CHICAGO — After being the talk of the team’s early season, the Kraken’s power play has slowed considerably and largely cost them Sunday’s matinee performance.
The Kraken had a two-goal lead and were dominating the Chicago Blackhawks before a Vince Dunn turnover led to a short-handed goal against that let the home team back in the contest. It was the second such goal in as many games yielded by the Kraken, who were scored on off an Andre Burakovsky power-play turnover in Colorado on Friday.
The power play finished 0 for 4 on Sunday, including a 3:03 span with the man advantage in the second period after a Seth Jones double-minor for high-sticking Brandon Tanev. The Kraken are 2 for 15 on the power play their prior four games — winning just once over that span — with both goals offset by the two short-handed markers allowed.
“I think we’ve just got to keep working at it,” Kraken winger Jared McCann said. “We haven’t had much practice time. Obviously, we’ve had a game a day here the last little while and we just need to figure it out.”
McCann had a goal and an assist Sunday and has taken off lately, with two goals and three assists his last three contests. He’s been an example of Kraken players clicking together in 5-on-5 action, with 10 different ones notching points Sunday.
Kraken center Matty Beniers, another power-play regular, agreed the unit probably could use more practice time. But he added it’s just as important for the Kraken to feel fresh heading into games.
“I mean, we’re playing a lot of games and we’re traveling all over right now,” Beniers said. “It’s finding a good balance between practicing and trying to get rest, which is just as important. I don’t think anybody has that exact science down for it. So, I think we just have to focus on getting rest.”
Dunn breaks drought
Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn had gone 34 games without a goal since scoring last Feb. 17 in Winnipeg, but didn’t miss when fed a solid pass from the side boards by McCann in the second period Sunday. Dunn waltzed into the high slot and fired a wrist shot that beat goalie Alex Stalock to his glove side.
Unfortunately for Dunn, one of the team’s most talented offensive blue liners, the goal was offset by his crucial first-period power-play turnover that helped Chicago get on the board.
“It’s good to contribute on the offensive side, but Vince is a guy we rely on for the power play to settle things down when we need things settled down,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said afterward. “Just like everybody else, there are a lot of areas he could be better in today.”
Familiar face
One of Hakstol’s prized former pupils from his time coaching at the University of North Dakota was Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, who has two goals already this season and assisted on the tying marker by Tyler Johnson in Sunday’s third period.
“He’s one of the greats in our league,” Hakstol said before Sunday’s game. “Skill, ability, all of those things put aside, he’s just so well prepared. He’s such a good pro every single day. When you add the competitiveness that he has into the mix, that makes him a pretty good player and a tough guy to handle every day.”
Toews is undergoing an early season resurgence under new coach Luke Richardson after scoring only 12 times all of the prior campaign. Rumors persist that the Blackhawks will try to flip him and veteran Patrick Kane for prospects by the March trade deadline.
Jones back in net
Martin Jones got Sunday’s start for the Kraken with No. 1 netminder Philipp Grubauer listed as day to day with a lower-body injury after exiting Friday’s contest at Colorado in the third period. Jones stopped 22 of the 27 shots fired his way and took the loss.
On Friday, after subbing in for Grubauer with the score tied in the final half of the third period in Colorado, he was credited with the eventual victory after stopping a lone shot on net.
The fact Grubauer did not go on injured reserve — requiring he sit seven days at a minimum — appears to indicate the Kraken do not feel he will be out long. Joey Daccord was recalled from the team’s Coachella Valley AHL affiliate to serve as Sunday’s backup.
Note
Yanni Gourde also missed Sunday’s game and returned to Seattle for what the team termed as “personal reasons” though he is expected to rejoin the squad for Tuesday’s home matchup against Buffalo. Morgan Geekie was inserted as a centerman in his place, earning an assist on a nice backhanded setup of McCann for the game’s opening goal off an odd-man rush.