Oilers Outlast Kraken, Late Flurry

The Kraken held a high-scoring Edmonton squad to just two five-on-five goals Saturday afternoon but solved Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner only once. Skinner made big stops in the third period against Kraken leading goal scorer Jared McCann and clutch performer Oliver Bjorkstrand before Eeli Tolvanen broke through with a power play goal 13-and-a-half minutes into the final period.

But that ended the scoring for Seattle, which was pressuring hard in the final minutes with Kraken starting goalie Philipp Grubauer off for the extra attacker. The Kraken were afforded another The Kraken were afforded a power play with 53 seconds remaining but couldn’t muster the equalizer, with Skinner making vital stops on first Tolvanen, then Jordan Eberle, then once more on Tolvanen. Skinner finished with 23 saves, punctuated by the furious Kraken flurry in the Edmonton zone at game-end.

“We spent quite a bit of time in the O-zone,” said Dave Hakstol post-game. “We generated enough good opportunities to score some goals. Their guy [Skinner] between the pipes was good. A couple of bounces offensively didn't didn't come to us [including a Justin Schultz shot ringing off a post and tucking back under Skinner’s pads in the first 20 minutes.

“It becomes a disappointing loss, but you flip the page. We’ve got our next game in Calgary in two nights. We were 5-1-1 coming in this game putting up [standings] points, putting up points in the majority of those games. We have to go right back to it.

Seattle started the day seven standings points out of a playoff spot. The six-game homestand ends with seven of 12 possible points for the Kraken. They now head north of the border for a two-game, back-to-back nights road trip.

It turned out Oilers defenseman Brett Kulak’s goal early third period was the game-winner. Superstar Leon Draisaitl, who opened the scoring in the second period, was at first credited with the goal but upon review it was ruled Draisaitl did not tip Kulak’s shot. It was Kulak’s third goal in 58 games this season and he was ear-to-ear smiles when he scored his 20th goal over 474 NHL games.

Dueling Goalies

Dave Hakstol made a point to praise Philipp Grubauer’s game in net for Seattle without any specific question about the SEA goaltender. Grubauer faced nine Grade-A scoring chances and made 22 saves overall. Stuart Skinner, now fifth in the NHL with 28 wins, faced 10 such high-danger chances from the Kraken. Skinner has won three games this week and posted a .951 save percentage over the three games against LA Monday, St. Louis (overtime) Wednesday and Saturday’s matinee.

When Keep-away is the Way

There’s a long-held axiom, “the best defense is a good offense,” a term with roots in strategies of war but more widely used in team sports with a game clock. If you keep the puck or ball away from your opponent, the foe can’t score.

The axiom was in full glory during the first period of this Pacific Division matchup with plenty at stake for both teams, what with Seattle seven points removed from a Western Conference wild-card spot for this spring’s Stanley Cup Playoffs and Edmonton just one point behind second-place Vegas and two points ahead of co-wild-card leader Los Angeles in the Pacific standings.

Sixteen minutes into the afternoon on ice, the Kraken had controlled play with 11 scoring chances (six of them Grade-A) compared to three for Edmonton, per Natural Stat Trick. After an even first five minutes with three shots on goal for each squad, the Kraken went into overdrive with good chances for Yanni Gourde and current linemate Tye Kartye. The most tantalizing shot was one from veteran defenseman Justin Schultz, which rang off the left post with the rebound cradling straight under Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner’s leg pads.

Skinner, on a hot streak and aiming for his third win this week, was the first period’s most valuable player with momentum haltings, particularly an early point-blank attempt by Seattle alternate captain Jordan Eberle, drafted by Edmonton in the first round (No. 22 overall) in 2008. No one can take issue with Kraken's start after overcoming slow first periods in the last two wins of this homestand.

Change of Pace

A late-period penalty on Jamie Oleksiak for cross-checking afforded the potent Edmonton power play group to change the game’s tempo but not the scoreboard, thanks to stellar work from the Kraken penalty-kill units. Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer backed the effort with big shorthanded saves when needed. A highlight stop for Grubauer, in his third straight start after a near-month in the back-up role, came on a bad-angle shot from Leon Draisaitl. The Oilers superstar and fellow German has perfected his approach from that location but not in the first period. The opening frame ended with the Climate Pledge Arena cheering and hooting for a scoreless EDM power play.

Superstars Squared

The aforementioned Draisaitl and that deep-angle shot location unfortunately replayed mid-game when Edmonton quick-turned action in the visitors end with Draisaitl speeding up ice with the puck. Draisaitl looked for pass recipients and waited an extra beat to hit a trailing Connor McDavid in stride. McDavid rapidly returned the puck to his linemate. Draisaitl showed why he likes shooting at the deep angle, quick-releasing the puck past Philipp Grubauer. It’s the 30th goal of the season for Draisaitl, the sixth straight with that many, three of which busted in 50 or more.

For McDavid, it's his 23rd assist in his last 10 games, accompanied by just one goal (albeit an overtime winner against St. Louis Wednesday). The Edmonton captain started the streak with a six-assist game on Feb. 13 (not a typo) and a string of two-assist games over the last half-dozen before Saturday’s divisional tilt. McDavid leads the NHL with 73 assists.