, close game throughout, the Kraken were only able to beat the Golden Knights once this season (Photos by Liv Lyons)
Quick notes
The Seattle Kraken's opponent in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs has yet to be determined:
If Colorado earns at least one point against Nashville tomorrow, the Kraken will play the Avalanche. If Colorado loses in regulation, the Kraken will face Dallas. Colorado's game tomorrow is set to begin at 5 p.m. PT.
With Jaden Schwartz's goal, Seattle is now one of five teams (Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, New York Rangers) this season to have eight skaters record 40 or more points.
Matty Beniers is now the fourth player in NHL history to play in at least 80 regular-season games while only taking one penalty, joining Ryan O’Reilly (2013-14, 2017-18), Ben Smith (2014-15) and Butch Goring (1977-78). He has the most points of any player in the league with two or less penalty minutes this year.
Tonight marks Adam Larsson's 82nd game this season. He is the only Kraken player to skate in every game (164) in franchise history and is joined by four other skaters to play every game this season: Will Borgen, Jordan Eberle, Brandon Tanev and Alex Wennberg.
Since Feb. 14, the Kraken have gone 69-for-78 on the penalty kill after successfully killing two-of-two Vegas power plays tonight.
The Kraken finish the season with a 40-point improvement (100 points) and 76-goal increase (289 goals) compared to their inaugural season. Additionally, the Kraken increased their win total from last season by 19 after surpassing their 27 wins last season on January 25th of this year.
Players such as goaltender Philipp Grubauer have Stanley Cup-winning experience, which the Kraken will need as they head into their first ever postseason as a franchise (Photo by Liv Lyons)
What’s next?
When the Los Angeles Kings secured victory during this game, it meant that the result of Las Vegas against Seattle was obsolete and that it had no value for the Kraken in terms of seeding. Now, Seattle and their fans will have to wait till tomorrow at 5PM PST when the Avalanche take on the Predators in a game that will decide who the Kraken face in round one, their first ever playoff series. It’s as simple as this: If Colorado wins, then the Kraken will play Colorado. If Colorado loses, the Kraken will play the Dallas Stars. Those two are both teams that Seattle has beaten over the course of the past few months, but the Kraken must remain purely focused on the task at hand.