Kraken score 5 in 2nd, ease past Oilers

SEATTLE -- Jaden Schwartz scored twice, and the Seattle Kraken rode a five-goal second period to a 6-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers at Climate Pledge Arena on Thursday.

“We just had some momentum,” Schwartz said. “They played last night, so I thought we played pretty quick. We had a lot of offensive-zone time and kind of wore them down and had fresh bodies. We just seemed to control it in the second period and kind of go wave after wave and made it hard on them.”

Jani Nyman, Andre Burakovsky, and Jared McCann each had a goal and an assist, and Matty Beniers also scored for the Kraken (31-36-6), who had lost their previous three (0-2-1). Joey Daccord made 36 saves.

“It was a lot of good plays from a lot of good people in that [second] period,” Seattle coach Dan Bylsma said.

Zach Hyman scored for the Oilers (41-26-5), who lost on back-to-back nights following a 4-3 defeat to the Dallas Stars on Wednesday. Calvin Pickard allowed five goals on 29 shots before being replaced by Olivier Rodrigue after the second period. Rodrigue made seven saves in relief in his NHL debut.

The Oilers are third in the Pacific Division, two points behind the Los Angeles Kings.

“We just stopped working, made too many mistakes, and they capitalized on a bunch of them,” Hyman said. “Our game, the foundation is work, and if we’re not working, especially with guys out of the lineup, then we don’t have a chance.”

Jeff Skinner appeared to give Edmonton a 1-0 lead at 19:08 of the first period, but Seattle challenged for a missed stoppage. Video review determined Connor Brown had played the puck with a high stick, negating the goal.

“It happens,” Hyman said. “We would like for it to stand and count, and obviously it brings momentum, but we’ve got to be able to handle those swings.”

Schwartz gave Seattle a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 1:18 of the second period, stopping at the top of the crease and redirecting Burakovsky’s feed from the right circle into an open net behind Pickard.

“We’re not rushing it [on the power play],” Burakovsky said. “I think, before, we were making … little dumb decisions sometimes, trying to force it and trying to maybe make the harder play. I think right now, we’re moving it a little bit quicker, we recognize when they’re putting pressure, and then we bypass that guy.”

Schwartz scored again 2:06 later to make it 2-0 at 3:24 when he intercepted Vasily Podkolzin’s breakout pass at the top of the right circle, skated in and snapped a shot past Pickard’s blocker.

“It happened fast,” Schwartz said. "[Tye Kartye] made a good change, and I just kind of hopped on. I think a couple of guys might have been forechecking the d-man and put pressure on him, and I just don’t think he saw me coming off the bench.”

Nyman pushed it to 3-0 at 10:50, tipping Adam Larsson’s shot from the point out of the air and through Pickard’s five-hole.

Beniers made it 4-0 at 11:06 after Kaapo Kakko got his own rebound at the side of the net, then slid a pass through the crease for Beniers, who slapped it into an open net.

Burakovsky extended Seattle’s lead to 5-0 at 12:41 when Ryker Evans found him at the top of the crease. Burakovsky kicked the puck to his stick and lifted it over Pickard’s right pad.

“We survived the first period, and it was OK,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “But in the second period, it starts on the first shift. We turn the puck over a couple times, we’re forced to take a penalty… and we’re just reeling after that.”

Hyman got Edmonton on the board at 4:59 of the third period. Daccord lost control of the puck while trying to cover it, and Hyman lifted it over the goalie's left shoulder to make it 5-1.

“Tonight’s game wasn’t good, but in general, I think guys are stepping up,” Hyman said. “I think the past games, we’ve really been working and giving ourselves a chance to win every game. Tonight was different, so we’ve got to get back to playing the way we know we can.”

McCann batted the rebound of Michael Eyssimont's shot out of the air and into an open net at 8:53 of the third period for a 6-1 final.

The Oilers were missing both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl for the third straight game. McDavid sustained a lower-body injury during the second period of a 4-3 overtime loss to Winnipeg on March 20, and Draisaitl sustained an undisclosed injury during a 7-1 win against Utah on March 18.

“We were missing some of our top players … and we were playing back-to-back. It’s just the importance of simplifying our game,” Knoblauch said.

NOTES: Schwartz has four goals on a three-game goal streak. His 23 goals are the most he has scored in a season since he scored 24 in 62 games for the St. Louis Blues in 2017-18. … It was the third time the Kraken have scored five goals in a period. The others: Jan. 14, 2023 (six in the first period at the Chicago Blackhawks) and Nov. 29, 2022 (five in the second at the Kings).