Kraken Comeback Goes Overdrive in 6-2 Rout

CHICAGO – In Tuesday’s first period, Chicago teen sensation Connor Bedard revved the crowd with an early power play goal that caromed off Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson’s skate, redirecting upward to surprise and beat Kraken goalie Joey Daccord. Deflating start, sure, especially when the host squad tallied a second goal late period with Larsson and partner Vince Dunn on the ice.

But Larsson took to revenge instead of a slow trudge to the first intermission. Just 31 seconds after Chicago’s second goal, Larsson moved into open space to the left of newly acquired goalie Spencer Knight, and took a crisp pass by fellow alternate captain Matty Beniers from behind the goal line. Larsson quick-released from the right faceoff circle to cut the Blackhawks lead in half at a suddenly more appealing first intermission.

But that was just the first rumbling of a quaking Kraken turnaround and 6-2 victory in the first of four straight road games in the next eight nights. By the end of the second period, Seattle was leading by three goals and on the way to a fourth win in six contests and nine standings points accumulated of a possible 12. The Kraken will be in St. Paul on Wednesday to face the Minnesota Wild.

“Getting the goal there at the end of the period is massive for us to get back into the game, to be right there for the second period,” said Kraken coach Dan Bylsma.

“He was so confident tonight, making great plays, jumping on the play, having the first goal, including making a great read, jumping by that guy, and getting himself open,” said Beniers about Larsson’s pivotal goal. “He was awesome all night. And that's when we're our best when our ‘D’ are making plays and getting active.”

“He [Larsson] was unreal tonight,” said Shane Wright, he of the not-too-shabby two-goal night himself. “He was definitely feeling it, for sure. He was all over the place making plays. When he's dancing like that [grinning, eyes light up], it's fun to watch.”

Larsson followed up with two primary assists, one on Beniers’ 17th goal on the season and another on the second of two Shane Wright goals. Both young centers and future franchise cornerstones now have 17 goals on the season.

A Highly ‘Responsive’ Second Period

Six minutes into the middle period, Kraken center Chandler Stephenson fed a quick pass to captain Jordan Eberle, who perfectly timed a one-timer in traffic to the tie and perhaps generated Stephenson’s biggest and broadest on-ice celebratory grin of the season.

“That first goal in the second by Chandler Stephenson and Ebs was huge,” said Beniers. “We get that one back, and we get a little bit of momentum. Jared comes out and scores the next shift. That was a big turning point.

Beniers was heartened by more Eberle heroics and the captain’s best shot since returning from a 40-game layoff and grueling rehab of a rare pelvis injury: “Ebs is our captain, our leader. He’s also an absolute force out there in terms of making plays, getting to and in the net, and creating [scoring chances]. He’s been awesome coming back and getting right back into it, to where he left out, producing for our team.”

Just 26 seconds later, Jared McCann scored his first goal in six games and No. 17 of the season on a sweet stretch pass from an alert Andre Burakovsky deep in the Kraken zone to his linemate at center ice. McCann skated untouched and found the aforementioned Knight leaning right and went high left for the goal. That’s Response Goal No. 2, both scored by Seattle. Response Goal No. 1 was Larsson’s remedy to what was looking like a bleak first period.

Larsson was flexing his offensive chops six minutes later in the middle frame, this time gliding from his opposite faceoff circle to Knight’s right. The Kraken were cycling with skilled puck-possession passing. As a result, Vince Dunn was at the right point and zipped a pass to his D-pair mate, who in turn threaded a cross-ice to a wheeling Beniers, who buried it. Kraken was up 4-2 and looking at Chicago in the rear-view mirror two minutes and 20 seconds later when Brandon Montour got in the score sheet with a beautiful slot pass from the deep left corner (Kraken D-men all of the O-zone). Newcomer Mikey Eyssimont one-timed the slot pass, which Knight stopped but the puck pinballed Shane Wright’s way for the young center’s 16th goal of the season. The fifth goal was just 20 seconds longer than Response Goal No. 3. Wright scored again in the third period on another assist by, you guessed it, Larsson, and a second assist on the night for Andre Burakovsky.

Five Each for Fighting, Four Seconds into Game

This game tilted the wrong way for Kraken fans with Chicago scoring the first two goals but not before a different sort of tilt erupted just four seconds into the game. Kraken forward and experienced NHLer, John Hayden, squared off with Chicago’s Pat Maroon, who was playing in his 839th NHL game Tuesday. Credit the 6-foot-3, 223-pound Hayden for sticking with the 6-foot-3, 234-pound Maroon in the heavyweight division. Both forwards were whistled off for five minutes fighting major penalties.

Larsson Joins Montour and Dunn as a Top D-man Scorer

The Kraken has ranked among league leaders for goals scored by defensemen all season team, boosted no doubt by Brandon Montour’s D-man franchise-record 16 goals and another 11 goals scored by Vince Dunn. Less expected is Adam Larsson as the third most productive Kraken defender, tallying his sixth goal of the season and third goal in the last eight games to cut a late first-period Chicago lead down to 2-1. Larsson broke a tie at five goals scored with young defenseman Ryker Evans and is just two scores off his career-high mark of eight goals, which he attained in the first two seasons with Seattle.

Points Streaks Continue for Veteran Trio

Three Kraken skaters added to their multi-game point streaks: Chandler Stephenson (seven points: one goal, six assists, six games played), Jordan Eberle (eight points: 2 G, 6 A, 5 GP), and Brandon Montour (seven points; 3 G, 4 A, 4 GP).