Kraken Super Skills Showcase year two; Team Driedger takes home the victory in another successful event
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA – For many in attendance at this year's Seattle Kraken Super Skills Showcase (Say that five times fast), it was the first time that they have gotten to see their hockey heroes in person. The lower bowl of Climate Pledge Arena was filled while a smattering of fans lined the upper level. All looking on as two teams, Team Donskoi and Team Driedger, put on a light-hearted display of hockey filled with laughs, big Cat smiles, and a step back for a team that has captured the hearts of so many in this great sports city.
Meet the teams
Team Donskoi: Injured forward Joonas Donskoi captained the team that took on the defending champ. Interesting note: Matty Beniers was on this team initially, but there was reportedly a trade that sent him to Team Driedger.
Eeli Tolvanen
Daniel Sprong
Alex Wennberg
Brandon Tanev
Adam Larsson
Jamie Oleksiak
Cale Fleury
Ryan Donato
Team Driedger: The injured goalie (Who has been practicing prior to morning skates, by the way) looked to defend his title, but did so by donning the “cursed” reverse retro jerseys
Jordan Eberle
Jared McCann
Will Borgen
Matty Beniers
Oliver Bjorkstrand
Morgan Geekie
Vince Dunn
Carson Soucy
Daniel Sprong looked to show off his impressive shot in the Accuracy shooting competition (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Accuracy shooting: Sprong steals the show
The accuracy shooting event aimed to determine which Kraken skater had the most accurate shot and featured some damn good shooters. It was not all about accuracy though, as the fastest shooter to hit all of the targets set up within the ring was to be the winner. Eeli Tolvanen and Jordan Eberle began the event, with Eberle taking home the faster time against his opponent. That set up a battle between Jared McCann and Daniel Sprong, two absolute snipers with the puck.
Daniel Sprong dispatched the targets in quick fashion, taking only 16 seconds to complete the event. Even the handful of misses that he had were excellent shots, showcasing his brilliant ability to take a three inch by one inch object and slam it into the back of the net. Jared McCann, an excellent shooter in his own right, struggled a bit and took 41 seconds to complete the event. With pucks flying over from the other side of the ice (perhaps some interference from Team Donskoi) and Everett Fitzhugh chiming in “You gotta hit the target,” McCann and team Driedger fell in the first competition.
Brandon Tanev helps Team Donskoi win the relay race event (Photos by Liv Lyons)
Relay race: Turbo helps team Donskoi take it, earning his nickname
The relay race was next, also with an interesting note as Alex Wennberg was originally set to participate with Team Donskoi but was scratched in favor of Cale Fleury. This was likely due to Wennberg’s undisclosed injury. Nonetheless, teams of three were set to get through a race that featured a variety of stations that showcased their skating and puck-handling, aiming to get a better time total than the other.
Team Driedger’s skaters completed the event with a time of a minute and 44 seconds, as Will Borgen, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Matty Beniers all fared well in the event outside of Beniers missing the final aspect of the race, the empty net goal from center ice. With the last-minute switch of Cale Fleury for Alex Wennberg, Adam Larsson and Brandon Tanev guided Team Donskoi to victory as they shaved off four seconds from their opponent's time. Tanev and Fleury’s combined speed and efficiency while maneuvering around the cones, chipping the puck into a target, and puck-handling around sticks helped Donskoi’s team take event number two.
Morgan Geekie was able to defend his crown in the hardest shot competition (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Hardest shot: Geekie dominates without controversy... this time
Perhaps one of the most anticipated events, the hardest shoot challenge did not feature Eeli Tolvanen and Daniel Sprong, interestingly enough. Ten total competitors, five from each team, took up the challenge and even two members of the commentary team tried it out. Prior to the players showing off their hard-hitting shots, Dave Tomlinson and J.T Brown decided to show off for those in attendance. Tomlinson, who played hockey from 1985-2006 across many different leagues, did well for himself in his own right. But when it came for J.T to take his shot, things took a turn as Daniel Sprong took the shot for him, as Brown cited hip surgery this past summer. Sprong blew Tomlinson away, so we technically got to see his shot.
While J.T Brown did not take “hardest shot,” he did wear some stunning skates that honored the iconic Willie O’Ree (Photo by Liv Lyons)
All ten competitors got two attempts at the event, so that they could improve upon their initial attempt, just like Will Borgen did as he improved from 76 MPH to 93 MPH. While many solid shots were displayed and only a few got close to the champ (Soucy hit 98 MPH and McCann hit 99 MPH), the player who uses golden Mario in Mario Kart was able to defend his crown without any outside help. Morgan Geekie’s first attempt sat at 100 MPH, and his second attempt singed the net at 104 MPH. His fireball of a shot gave Team Driedger their first victory of the day.
Defenseman Vince Dunn’s hardest shot hit 92 MPH (Photo by Liv Lyons)
Breakaway challenge: Outlandish attempts, an adorable guest, and creativity showcased
The breakaway challenge is pretty self-explanatory, you just wish Seattle had attempted some of these shots prior to the previous night’s loss to the Avalanche that saw the Kraken go 0-3 in the overtime shootout. Even Jordan Eberle, one of the participants in this event, remarked that he needed to “do better than last night” when asked what his strategy was ahead of the event. The true showdown of player and goalie, all ten total participants were set to get two breakaway attempts. The team with the most total goals at the end would take the victory.
Matty Beniers showed off some between the legs and backwards trickery, Jordan Eberle had his daughter on the ice with him for his attempt, Oliver Bjorkstrand deked, and Daniel Sprong went bellyflopping on the ice with the puck in his hand, sliding it in while he slid past the goaltender. Despite all the funny attempts and crazy things we saw, including Vince Dunn accidentally knocking over a camera man after his second attempt, it was Morgan Geekie again who stole the show. Geekie got the puck on his tape, dangled it as he spun around, and launched it past the goaltender. Team Driedger took another victory on the day.
Oliver Bjorkstrand brings the puck down the ice on a breakaway challenge attempt (Photo by Liv Lyons)
3-on-3: Light-hearted energy turns into intensity in the final minute, ending in a tie
The final event of the day saw both teams square off in a classic three on three game that spanned eight total minutes, two four-minute halves. All but one of those eight total minutes were mostly lighthearted and generally silly. There were some fun battles in the game, including Adam Larsson and Vince Dunn going at each other, Jared McCann accidentally hitting Jamie Oleksiak with a shot resulting in Oleksiak putting him in a headlock, and both goalies putting on a show.
A late push in the final 30 seconds of the three-on-three saw Brandon Tanev of Team Donskoi tie things up, and the game ended at two goals each. A funny, energy filled scrimmage of sorts ended a day that was filled with laughter, smiles, and laid-back fun for a team that has seen a ton of improvement and success in the first half of the season. The Super Skills Showcase once again proved to be an excellent event for fans that get to see the team on a regular basis in a much different environment, and for fans that are witnessing them in person for the first time ever. One of the biggest stars of the day, Morgan Geekie, reflected on the day.
Sights from the 3-on-3 game, including Adam Larsson trying to take out Matty Beniers, Daniel Sprong with a maniacal grin, and much more (Photos by Liv Lyons)
“The morale was a little higher than last year… the staff, whoever sets this up did a real good job... Everything felt pretty rushed last year… it was lots of fun this year, it feels a lot more like the team and that’s because everyone’s kinda established… it’s good to see that grow as a team”
