The Seattle Kraken attempted to stop the Winnipeg Jets‘ six-game winning streak on Thursday. The Jets are the only team in the NHL to not lose a game, and the Kraken had the chance to take that title away from them. Unfortunately, they were unsuccessful. There were still some great points in the game. Here are three takeaways from the Oct. 24 game.
Matty Beniers with Dual Strikes
Matty Beniers has continued to be a dominant force for the Kraken. Although having a slow start to the season, he entered the game without any goals to his name. Now, he leaves the Jets game with two goals under his belt.
In the first period, Adam Larsson sent the puck down the ice, where Jared McCann passed it toward the center of the rink. Beniers found the puck unattended, and shot it right at the net. His goal not only gave the Kraken their first goal of the game, but it was the first one of the season for Beniers.
In the third period, Beniers was given the chance to tie the game. Jared McCann managed to steal the puck away from the Jets, passing it to Brandon Montour. With a blast of a shot from Montour, Beniers was able to tip the puck into the net, scoring his second goal of the season, and the third of the game.
Prior to this, Beniers also managed to get an assist off of Jordan Eberle’s goal. With a three-point night, he definitely kept the Kraken alive throughout the game.
Daccord Continues to Shine
Although Joey Daccord let in four goals, he still had some incredible saves throughout the night. In the second period, the Jets had a chance to score another goal, but he shut it down immediately.
Neal Pionk had a shot on net, which Daccord caught in his glove. However, the puck bounced out. Even though the Jets attempted to score on the rebound, he covered the puck immediately, stopping play.
With 36 total shots from Winnipeg, Daccord was able to save 32 of those. With a save percentage of .889, he gave the Kraken a fighting chance against the Jets.
All Eyes on the Defense
With Vince Dunn on long-term injured reserve (LTIR), the defense pairings have seen some small changes. With Adam Larsson out his regular line partner, Ryker Evans has jumped to the first pairing. Joshua Mahura, who had been a healthy scratch with the Kraken, can now be found on the third pairing with Will Borgen. Montour and Jamie Oleksiak continue to make up the second defensive pairing.
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The defensive pairings are still going to take some work, yet they look stronger than they have ever been, especially in the case of Montour and Oleksiak.
With Montour’s pass to assist in Beniers’ first goal of the game, it showed that he is a force to be reckoned with. He has helped to bolster the Kraken defense, and was also the only defenseman to get a point this game.
Several defensemen also put up blocks this game. Larsson, Montour, and Mahura all put up one block each. Oleksiak was the only other defenseman putting up any blocks, and he put up two. While these numbers may seem minuscule, those are five chances the Jets had to score that the Kraken disallowed.
There will be an adjustment period to the new defensive pairings, yet they seem strong already. It will be interesting to see where everyone will place in the lineup when Dunn returns.
Plenty of Work Still to Be Done
While the Kraken were able to secure another point in the standings, they look to score two more when they host the Carolina Hurricanes on Oct. 26.
