Rookie Ryan Ufko scored the first goal of his NHL career late in the second period, helping the Nashville Predators rally for a 4-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night.
Ufko’s milestone moment came with 5:35 remaining in the second when he carried the puck from the right side of the net, slipped between two defenders and beat Seattle goaltender Joey Daccord to give Nashville a 3-2 lead.
The Predators erased an early deficit thanks to second-period goals from Tyson Jost and Reid Schaefer, while Steve Stamkos sealed the win with an empty-net goal — his 31st of the season. Jonathan Marchessault contributed two assists, and Juuse Saros made 43 saves for Nashville, which entered the night having lost four of its previous five games.
Seattle jumped out to a quick start. Kaapo Kakko scored just over two minutes into the game, and Matty Beniers doubled the lead at 9:46 of the first period with a sharp-angle shot from the bottom of the right circle that beat Saros over the shoulder.
The Kraken thought they had regained the lead in the second when Shane Wright found the net, but the goal was overturned due to goaltender interference after Ryker Evans slid into Saros and knocked him off balance.
Daccord finished with 23 saves for Seattle.
The Kraken were also without winger Jaden Schwartz, who suffered a facial injury after being struck by a skate during Seattle’s 7-4 loss to Ottawa on Saturday.
Seattle, currently holding a wild-card position in the Western Conference, has now lost five of its last seven games.
Up Next
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Predators: Travel to Vancouver on Thursday night.
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Kraken: Remain at home to face Colorado on Thursday night.
