Seattle Playoff Clinching: On Thursday, April 6th, as the Seattle Kraken took on the Arizona Coyotes, many fans hoped to see their team secure their rightful place in this season’s playoffs. With a record of 43-26-8, the Kraken had some decent chances to defeat the Coyotes, who had a 27-38-13 record. Many posts were made prior to puck-drop relevant to Seattle’s potential to secure a playoff spot. All they required was either a victory of any kind over the Coyotes or a win for Carolina over Nashville. The Kraken needed to grind even harder during their showdown of the night because the Carolina game ended with a score of 3-0 against them.
1st Things First: The first most significant thing to happen in the period was the game’s first powerplay being awarded to the Kraken, and they failed to score on the five-on-four advantage. Many shots were taken back and forth between the two teams throughout the period. The Seattle Kraken took the win in the first, thanks to a Jared McCann wrist-shot goal at 19:36 into the game. The period ended 1-0, with shots on goal in Seattle’s favor at 13-8. The Coyotes had a 52.6% win on the faceoffs, beating the home team in one manner and in penalties, given that they had the only one given throughout the whole period. Seattle also managed to prevail in hits 5-2, showing how much more physical they were playing. Phillip Grubauer played very strong as he saved all 8 of the shots he faced.
2nd is the Best: 27 seconds in the middle period, Vince Dunn gets a goal that was arguably assisted by an Arizona player, raising the Kraken’s lead 2-0. Jaime Oleksiak headed to the box around a minute in for delaying the game, giving the Coyotes their first power play of the game. Jordan Eberle takes his team lead one step further, making a one-on-one playing field between him and Arizona’s goalie. At 10:29, remaining on the second period’s clock, some physically aggressive Arizona players heavily dug and attacked, trying to force a goal past Grubauer. However, he did not allow it. After the whistle blew, almost all players on the ice contributed in a group mini-altercation. It wasn’t until 12 minutes in that Arizona could get on the board, as they had a shot that went right over Grubauer’s right shoulder. In the next play, the Kraken were able to receive their second power play of the evening as a holding call was made on the Coyotes. Both teams were zero for two on their power plays at the end of the middle period, and they were tied with six shots on goal for those 20 minutes. However, in overall shots, the Coyotes maintained their higher percentage of faceoff wins, resting at 54%.
3rd Times the Charm: Matty Beniers, the NHL rookie, got his 23rd goal of the season on a breakaway with 16 minutes left, raising the score to 4-1. During the next play, Alex Wennberg got hit in the head with a puck and had to leave the ice seeking medical attention. However, he did manage to get up and off on his own. With around 9:30 remaining in regulation, Brandon Tanev gets himself involved in a fight and completely strips his opponent of his jersey. Another brawl breaks out at 14:55 in the last period all because of an altercation regarding an obvious tripping penalty from the Coyotes. Within the last minute, Arizona added a single goal, changing the score to 4-2 Seattle, the final shots on goal rest at 33-29 Kraken. With a 4-2 win against the Arizona Coyotes, the Seattle Kraken got their first playoff spot in franchise history!
Friday’s 3 Stars:
- Jordan Eberle
- Jared McCann
- Matty Beniers
Spectacular Seattle Summary: The Kraken have done amazing for their second franchise season, and their hard work from this season has paid off. Their work ethic, dedication, and strength will get carried on with them to the playoffs.
Seattle will next face the Blackhawks Friday night at 10:00 P.M. EST
For more Kraken news and updates, follow me on Twitter @gabriellediane0!
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