Kraken hold off Avalanche in Game 7, win Western 1st-Round series

DENVER --Oliver Bjorkstrand scored twice, and the Seattle Kraken held on to eliminate the Colorado Avalanche with a 2-1 win in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round at Ball Arena on Sunday.

The Kraken are the first expansion team in NHL history to defeat the reigning Stanley Cup champions in its first playoff series.
"I think it's huge for us, for the team, and our confidence as a group, bouncing back from last year, and then obviously for the city of Seattle," Bjorkstrand said. "You feel the excitement there and how much they want to back us up. So yeah, it's fun being a part of."
Seattle will face the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Second Round. Game 1 is at Dallas on Tuesday (9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, CBC, TVAS).
RELATED: [Complete Avalanche vs. Kraken series coverage]
Philipp Grubauer made 33 saves against his former team, and Yanni Gourde had two assists for the Kraken, who are the first wild card from the West.
"Today, it was about winning a playoff series," Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. "It took a lot of energy out of us, that's for sure. You know what, it gives them their just reward, right? So guys can feel good about that. It continues to bolster the confidence of our group, even though I don't know that that ever has really wavered over the last few months. And like I said, it gives them that checkmark of success in the first playoff series that our franchise has played in."
Mikko Rantanen scored, and Alexandar Georgiev made 25 saves for the Avalanche, who were the No. 1 seed from the Central Division.
"I thought we played a great game tonight," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. "I'm really proud of this team. Just the way they played, how hard they played all year long. It was pretty impressive what they've overcome. Some years it's a little tougher than others, and this was a tough one."

Bjorkstrand gave Seattle a 1-0 lead at 3:24 of the second period when his backhand centering pass from the left corner caromed off the stick of Alex Newhook before deflecting in off the hand of Ben Meyers.
The goal was Bjorkstrand's first of the series.
"Throughout the whole series, I'd like to contribute with goals and offensively, but tried to stick with it," Bjorkstrand said. "Game 7, I didn't want to go out not being able to sleep at night because I didn't perform well. So I felt like I tried to give it a push, and I don't know. Some nights you just kind of feel the puck better, and I feel like this is just one of those nights."
Bjorkstrand then extended the lead to 2-0 at 7:22. He chased down a defensive-zone clear from Eeli Tolvanen, skated into the left circle, and scored glove side with a wrist shot off the far post.
"When he's on top of his game, he's so fast," Gourde said. "He's skating, blocking shots, winning races, winning battles, shooting the puck. It's probably his best game of the year."

Rantanen cut the lead to 2-1 at 19:32 on a power play when Nathan MacKinnon's one-timer from the left face-off circle deflected in off the back of his pants.
"Very, very disappointing, especially the way we played. I feel like we emptied the tank, that's for sure. We left our heart out there. Didn't come our way," Rantanen said. "We played better than them, but sometimes in hockey, it doesn't matter. Their goalie played well, and we couldn't find the back of the net. So obviously disappointing to end the season like this."
Nathan MacKinnon appeared to tie the game for Colorado 2:20 into the third period, but Seattle successfully challenged the play for offside.
"They had no doubt on it," Hakstol said of his video coaches. "They nailed it. That is not an easy task, and they had it immediately. Like I said, before the puck went in the net, they already had it and had communicated down to the bench."
NOTES: Rantanen tied the Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques record with seven goals in a playoff series (Joe Sakic, 1996 Conference Quarterfinal; Real Cloutier, 1982 Division Final). … The Avalanche/Nordiques fell to 6-10 all-time in Game 7s and have lost six in a row dating back to the 2002 Western Conference Final against the Detroit Red Wings. … MacKinnon's assist was his 100th playoff point (44 goals, 56 assists) in 77 games. It is the sixth-fewest postseason games in NHL history needed to reach the mark (Wayne Gretzky, 46; Mario Lemieux, 50; Jari Kurri, 67; Mike Bossy, 74; Sidney Crosby, 75).