Playing With Ease: That’s a Gourde Goal!

If you’re looking for the identity of the Seattle Kraken team, you need look no further than the line centered by Yanni Gourde with Eeli Tolvanen and Oliver Bjorkstrand on the flanks.

The trio consistently combines relentless pressure on opponents, tenacious pursuit of the puck, and high-end offensive ability to impact games while playing against other teams’ top talent. In fact, if you look at all forward lines who’ve played at least 200 minutes together this season, the Gourde line ranks eleventh in terms of tilting the ice their team’s way in terms of offensive quality (57.4% per Moneypuck.com).

And last night versus Ottawa, the Gourde line showed once again why they are such a valuable part of the Kraken team as they generated the first goal of the game.

As part of our Playing With Ease series presented by GEICO, let’s dig in.

Just over nine minutes into Thursday’s game, the puck traveled down into Ottawa’s zone. The Senators had a bit of an advantage as the Kraken waited to see if the play would be whistled dead due to icing, meanwhile, Jaycob Chychrun (OTT 6) moved to corral the puck.

And here is the first of many little things that show why this line is so effective – and why, this year’s NHL All-Star from Seattle is part of it.

Bjorkstrand moves down into the zone and pressures Chychrun.

Now the puck is loose. And note Bjorkstrand’s focus. His eyes remain on the puck, his momentum sustained forward. He’s tracking for any opportunity to fully gain possession.

And while Thomas Chabot (OTT 72) is coming in to try to gather the puck, it’s bouncing and difficult to control when your momentum is carrying you across the path of the frozen piece of rubber. Bjorkstrand’s route takes him right to where the puck is traveling and now it’s on his stick.

Now Bjorkstrand has the puck. And he’s setting up to shoot and the Senators know about his lethal shot and ability to finish. The Senators are scrambling and so all three of the Ottawa skaters in close proximity dedicate their attention to The Maestro.

There’s only one problem with that if you’re Ottawa. You have only two other skaters on the ice. And there are four potentially unmarked Kraken players out there.

Bjorkstrand takes a shot. It’s blocked by Chabot. But with everyone invested in playing the puck, look who’s coming into the zone unabated. Yep. Yanni Gourde.

Unsurprisingly, Gourde gets to the loose puck first and battles with Drake Batherson (OTT 19) to his right and to his left for possession. The play does a couple of things. First, it draws Chabot away from net front. Second, it dictates that Josh Norris (OTT 9) is playing in support hoping for an outlet pass to send him on the attack. That lightens his defensive focus and when Gourde works his stick around the assistant captain to send a pass to Tolvanen, there is just one player (sort of) between the Kraken winger and goaltender, Joonas Korpisalo.

The Ottawa defense is still scrambling and Tolvanen shoots while Bjorkstrand attempts a flash screen.

And look at Gourde. The guy who had the nose for the puck in the corner now has a nose for the net.

Without hesitation, he beelines to the blue paint.

Korpisalo stops Tolvanen’s shot, but he can’t freeze the puck. Bjorkstrand turns, Gourde is bearing down, and when Bjorkstrand’s stick can’t connect, Gourde is right there to shoot the biscuit in the basket.

And just like that, it was 1-0 Kraken.

Now watch it all come together at game speed.

To get the first goal of the game, every member of the Gourde line had a shot attempt. Key defensive plays like Bjorkstrand’s takeaway and Gourde’s forecheck directly contributed to the play. And the home team getting a lead they wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the game on the way to a 4-1 victory for Seattle’s sixth straight win in a row.

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