Final Buzzer: Flames Hit Dimmer Switch

• Calgary scores four minutes into the game but Kraken forward Karson Kuhlman snags response goal less than a minute later. Just when it looks to be 1-1 at first intermission, Flames convert for 2-1 lead.
• Calgary, ranked eighth-best on the power play, scored one man-advantage goal in four tries. Seattle finished zero for five power-play opportunities with Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom making big stops.
• Flames defenseman Noah Hanifin notched three primary assists on the first three goals and was credited with a fourth assist on an empty-net goal. He was a Ron Francis first-round draft choice in 2015 when the Kraken GM was in the same job in Carolina.

The first-place Calgary Flames came to town Saturday with 95 standings points and leading scorer Johnny Gaudreau looking to score his 100th point. The 5-foot-9 speedy left wing came up empty but his teammates fueled a 4-1 victory. The Kraken will get another chance when they visit the Flames Tuesday night.
Calgary scored early when defenseman Noah Hanifin, a 2015 first-round draft choice (5th overall) selected by then-Carolina GM Ron Francis, put a long shot on goal and forward Blake Coleman deflected the puck past Philipp Grubauer. Coleman, who won two Stanley Cups with Tampa Bay alongside former linemate Yanni Gourde, signed with Calgary as a free agent during the offseason.
Hanifin, 25, was traded in 2018 to Calgary along with Elias Lindholm in exchange for D-man Dougie Hamilton, Michael Ferland and the rights to 2021 Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox (never signed with the Hurricanes). Hanifin made the roster as an 18-year-old, the only defenseman to do so in the 2015 draft class. He's played seven NHL seasons.

Response and Reset

For the 17th time this inaugural season, the Kraken scored a response goal (within two minutes) after giving up a goal. In this case, the forward unit of Jared McCann (retrieved and rimmed the puck along the right boards and behind the net), Morgan Geekie (won a puck battle then threaded a perfect pass to net-front while falling over) and Karson Kuhlman (wristed a quick-release shot that beat Calgary goalie Jacob Markstrom high-corner stick side) evened the score 65 seconds later at exactly the five-minute mark.
Kuhlman scored his second goal for the Kraken (the other was an empty-netter). But his contributions since returning from a long-term injury (missed 18 games) are varied and impressive. He's part of the regular penalty-kill unit, which has been superior lately. In fact, coach Dave Hakstol said Kuhlman's deflection of a Chicago shot, averting a goal, was his nominee for play of the game when the Blackhawks could have tied the score but instead resulted in a 2-0 shutout for Grubauer.
Kuhlman is clicking with linemates Geekie and McCann, showing speed and agility to keep up with a couple of guys who can skate, shoot and be in the right place at the right time. He's certainly making a solid case for more playing time this season and beyond.

Comparing the Goaltenders

The two teams were fairly even in scoring chances during the first period, but a Calgary goal with 16 ticks left deflated the Kraken going into the second period. The Trevor Lewis goal, set up by Hanifin, came after a few miscues in the defensive zone, but Hakstol refused to put the blame on his goalie.
"Phil played a solid game," Hakstol said. "Our team got in a hole [in the first period]. That is a team issue, both of those goals.
"For me to say the last line of defense needs to be better, I think it's unfair. There's two or three things that happened that end up on top of our goaltender. I think it should've been stopped before that."
On the other end of the ice, both Kraken goal scorer Kuhlman and Hakstol viewed the lanky Markstrom as pivotal to the game's outcome.
"Tip your hat to him," Kuhlman said. "He made a couple good saves [later second period], especially on their penalty kill. We have to get more bodies to the net.
"Our power play had a couple good chances [third period], some glances off the shoulder. When you are 6-foot-6, pucks are going to hit you."
Hakstol echoed the sentiment: "At the end of the second period, we had three real good looks. [Markstrom] made saves through traffic. Their goaltender was the difference in the second half of the game."