Fleury Notches Two Goals in Kraken Win

It was less than a week ago when Kraken defenseman Haydn Fleury was dressed in a suit instead of his uniform as the Seattle players were introduced before the team's first home game in Climate Pledge Arena.
That was the case for Fleury in Las Vegas when the team opened its inaugural season as well.

Thursday against the Minnesota Wild he was in uniform, and the suit was safely hung in the dressing room. With the Kraken trailing 1-0 in the first period, Fleury was on the ice. A shot was taken by Seattle's Jaden Schwartz that missed the net only to bound around the boards to Fleury.
He timed his shot and one-timed a slapper that beat Minnesota goalie Cam Talbot.

"Lucky bounce on the first one," Fleury said after the game.
He wasn't done and in the second period he put the Kraken ahead for good with a highlight type goal. Fleury brought the puck in deep and fired a shot that Talbot stopped. The rebound came back to Fleury however and he continued to skate around the net, finding that there was room for a wraparound goal.
"Their D-Man came out and just went down and tried to block it, so I faked it and walked around him," he said about the goal that made the score 2-1. "I thought I had a hole short side and missed it, but I got my rebound and just wrapped it in."
It was the first time in his career that he scored twice in the same game, and he gave the Kraken life in what turned out to be a dominant second period where Seattle outshot the Wild 17-5.

It was disappointing not playing in the early big games, but NHL teams can't play everyone on the roster and sometimes a good player must sit.
Fleury, 25, kept working in practice and was back on the ice, and in uniform, for Tuesday's 5-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens. He didn't score against the Canadiens, but he led Seattle with five shots on goal and took care of the defensive zone.
"He skated really well tonight, and he was moving the puck and getting up ice," Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said after the Montreal game. "Most importantly, on our half the red line he played a pretty clean hockey game, which is a real positive. We do need our guys in the back end, you gotta defend well, get us out of the zone, and everything from there as a bonus. I thought he was good tonight."
Seattle selected Fleury from the Anaheim Ducks during the NHL Expansion Draft. His career started with the Carolina Hurricanes, however, when then general manager Ron Francis took Fleury with the seventh pick in the 2014 NHL Draft. In July, Francis selected him for a second time when he was left unprotected by the Ducks - who had traded for the defenseman at last seasons' Trade Deadline.

Fleury's strong play against Montreal got him back to the ice against Minnesota, Thursday.
He rewarded Hakstol's decision to play him in back-to-back games by providing all the offense Seattle would need to beat the Minnesota Wild. Secondary scoring is vital for the Kraken's offense and getting it from the defense goes a long way.
"I think it's a key part of our team," Fleury said. "All of the defense on our team have the capabilities to help contribute and I really think if we're going to be a successful team, we have to."