In their debut season, the Seattle Kraken understood the importance of getting contributions from every part of the ice.
Enter defenseman Haydn Fleury.
“I think it’s a key part of our team,” Fleury said. “All of our defensemen can contribute offensively, and if we’re going to be a successful team, we need to do that.”
Fleury recorded the first two-goal game of his career, and Brandon Tanev added his sixth goal of the season into an empty net as the Kraken defeated the Minnesota Wild 4-1 on Thursday night.
Seattle secured its second consecutive win—the most impressive of its three victories so far—by handing Minnesota just its second loss of the season. Despite a slow start, this victory came, with the Kraken falling behind within the first seven minutes.
“They just got going,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “That’s good veteran leadership recognizing what’s happening in the game and knowing what needs to be done.”
Fleury scored late in the first period to tie the game at 1-1 and then added a wraparound goal in the second to give Seattle the lead. Tanev and Mark Giordano both scored empty-net goals after Minnesota pulled goalie Cam Talbot. Giordano’s goal, his second of the season, came from his defensive zone and banked off the boards.
Ryan Hartman scored his third goal of the season for Minnesota off a great pass from Kirill Kaprizov early in the first period, but Seattle goalie Philipp Grubauer stymied the Wild the rest of the way.
Grubauer made 30 saves, including a crucial stop on a Kaprizov breakaway in the final seconds of the second period. As Minnesota pressed for a tying goal in the third period, Grubauer made 16 saves to hold them off.
“They wanted to push back and throw everything on the net,” Grubauer said.
Minnesota came close to tying the game midway through the third when Joel Eriksson Ek’s tipped shot on the power play trickled along the goal line but hit the post and stayed out.
“Everybody’s watching, right? We have to score on those,” Eriksson Ek said.
The Wild played without their leading scorer Mats Zuccarello and forward Rem Pitlick, who were placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol earlier on Thursday. Zuccarello had seven points in six games, while Pitlick had an assist in his Wild debut on Tuesday against Vancouver.
“I think we started well in the first five minutes,” Eriksson Ek said. “But then they got some power play time, got into the game, and we didn’t win enough battles to get out of our zone.”
Fleury, who had three goals in 47 games last season with Carolina and Anaheim, fits the mold of a player Seattle hoped would thrive in a bigger role. His first goal was a wrist shot from just inside the blue line that found its way through traffic and past Talbot.
His second goal was a display of individual skill. After an extended possession in the offensive zone, Fleury faked a slap shot, carried the puck deep, and took a wrist shot that Talbot saved. Fleury quickly collected the rebound, circled behind the net, and wrapped it around for the go-ahead goal.
“I just faked it, walked around them, thought I had a hole short side and missed it, but I got my rebound and just wrapped it in,” Fleury said. “That one felt pretty cool.”
SUPERSONICS RECOGNITION
Basketball Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens was honored Thursday, and the street outside Climate Pledge Arena was renamed Lenny Wilkens Way. Wilkens, a former coach and player for the Seattle SuperSonics, celebrated his 84th birthday on Thursday, and the crowd sang to him during the game.
Game Notes
Wild F Connor Dewar and defenseman Jon Lizotte made their NHL debuts. Dewar, who played junior hockey for the nearby Everett Silvertips, found the moment especially meaningful. D Jordie Benn also made his Minnesota debut. Seattle has allowed only two goals on 18 power play attempts this season.
UP NEXT
- Minnesota: At Colorado on Saturday.
- Seattle: Host the New York Rangers on Sunday.
