3 takeaways from the first win in Seattle Kraken history
The Seattle Kraken made history (again) on Thursday, earning the first win in franchise history with a 4-3 victory over the Nashville Predators.
With two goals from Brandon Tanev and one each from Jared McCann and Alex Wennberg, Seattle was able to hold off Nashville in the third period.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
1. First win in franchise history
The Kraken secured a few firsts on Thursday night — first fight, first power-play goal and, most importantly, first win.
Seattle nearly came all the way back from a 3-0 deficit in its inaugural season opener against Vegas on Tuesday but fell just short. The Kraken finished the job against Nashville.
After the Predators took a 1-0 lead in the first period, Seattle answered with back-to-back power-play goals from McCann and Tanev. Roman Josi tied the game for Nashville early in the second period, but Wennberg responded to put Seattle back in the lead, 3-2. Seattle and the Predators traded goals in the third period to produce the final score.
The Kraken will now play three more games on the road before returning for the home opener against Vancouver on Oct. 23.
2. Alex Barre-Boulet makes Kraken debut
The Kraken claimed forward Alex Barre-Boulet off the waiver wire on Monday after five players were placed in COVID-19 protocol. Four of those players were cleared in time for the season opener, and Barre-Boulet didn’t join the team quickly enough to play against the Golden Knights.
But with Marcus Johansson going on injured reserve on Wednesday, Barre-Boulet played his first game with Seattle against Nashville.
Barre-Boulet was teammates with Seattle’s Yanni Gourde, who is still recovering from shoulder surgery, in Tampa last season. He played 144 games with the Lightning’s AHL club, scoring 69 goals and 136 points. He was also the AHL’s Rookie of the Year in 2018-19.
Despite having just one practice with the Kraken, Barre-Boulet made an immediate impact on Thursday. He saw 9:05 of ice time, most notably setting up Wennberg’s goal with a perfect pass across the ice in the second period. In his Kraken debut, Barre-Boulet showed why he was a smart pick-up. He also looks primes to play a role moving forward.
3. Grubauer steps up
Seattle goalie Philipp Grubauer finished with 25 saves against the Predators, none bigger than his series of stops late in the third period. With time ticking off the clock, Nashville peppered Grubauer with shots — eight in the final 5 minutes.
As the Kraken struggled to get shots in the third — they had just one in the final period — Grubauer held off Nashville at the other end. It was exactly the kind of performance Seattle hoped for from its biggest free-agent signing.
Grubauer handled the flurry from the Predators long enough for Tanev to score his second goal the night — an empty netter — and give Seattle a 4-2 lead with just more than a minute left. Mikael Granlund scored for Nashville with 40 seconds remaining to make it a one-goal game again, but the Predators ran out of time as Grubauer made two more saves in the final 32 seconds.
This story was originally published October 14, 2021 at 8:11 PM.
