In their first trip to the playoffs, the Seattle Kraken are halfway to the Western Conference Final after trouncing the Dallas Stars, 7-2, on Sunday in Game 3 of their second-round series. It was the eighth time this season that the Kraken have scored seven-plus goals in a game, more than any other team in the NHL.
The Kraken have gotten to this point without a star scorer. Their leader in goals during the regular season was journeyman Jared McCann, who is on his fourth team since being drafted in 2014 (and has missed the past six games because of injury).
Instead of relying on one or two players to set the tone offensively, Seattle spreads around that responsibility. Sixteen different Kraken players have scored over 10 playoff games — most in the NHL. (During the regular season, the Kraken had 13 skaters with double-digit goals, tied with the Edmonton Oilers for most in the league.)
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 200px 1fr;
gap: 20px;
width: 100%;
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 16px;
border: 1px solid #CECECE;
background-color: #FFF;
border-radius: 4px;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet-info a {
text-decoration: none;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet-info .br-snippet-title {
color: #343434;
font-family: ‘roboto’;
font-size: 20px;
font-weight: 600;
line-height: 22px;
margin-bottom: 10px;
top: -3px;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet-info .br-snippet-body {
color: #343434;
font-family: ‘urw-din’;
font-size: 16px;
line-height: 20px;
margin-bottom: 12px;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet-info .br-snippet-link-title {
display: inline-block;
font-family: ‘urw-din’;
font-size: 16px;
list-style-type: none;
width: auto;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-snippet-info .br-snippet-link-title:not(:last-child):after {
content: ‘ | ‘;
color: #343434;
}
The key to the Kraken’s success is their quick-strike offence made possible by a suffocating forecheck. After scoring a league-high 44 goals within five seconds of a turnover at 5-on-5 in the regular season, the Kraken have scored six such goals in the playoffs, second only to the Florida Panthers.
“They’re just so quick,” Stars defenceman Colin Miller told reporters recently. “It’s not as much physical, but they have such good sticks, and they’re so quick, and it’s four lines, right? It doesn’t really seem like there’s a lot of drop-off from the top line, the way they forecheck, down to the fourth line.”
Seattle is also good at recovering loose pucks following shot attempts, ranking fourth among playoff teams with 14.7 retrievals per 60 minutes at 5-on-5. That leads to second-chance scoring opportunities (2.53 per 60, second among playoff teams) and forces opponents to expend energy chasing the puck in the defensive zone.
The best example of the Kraken’s all-hands-on-deck approach, as implemented by Jack Adams Award finalist Dave Hakstol, is that their most successful forward line this postseason had never played together before April 26.
Rookie Tye Kartye, who led all AHL rookies with 57 points this season, made his NHL debut last round in place of the injured McCann, joining Jordan Eberle and Calder Trophy finalist Matty Beniers on the top line. Over the past six games, that combination has outscored opponents 6-0 at 5-on-5, and its 71.7 xGF% is fourth best out of 49 lines that have played at least 30 minutes together.
In Round 1, Seattle became the first team in NHL history to knock out the defending Stanley Cup champion in its first-ever playoff series. The Kraken will be a tough out for any team they face the rest of the way.
“We might not have the biggest names like a lot of teams, but we play like a real team,” Beniers told reporters Sunday. “We’ve been doing it all year. That’s a big part of our success, is everyone contributing.”
All stats via Sportlogiq
.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
gap: 20px;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper a {
pointer-events: none;
cursor: default;
text-decoration: none;
color: black;
}
