Kailer Yamamoto scored early in the third period and netted the deciding goal in the eighth shootout round, leading the Seattle Kraken to a 4-3 victory over the struggling New York Islanders on Thursday night.
Oliver Bjorkstrand and Jordan Eberle also found the net in the shootout for Seattle, which broke a three-game losing streak. Philipp Grubauer stopped Noah Dobson to secure the win after Yamamoto’s successful attempt.
The Kraken snapped a six-game shootout losing streak dating back to last season. They had failed to score in their previous five shootouts.
“It was awesome tonight,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “Guys loosened up. And as soon as one went in for us, you can feel some of that tension go.”
Matty Beniers, Alex Wennberg, and Yamamoto scored during regulation for the Kraken, all on power plays. Seattle converted 3 of 4 power-play opportunities after going 0 for 7 in their previous two games.
Yamamoto tied the game at 3 with 4:50 left in the third period. The Spokane, Washington, native received a pass from Jaden Schwartz and scored on a backhand move for his third goal of the season.
“To get that win is huge for us,” Yamamoto said. “Just being able to contribute to the team and the team’s success feels really good.”
Grubauer made 21 saves in regulation and overtime.
The Kraken rebounded from blowing a late two-goal lead in an overtime loss at Edmonton on Wednesday night.
“That was a disappointing loss because we felt like we did so many really good things there,” Hakstol said. “But true to the group here, we addressed a couple of things that we felt we could do better and then just said, ‘Let’s turn the page.’
“Our guys found a way through it, and that’s a real credit to them.”
Anders Lee, Casey Cizikas, and Dobson scored in regulation for the Islanders, who have now lost seven straight games. This marks their longest losing streak since an 11-game skid early in the 2021-22 season.
Bo Horvat and Oliver Wahlstrom scored in the shootout for New York. Semyon Varlamov made 29 saves in regulation and overtime.
“It’s frustrating, for sure,” Lee said. “But there’s no quit in this team. There’s no quit in the group. We’re playing good hockey. It’s just not getting the results.”
After Lee scored on a power play 3:46 into the game, Beniers responded with a power-play goal midway through the first period. He fired a wrist shot from the left circle for his second-season goal.
Wennberg added another power-play goal with 1:31 left in the first, one-timing a feed from Bjorkstrand to give the Kraken a 2-1 lead. It was Wennberg’s second goal in as many games after starting the season with a 16-game scoreless streak.
Cizikas tied it at 14:25 of the second period with his third goal of the season and 100th of his career. Dobson gave New York a 3-2 lead 1:48 into the third period, scoring on a power play for his fifth goal.
UP NEXT
- Islanders: At Calgary on Saturday to conclude a four-game trip.
- Kraken: At Vancouver on Saturday night.
