Matty Beniers continued his impressive start in the NHL, scoring in his second consecutive game as the Seattle Kraken defeated the Ottawa Senators 4-2 on Monday night. With this goal, Beniers became the third NHL rookie this season to record a point in each of his first three games.
Beniers, who was the No. 2 overall pick in last year’s draft out of Michigan, had an assist in his NHL debut last Tuesday in a 5-3 loss at Calgary and scored his first goal on Saturday in the Kraken’s 4-3 shootout win over New Jersey.
Daniel Sprong, Victor Rask, and Jared McCann also scored for Seattle. McCann’s empty-net goal with 1:11 left in the game secured the win for the Kraken, marking their second consecutive victory.
Brady Tkachuk and Nick Holden scored for Ottawa, with their goals coming just two minutes apart early in the second period.
Beniers tied the game at 2-2 at 9:52 of the second period, redirecting a shot from Adam Larsson past Senators goalie Anton Forsberg. This goal made Beniers one of only three NHL rookies this season to record points in their first three games, joining Sean Durzi of Los Angeles and William Eklund of San Jose.
“We made a couple mistakes with the puck early in the second period, and that leads to opportunities in a hurry when you give them those types of chances,” said Kraken coach Dave Hakstol. “We did a good job pushing back, and Beniers’ goal was important. It got us going in the right direction.”
Sprong gave the Kraken an early 1-0 lead during a four-minute power play in the first period after Ottawa’s Parker Kelly was penalized for roughing. Sprong’s shot from the left circle beat Forsberg, marking his 12th goal of the season and his fourth for Seattle since being acquired from the Washington Capitals at the trade deadline.
“When you get four minutes, you can create a lot of momentum, and we did that,” Sprong said. “We haven’t gotten many power-play goals lately, so it was good to get off to a strong start.”
Tkachuk tied the game at 1-1 early in the second period with his team-leading 28th goal of the season. Holden gave Ottawa a 2-1 lead with a slap shot at 3:15 of the second period. However, after Beniers’ equalizer, Rask put Seattle ahead again with a goal at 16:45 of the second period.
Ottawa managed 14 shots on goal, with Driedger saving 12. Forsberg made 25 saves for the Senators.
“We had pretty good puck pressure everywhere,” Hakstol said. “It seemed like we were a step quicker than them most of the night. That made a big difference both defensively and offensively.”
Ottawa coach D.J. Smith expressed his dissatisfaction with his team’s performance: “All the things we’ve done of late to have success, we didn’t do today. Bad penalties, turnovers, and no rhythm offensively — it just wasn’t a very good game.”
Game notes
The teams split their two-game season series, with the Senators winning 4-3 overtime on March 10 at home. Monday’s game was originally scheduled for Jan. 6 but was postponed due to COVID-19 issues. This was the last of 10 makeup games for Seattle and the 11th of 12 makeups for Ottawa, with the final one scheduled for Tuesday at Vancouver. Former Seattle Seahawks star Marshawn Lynch and Grammy-winning Seattle native Macklemore were introduced as new Kraken’s investor group members before the game.
UP NEXT
- Senators: At Vancouver on Tuesday night.
- Kraken: Host the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night.
