Kraken offensive barrage in third period completes 4-2 comeback win over Red Wings

By Charles Hamaker

Seattle, WA – On Women in Hockey night at Climate Pledge Arena,
the Seattle Kraken defeated the Detroit Red Wings by a score of four
to two. Seattle scored four unanswered goals in the third period to
complete the comeback win. Despite going scoreless on five power
play attempts, the Kraken dominated the offensive aspect of the
contest. Seattle amassed 42 shots on goal and dominated the majority
of the game.

The tipping point of this game? A massive save by Seattle goaltender
Philipp Grubauer with 14:27 to go in the final period. The Red Wings
had a three on two situation, looking to extend their lead to three
goals. Grubauer denied Detroit with a sprawling, keeping Seattle in
the game. Seven minutes later, Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson’s
goal opened the flood gates for a wave of Seattle goals. Larsson
talked about the save in the post-game press conference.

“If they get that third one, it’s a bit uphill for us. He (Grubauer) has
been great for us; we haven’t played great in front of him. I think he
has really stepped up his game lately,” Larsson would remark.

This game could be defined by two Kraken teams, a Jekyll and Hyde
of sorts. The Kraken of the first and third periods showed relentless
offensive aggression, putting 15 shots on Detroit goaltender Alex
Nedeljkovic in the first period and 42 in total. Seattle in the second
period played the same sloppy, defensively inept hockey we’ve seen2
them play most of the year. The Red Wings goals came off of an
inability to clear the puck, and a power play goal that was made
possible by an unnecessary hit by Vince Dunn.

Most importantly, the “good” version of the Kraken showed up for a
longer period of time than the “bad.” Seattle came out of the locker
room ready to bring the fight to Detroit. It just did not show up until the
final period, when things started to click. The crowd was electric, and the Kraken fed off the energy. Seattle shut down Detroit and found
ways to get the puck in the net that they couldn’t earlier in the game.
Seattle head coach Dave Hakstol spoke about the teams play.

“We just stayed with it throughout the game, our start was excellent.
Second period, we made a couple mistakes… We had a decision to
make after the second period: stick with it and try to find a little bit
extra gas in the tank and push, or are we gonna go quietly away in the
final 20 minutes… The way the atmosphere was in the building kind of got things rolling a little bit more,” Hakstol stated.

In their inaugural season, the Kraken haven’t won a lot, but a solid
number of them have shown an elite level of play. A few examples
are: November 21st win over the Washington Capitals, November 27th
win on the road against the Florida Panthers, and the January 23rd
home win over the Panthers. Seattle has not been able to sustain that
level of play, and it’s frustrating to think about the possibilities if they
could. After tonight’s win, defenseman Adam Larsson stated “This is
the standard that we want.” This team has some pieces of the puzzle,
and major pieces could be added this offseason. It’s safe to say that
fans can expect a better product next season at Climate Pledge
Arena.

The next contest for the Kraken is on Tuesday, March 22nd in Arizona
against the Coyotes. Puck drop is at 7PM PST, and the game will be
broadcast on ROOT sports. Arizona sits just above Seattle in the
Western Conference at second to last. A key player to watch is
forward Clayton Keller, who at just 23 years old leads the Coyotes in
goals, assists, and points.