Working Hard, But Maybe Not ‘Smart’
Neither the Kraken players nor the head coach were anywhere near satisfied sticking close to Tampa Bay, which won three of four on a Pacific Division road trip. In fact, defenseman Vince Dunn didn’t buy into the game being closer than the score.
“That's what happens [a 3-1 lead turning into a 5-1 final] when you don't push the right way,” said Dunn. “We can't ask for a better start. Monty gets us one early, and we don't really have much of a response the whole entire game. Guys are working hard, maybe not working necessarily in the smart places. We kind of look like the same that we were probably eight games ago [losing to Anaheim then San Jose twice]. That’s disappointing ... we know that we can hopefully respond the right way here come Tuesday [vs. Ottawa] in the last game of the homestand].”
“I thought we started the game well; our play got us a goal there, similar script to the previous game [5-1 Thursday over Boston],” said Dan Bylsma. “But you get different games, different times, different amount of games. I don't think we just had enough juice and jam to play the way we needed to play to beat a pretty good team over there. Times like that, you’ve got to dig in ... When it's not maybe going your way physically, you have to be more mentally into the game ... to adjust to not having legs. Sometimes, when your legs go, the brain follows.”
First Period Attack and Counterattack
This game started with an early Kraken power play score and the home squad notching the first seven shots of the night. But Tampa Bay roared back with eight of the next nine shots, including a tying goal from Brandon Hagel (his 14th of the year) and a go-ahead tally by Brayden Point (his 20th). Tampa Bay entered the interconference matchup top-six in NHL scoring, so a pushback was to be expected.
The Kraken power play goal, notched by never-afraid-to-shoot (well, never-afraid, period) defenseman Brandon Montour, his first in 10 games but let’s not overlook it’s his eighth so far as a Kraken. Eeli Tolvanen earned the primary assist, and is it a coincidence that Montour and Tolvanen had an extended conversation during Saturday’s morning skate power play sequences. Shane Wright up the other assist (or do you prefer “apple”). Wright picked up his first power play assist of the year to go with a team-leading four power play goals—the 20-year-old rookie center now has seven points in his last seven games.
Power Moves for Kraken, Lightning
The Lightning started their first power play of the night mid-second period with seven goals in their last 14 tries. They finished the two minutes with two shots on goals in the lower-danger areas, with one by Nikita Kucherov, who threatens pretty much every time he touches a puck. So the torrid TBL power play landed at seven for 15. That is, until the Kraken penalty killers snuffed a second Tampa Bay power play later middle period (so seven of the last 17).
But the third penalty-kill was not a charm for the Kraken. Tampa Bay made some adjustments to their power play formation and puck movement, resulting in their third goal of the night. The goal was fluky as TBL forward Jake Guentzel batted a slow-moving puck in mid-air before Philipp Grubauer could glove it. Guentzel, signed as a big-name free agent this past July 1, now has goals in his last six games and eight total during that stretch and 17 on the year.
With the Kraken’s first-period power play goal, Seattle has scored six goals in their last 15 attempts. With Tampa Bay’s third-period success, formidable percentages (47 TBL, 40 for SEA) for both squads. On the first penalty kill, Brandon Tanev and Mitch Stephens were outstanding, with another PK forward, Chandler Stephenson, in the pen for holding.
Montour echoed the concept of the team not at the energy level of the previous six games producing nine of 12 possible standings points: “They’re a good team, but essentially we gave them that one ... we just didn't have it tonight, an important game is coming up here before we head back on the road. So think about this one tonight, wash it and then come back to work tomorrow.”
Grubauer on the Rise
Saturday’s matchup marked just the second time in the first 32 games of the season that Phillip Grubauer was starting for two games in a row. The other time was last weekend when Grubauer played a stellar game in a 3-2 loss in New Jersey, then was the starter by default in the 7-5 victory over the Rangers at Madison Square Garden when Joey Daccord was sidelined with an illness that struck overnight. He was First Star in Thursday’s Boston win, allowing just one goal in 34 shots on goal and played what Dan Bylsma called the veteran goaltender’s best performance of the year (though he considers the New Jersey a close second).
“With the number of games that we play and how often they come, it's not the best thing in the world to have one guy go every night,” said Bylsma after Saturday’s morning skate.
“To be able to have two guys playing really well and being able to stop the puck ... it’s great to be able to have both guys go on any given night and give you a chance.”
Bylsma said the expectation at the season start was for the goalie tandem to be sharing time in the net. Grubauer hit a roadblock with an injury that kept him out of uniform for a week.
“Early on in the season, they both were playing, numbers-wise, pretty similar [with Grubauer getting fewer goals-for support]. When Grubi was out, Joey played four in a row. And he did really well with that. I think [Grubauer] is settled in from the injury, and with a few more games under his belt, there’s consistency in his game.”
Both Grubauer and his counterpart, Tampa goalie Jonas Johansson, turned in strong starts. The Swedish-born Johansson, a 29-year-old career backup, has appeared in 67 NHL games for Buffalo, Colorado (twice), Florida and now Tampa Bay. His last outing, Nov. 29, was a win over Nashville. Saturday, through the first two periods, he faced 11 high-danger chances and 20 scoring chances overall. Grubauer made 21 saves in the first 40 minutes. He faced seven Grade-A scoring chances and stood tall on the aforementioned two Tampa Bay power plays, along with other flurries from a top-scoring Lightning squad. Keeping the game close provided Seattle with an opportunity-knocks third period.
