Final Buzzer: Playing to End in Edmonton

EDMONTON -- The Kraken played hard Monday night, simple as that. They disrupted the offensive superpowers of the world's best hockey player, Connor McDavid.

They outshot the vaunted Oilers during the first two periods and out-chanced them in high-probability scoring areas, too. The Kraken went down 3-1 in the first two minutes of the second period, then jumped back into the game when defenseman Carson Soucy jumped into the offensive rush, taking a pass from grinder Nathan Bastian, who looked more playmaker than physically active forward with that move.
Sure, McDavid hit a goal post with eight seconds left in the middle period, but, hey, Alex Wennberg hit iron himself in the last five minutes. Wennberg followed his shot, put the rebound in a promising path before Edmonton goalie Mikko Koskinen stretched out his 6-foot-7 frame to keep the puck out of the net.
Yes, one of the other top global hockey players did score twice, but the first one deflected off Leon Draisaitl's left skate from a Tyson Barrie shot. Even Draisaitl was checking the center-ice video board to see how that goal was scored.
Edmonton's offense turned up the gears in the third period to make it a 5-2 final.
But through it all, Seattle continues to show fight on the ice. Even when forward Kyle Turris notched his first goal of the season on a pretty from-behind-the-goal assist by center Devin Shore to make it 4-2, the Kraken kept digging.
Kraken coach Dave Hakstol called the Oilers' fourth goal a "back breaker," but he complimented his squad for "sticking together" for the full 60 minutes.
Defenseman Jamie Oleksiak echoed his coach's sentiment: "We played hard and we were getting our chances. We just have to stick to our game."
"We had good chances off the rush and in the offensive zone," Hakstol said in his opening post-game remarks. "We had a couple [shots] off the post and shots through the crease. It's the way it's gone the last couple nights."
Hakstol said the "bottom line" is finishing the scoring chances, even if some scores get over the goal with "puck luck" or "fluke."
The Kraken, 3-6-1 after 10 games, return to action Thursday vs. Buffalo at Climate Pledge Arena (7 p.m., ROOT, KJR 950, iHeart). Then Seattle goes on a two-game road trip at Arizona (Saturday) and Vegas (Nov. 9).

Crowd Appreciation

Nice moment mid-first period when Larsson got an ovation from Oilers fans who clearly appreciated his five seasons on the blue line for Edmonton. Class-act Larsson clapped right back in recognition of the fans.
Duncan Keith, three-time Stanley Cup winner and two-time Norris Trophy awardee as the league's best defenseman, was applauded during another timeout to mark his 1,200th NHL game.
Keith drew more applause in the second period when he scored his first goal as an Oiler in what was ultimately the game-winner.
Draisaitl notched the assist and added another on a third-period goal by Oiler and Spokane native Kailer Yamamoto. It was the forward's first goal of the year and prompted the highest decibels of the night. Fans here were somewhat worried about the Yamamoto scoring drought.

Big Saves Collection

"Joey played great," Oleksiak said during a post-game media session. "We have to help him out by not allowing breakaways, odd-man rushes and back-door plays."
"There were two tips on the first three goals," Hakstol said. "One of those was the "accidental" or "random" or Exhibit A puck luck opening score that traveled from defenseman Tyson Barrie's stick blade to Draisaitl's skate blade, then past Daccord.
On the other end, current No. 1 Edmonton goalie Koskinen played a technically sound game, holding his position on several net rushes, notably a second-period chance and in-zone breakaway by Jordan Eberle.
Koskinen has looked sharp in the Oilers' last two wins and now stands with a 5-1 record. Make no mistake, he played an elite-level game against the Kraken. Our Post-Game Instant Analysis chart shows he earned a quality win and stopped two to three shots that would be goals against the typical NHL goaltender.

Schwartz Off the Schneid

On the Kraken's opening goal, center Yanni Gourde showed patience to set up the offensive flow even though he was deep in the Kraken end. Gourde sent the puck around the far boards behind Daccord's goal, got the puck back and then connected with Jaden Schwartz at full pace.
Schwartz skated the puck through the neutral zone and a couple of orange jerseys to complete the rush on a backhanded shot past Koskinen.
The veteran forward's strong rush has to be tantalizing to Kraken fans and teammates alike. He was playing the fast game his coaches exhort and looked like a player who can will his way to future big scores. Don't be surprised if he gets a scoring streak going.