A disappointing road loss for the Kraken

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The big news going into last night’s game between the Seattle Kraken and the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center was the Kraken’s acquisition of Kaapo Kakko, a former second overall selection in the NHL draft.

The Kraken hoped that Kakko, acquired from the New York Rangers for defenseman Will Borgen and two draft choices, would help jump start the Seattle offense.

But for one night at least, a new acquisition didn’t provide a spark as the Kraken were defeated by the suddenly resurgent Blackhawks, 3-1. Chicago has now won three consecutive games (12-19-2), while the Kraken are headed into the opposite direction, losing three straight (15-17-2 overall).

Seattle was almost shutout for the second consecutive game, but defenseman Ryker Evans drove to the net and scored off a pass from forward Oliver Bjorkstrand with nine minutes left in the game. That cut the Chicago lead to 2-1, but rookie Nolan Allan’s first NHL goal at 15:11 of the third period wrapped things up for the Hawks.

“I'd be even more upset if we didn't have a push in response,” said Kraken coach Dan Bylsma after the game. “But we don't want to be a response team. We don't want to be one that has to put an effort in when you're down in the game. It’s really more where me, the group players in there, have to recognize we need to be a lot better.”

The final score could have easily been worse as Kraken netminder Joey Daccord was sharp in the first period. The Kraken were outshot in the frame, 10-5, (although they actually finished the game outshooting their hosts by a 28-24 margin) and the Hawks had some high-quality chances.

In the game’s opening minutes, Daccord dove to block a shot by former Kraken Ryan Donato, who looked to have the open net. Daccord stopped Taylor Hall on a breakaway and then forward Yanni Gourde, back in the lineup after missing three games, become a temporary goaltender when he slid across the goal line to block a shot by Joey Anderson.

The Kraken were fortunate to head to the first intermission with a 0-0 tie but Gourde, one of Seattle’s alternate captains and a team leader, told announcer Piper Shaw on Kraken TV that the team looked `terrible’ in the first period.

Seattle’s luck ran out in the second, when Teuvo Teravainen pounced on defenseman Jamie Oleksiak’s errant pass and found teammate Ilya Mikheyev at the net for the score. Mikheyev would add a second goal six minutes into the third period. With their backs to the wall, the Kraken finally generated some offense in the third period.

As for Kakko, he had one shot, one hit, and wasn’t on the ice for any of the Blackhawk goals. He also had 1:15 on the power play.

Kakko flew out of Dallas Wednesday night (where the Rangers play tomorrow night) He wore number 24 with New York, the number Jamie Oleksiak’s worn with the Kraken since the team began. Kakko will wear 84 with the Kraken, the number he wore with the Finnish National team. Kakko and the Kraken’s Eeli Tolvanen were teammates on Team Finland.

``I had some good games and some bad games,” said Kakko of his time with the Rangers. ``This is a new start. I’m happy to be here.’’

When asked what he hopes to bring to the team, ``I’m good in the O-zone. I can make some plays and hope to get some goals. I think I've been getting better in the defensive zone as a two-way player who can be trusted. Getting to the net is something I've been trying to do a little more, especially this year.’’

The Kraken have a tough weekend leading up to the NHL’s holiday break. They’ll play at Vegas on Saturday and Colorado on Sunday. But Seattle has had an unpredictable season, beating good teams and losing to weaker ones.

Scoring Summary

First Period

No scoring.

Second Period

C- Ilya Mikheyev (Teuvo Teravainen) 10 :54.

Third Period

C- Mikheyev (Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi) 6 :06. S-Ryker Evans 4 (Oliver Bjorkstrand 12, Brandon Montour 13) 11:26. C- Nolan Allan (Ryan Donato, Connor Murphy) 15:11.

Shots on Goal- Seattle 28 (Oliver Bjorkstrand, Jared McCann 3). Chicago- Ilya Mikheyev, Nick Foligno 4.

Hits- Seattle 26 (Yanni Gourde, Josh Mahura 4). Chicago (Connor Murphy 5).

Penalty Minutes- Seattle 8, Chicago 10.

Faceoffs- Seattle 57.4%. Chicago 42.6%

Blocked Shots- Seattle 4 (Matty Beniers 2), Chicago (Alex Vlasic 2).

Referees- Wes McCauley, Beau Halkidis. Linesmen- James Tobias, Tyson Baker.

Three Stars- 1. Ilya Mikheyev 2 Arvid Soderblom 3. Nolan Allan. 

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