Seattle 4, Minnesota 1
When: 10:00 PM ET, Thursday, October 28, 2021
Where: Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington
Referees:
Steve Kozari, Brandon Schrader
Linesmen:
Brandon Gawryletz, Bevan Mills
Attendance:
17151
By Field Level Media
Defenseman Haydn Fleury scored twice as the expansion Seattle Kraken put together the first winning streak in franchise history, defeating the visiting Minnesota Wild 4-1 on Thursday night at Climate Pledge Arena.
Brandon Tanev and Mark Giordano added empty-net goals in the final minute and goaltender Philipp Grubauer made 30 saves for the Kraken, who won their second straight after a 5-1 victory against Montreal on Tuesday.
Ryan Hartman scored for Minnesota, which has lost two of its last three after opening the season with a four-game winning streak. Goalie Cam Talbot stopped 34 of 36 shots.
Fleury's go-ahead goal, at 7:33 of the second period, was of the highlight-reel variety. The expansion draft selection from the Anaheim Ducks took a pass near the point from Ryan Donato, faked a slap shot and skated past a defender down the left wing.
Fleury's initial, close-range wrist shot was stopped by Talbot, but the rebound dropped behind the goal line and Fleury picked it up and put a wraparound inside the right post before the goalie could recover.
Tanev's empty-netter with one minute remaining, assisted by Yanni Gourde, was his team-leading sixth goal of the season. Giordano scored at 19:52, assisted by Riley Sheahan.
Minnesota opened the scoring at 6:27 of the first period as Hartman flicked a one-timer past Grubauer from between the hash marks after taking a pass from Kirill Kaprizov from behind the net. Marcus Foligno also got an assist.
The Kraken tied it at 13:23 as Fleury's shot from the point made its way past a screened Talbot. Jaden Schwartz made a pass off the boards from behind the net to get the puck to Fleury. Joonas Donskoi also was credited with an assist.
Talbot had his season-opening winning streak snapped at five games, one shy of the franchise record set by Manny Fernandez in 2002-03.
The Wild were without forwards Mats Zuccarello and Rem Pitlick, who both entered the NHL's COVID-19 protocol earlier in the day.
Kraken defenseman Carson Soucy was a healthy scratch, so he didn't get to play against his former team.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Minnesota |
|
Seattle |
Ryan Hartman 1 |
Points |
Haydn Fleury 2 |
Ryan Hartman 1 |
Goals |
Haydn Fleury 2 |
Marcus Foligno 1 |
Assists |
Ryan Donato 1 |
N/A |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Cam Talbot .944 |
Save Percentage |
Philipp Grubauer .968 |
Cam Talbot 34 |
Saves |
Philipp Grubauer 30 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Minnesota
|
31 |
1 |
0-2 |
4-4 |
8 |
29 |
Seattle
|
38 |
4 |
0-4 |
2-2 |
4 |
26 |
Upcoming Games
-
Seattle will play their next game at home against NY Rangers. The Kraken have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .400 after a loss.
-
Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Colorado. The Wild have a W/L % of .600 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.