‘It’s definitely frustrating’: Seattle Kraken’s losing streak stretches to five games
The Kraken’s comeback started too late and fell just short.
That’s just the way things have been going for Seattle.
In what has become an all too predictable script, the Kraken found themselves playing from behind again on Wednesday night. The ending was familiar, too. At a quick glance, it would be hard to tell the difference between Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks and Saturday’s nearly identical defeat against Minnesota.
The Kraken have now lost five straight games and seven of their last eight. They are 2-8-1 when their opponent scores first, which is a big problem for a team with the tendency to start slow.
Seattle has trailed after the first period five teams in its last seven losses and had the lead just once. In their last three home games, the Kraken fell behind Anaheim, Minnesota and Chicago 1-0 after the first period. The Ducks extended their lead to 2-0 before the Kraken scored while Anaheim and the Blackhawks built 3-0 advantages.
“It’s definitely frustrating, right?” said forward Jared McCann. “Because we know (the issues), we see them on video. There’s no other way to put it. It’s frustrating and we need to clean it up.”
Seth Jones gave Chicago a 1-0 lead in the first. Meanwhile, he Kraken struggled to generate opportunities, finishing with just three shots in the opening period. When the Blackhawks increased their lead on an Alex DeBrincat just 2 minutes into the second period, Chicago had two goals to Seattle’s three shots.
“I think we got to start playing a little bit more predictable, simple hockey,” said forward Yanni Gourde. “Get it deep. Go to work. Get some on-time arrival and forecheck. Not enough of that probably in the first period.
“In the second period, we got a little bit better. … We actually played much better in the second, for the most part. We just got to find ways to win those games, find ways to score five-on-five, keep putting good shift after good shift after good shift and that’s how you’re going to win games. There’s a good sequence of that, but we need more of that.”
As has often been the case, the Kraken hit their stride midway through the second period and carried that improvement into the third. Seattle peppered Chicago goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury with 16 shots in the second period, but he didn’t allow a goal in that frame. After finishing the first period with just three shots, the Kraken out-shot the Blackhawks 33-19 on the night.
“They skated better than we did in the first period,” said Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol. “The second and third, we were excellent — tremendous efforts on our part. … That’s likely going to be the push we need through this (losing) period to get ourselves heading in the right direction.”
Seattle’s comeback attempt started late in the third period when McCann scored a power-play goal with 5:45 remaining. Then, with 1:49 left, Gourde scored to pull Seattle within one goal. But when the Kraken pulled goalie Philipp Grubauer, the Blackhawks scored an empty netter to seal the win.
“We just got to start building a little bit at a time,” Gourde said. “Building is just one good shift and then you follow it by another good shift and then we find our identity. Each line has should have an identity. That’s what we need to find. We need to find a little bit of a radar (for) momentum where we know the game is going to turn. … We got to find ways to make sure we turn the game before it’s too late.”
The outward frustration among Hakstol and the Kraken players has grown with each consecutive loss. It’s an emotion both Gourde and McCann admitted to on Wednesday, and one they will carry with them into Friday’s game against Colorado.
“I’m frustrated,” McCann said. “I want to win. I think everybody does on our team. Things aren’t going our way right now but we’re shooting ourselves in the foot. That’s just the way it is.”
This story was originally published November 17, 2021 at 10:47 PM.
