Kraken Struggle to Shake Bad Habits in 5-1 Loss to Blues

It wasn’t pretty, but it was exactly what the Seattle Kraken wanted.

After allowing three tip-in goals in a 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars the night before, the Kraken expressed a desire, a necessity, to throw more pucks on net to create scoring chances for themselves.

“We just need to get pucks towards the net, and get a greasy one,” defenseman Ryker Evans told reporters in Dallas after Wednesday’s game. “We were just trying to make a fancy play or just pass it, and we just need to get it to the net.”

So after Seattle allowed two goals in the first 95 seconds of the second period against the St. Louis Blues to go down 3-1 on Thursday, it appeared Evans followed through when the Kraken needed someone to cut the deficit. 

From the left point, the 24-year-old defensemen threw the puck on net and bounced it in off Blues defenseman Justin Faulk at 9:41 of the second. 

It seemed Evans was rewarded for executing a “shoot-first” mentality, a rare exception to the norm Seattle established over the past two games. 

Until he wasn’t.

The Blues challenged the play for offsides, and video review proved the puck just crept out of the zone before Freddy Gaudreau sent it back in. It had little impact on the scoring play itself, but by the letter of the law, the goal was taken off the board.

The result does not negate Evans’ effort, but when it represented one of the only instances that the Kraken followed through with coach Lane Lambert’s instruction, it stands out more.

A one-goal game reverted back into a 3-1 deficit, and the Blues ultimately won 5-1. Seattle has lost both games since returning from the Olympic break, playing passively despite fighting for a playoff spot. 

While the overturned Evans goal was a pivotal moment, it was not the only issue for the Kraken. 

“I don’t think we handled (the netfront play) well at all,” Lambert told reporters in St. Louis on Thursday. “I think, you know, these two games here with Dallas and St. Louis, like I said, I thought that we gave up more interior chances than we usually do. We’ve just got to be better. That’s the bottom line.”

In the Dallas loss on Wednesday, the players did not use rust as an excuse for their performance. After all, it was the same situation for both teams, returning after a lengthy break in play.

The same can’t be said for Thursday, when St. Louis was the team returning from an extended layoff. Instead of sleepwalking through the first portion of the game, the Blues came out firing with a 6-0 shots on goal advantage to open the game.

The sixth one got past Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer on a shot from Dylan Holloway at 7:58 of the first period.

“Another game that we were sleepy,” defenseman Brandon Montour said. “You come off a break, you should show excitement. Be ready to play. It’s important games all the way in, and obviously we’ve wasted two games here.”

The Kraken received a power-play opportunity at 9:59 of the first period, which did not result in a goal – the power play is now 0-for-7 since returning from the break – but did shift momentum for the rest of the frame. 

In his return to the lineup after winning a bronze medal with Team Finland at the Winter Olympics, Kaapo Kakko found the net to tie things up 1-1 at 12:32. He sent a shot off the post at 12:18, but the Kraken maintained possession in the offensive zone. Kakko forced his way to the netfront past Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker, and he managed to punch in a rebound at the right post to knot things up.

“I thought it was a high-event game both ways,” Lambert said. “We certainly had our chances. I thought their goalie made some saves. Our power play’s dry right now, the last couple games coming out of the break. Although they did create a ton of momentum for us, which allowed us to score our first goal. But it’s the chances against that are my concern right now. There’s too many of them.”

By the end of the first period, St. Louis held an 11-8 shots on goal advantage at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick, but Seattle held a 12-10 edge in scoring chances. However, any momentum in the first period was quickly erased in the second.

Just 1:12 into the second, Jordan Kyrou scored to complete a rush involving four different Blues players, and Holloway struck again at 1:35 by poking the puck across the line after Josh Mahura’s skate stopped the initial chance from Jonatan Berggren in the crease.

Adding in Pius Suter’s goal to make it 4-1 at 1:56 of the third period, the Kraken have allowed four goals within the first two minutes of periods in the two games since the Olympic break.

“They’re aggressive. Their (defensemen) were up the ice,” Montour said. “It seemed like every single time they were touching the puck and joining, and odd-man rushes pushing us back. Their D, I think, were the difference-makers. They were making plays. Their forwards were always finding them.”

While the quick goals from St. Louis put the Kraken in a tough hole to dig out of, the moments in which they pushed back were few and far between. Aside from Evans’ overturned goal, the players felt like the offensive production mirrored that of the night before.

“I think the whole team, we were looking for one more pass,” Kakko said. “And I mean, that’s what happened the whole game, I feel.”

Lambert had discussions with the team about the shot volume and shot quality prior to Thursday’s game and issued reminders between periods. For whatever reason, it didn’t register.

“That was on the mind, but just didn’t happen,” Kakko said.

Added Montour: “Lane said it between periods. Again, obviously, we didn’t listen. (We) let the goalie (Joel Hofer) play to his strengths, and I think obviously that was a good game by him.”

Seattle had its third and final power-play opportunity of the night when the Blues had too many men on the ice at 14:32 of the third period, but they could not convert. Holloway scored an empty-netter at 16:59 to complete a hat trick, and Hofer secured the 5-1 victory with 23 saves.

After a sluggish start out of the Olympic break, the Kraken (27-22-9; 63 points) sit in the final Western Conference wild card spot, two points ahead of the Nashville Predators (27-24-7). With a six-game homestand coming up, it will be up to the players to regain their footing before a playoff spot slips away.

“I think we just got to be ready to play,” Montour said. “I just said it. We’re in the mix. You should be excited, well-rested. I thought we had a solid week of practice. Tough teams, tough on the road to start, but obviously we didn’t show up for it.”