Eberle re-signs, Kraken flat versus Jets

 On a night when the Seattle Kraken and the Winnipeg Jets played almost two and a half periods without a goal or a penalty, the visiting Jets scored three times in the final 13 minutes to defeat the
Kraken 3-0 in a ho-hum contest at Climate Pledge Arena.

The day started on a high note as the Kraken announced yesterday morning that they had extended the contract of original Kraken Jordan Eberle for two more seasons. On Thursday, it looked like Eberle, who would have become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, would be dealt at the trade deadline which was yesterday afternoon, 2 PM, Seattle time.

“It’s a relief,” said Eberle, who signed a two-year deal for $9.5 million. “I’ve mentioned quite a bit that I wanted to be here. My family loves it here.”




“We are thrilled to have Jordan remain with the Kraken for two more years,” said Kraken general manager Ron Francis of the 34-year-old forward who will play in his 1,000th NHL game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night. “The extension is well deserved and a priority for us.”

“I believe he’s a really good role model for young guys coming in,’ said Kraken coach Dave Hakstol. “He’s able to calm things down when maybe a younger guy needs an ear and he’s able to give a little bit of advice from (his) past experiences.”

Unfortunately for the Kraken and their fans, things went downhill after the Eberle signing. After a thrilling 4-3 victory over the Jets in Winnipeg on Tuesday night, backup goaltender Laurent Brossoit turned aside 17 Kraken shots for his first shutout of the season.

With the loss, the Kraken fall to six points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Western Conference. The Kraken are currently tied with three other teams who also have 67 points – St. Louis, Minnesota and Calgary. However, the Kraken (28-24-11) have the fewest wins among the teams they’re deadlocked with.

“We just didn’t have a lot of energy tonight,” said Hakstol, who noted that the Kraken played most of the contest without Jaden Schwartz, who suffered an upper body injury in the game. “We couldn’t find that burst of energy to get us going on the right track in terms of momentum.”

Mark Scheifele scored the opening goal (and game winner) at 7:15 of the third period. He took a lead pass from Vladislav Namestnikov in the right circle and then drove to the front of the net. When Seattle goalie Joey Daccord committed, Scheifele wristed a shot over the netminder into the net.

Adam Lowry, son of Kraken assistant coach Dave Lowry, added an insurance goal digging for his own rebound and Nik Ehlers added an empty netter in the final minute.

The Kraken had the only power play when Andre Burakovsky was pulled down by Scheifele, heading to the net. Burakovsky could have been rewarded a penalty shot if he hadn’t gotten a shot off. Seattle couldn’t capitalize on a man advantage, recording only nine shots in the final two frames.

Tomas Tatar, another UFA that the Kraken decided to keep as the trade deadline passed, had Seattle’s best scoring chances, hitting the crossbar and then shooting wide in the second period. Defenseman Justin Schultz could also become a free agent at the end of the season. The Kraken did trade one of their UFA’s- Alex Wennberg, like Eberle an original Kraken, to the New York Rangers earlier this week.

The Kraken were once again missing defensemen and leading assist man, Vince Dunn, who’s day-to-day with an upper body injury after being driven headfirst into the boards by Calgary’s Martin Pospisil, who was suspended three games for that hit.

Seattle hosts Vegas on Tuesday night. The defending Stanley Cup champs are 2-7-2 in their last ten games but made some big moves at the trade deadline acquiring forwards Anthony Mantha and Thomas Hertl and defenseman Noah Hanifan.

Scoring Summary

First Period

No scoring.

Second Period

No scoring.

Third Period

W- Mark Scheifele (Vladislav Namestnikov, Josh Morrissey) 7:15. W- Adam Lowry (Nino Niederreiter, Mason Appleton) 11:28. W- Nikolaj Ehlers (Sean Monahan, Alex Iafello) 19:10.

Shots on Goal- Winnipeg 32, Seattle 17.

Penalty Minutes- Winnipeg 2, Seattle 0.

Faceoffs- Winnipeg 52% Seattle 48%.

Referees- TJ Luxmore, Furman South. Linesmen- Shandor Alphonso, Travis Toomey.

Three Stars- 1. Laurent Brossoit, W. 2. Adam Lowry, W. 3. Mark Scheifele, W.

 


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