Lane Lambert’s guarantee after Seattle’s win over Toronto didn’t survive long. The Kraken coach had just seen his club close out a homestand with a last-minute victory and confidently said, “Going to Calgary and we’ll beat them, too.”
That didn’t happen.
Instead, the Flames backed up their own surge, winning for the sixth time in their last eight and rolling Seattle 6-2 Friday at the Scotiabank Saddledome in the teams’ final regular season meeting there. The Kraken had already taken the first two matchups by matching 6-1 scores, but this one tilted hard the other way behind a rough night for Seattle’s penalty kill and a big offensive showing from Matt Coronato and Joel Farabee.
Coronato finished with four points, Farabee had three, and Calgary made the most of the Kraken’s shorthanded trouble. The Flames scored on both of their power plays, with Martin Frost striking 2:32 into the game and Matvei Gridin adding another in the second period. That pushed Seattle’s total to eight goals allowed in its last 14 times down a man.
The Kraken’s PK problems set the tone early. After Frost opened the scoring, Freddy Gaudreau answered later in the first period to tie it at 1-1. Gaudreau’s goal came in Seattle’s 14th game, matching the seven goals he scored over 68 games last season.
From there, Calgary took control in the second. A goal by Aydar Suniev restored the lead, then Gridin cashed in on the power play to make it 3-1.
Farabee followed with another Calgary tally, and that ended Philipp Grubauer’s night after he gave up four goals on 14 shots. Joey Daccord came in from there.
Seattle did manage one of its own in the second period. On the Kraken’s power play, Kaapo Kakko worked through traffic and fed a pass to the left dot for Mackie Samoskevich, who buried his sixth of the season.
Still, the Flames kept stretching the gap. In the third, a Samoskevich turnover in the neutral zone and a mistimed change by Ryker Evans opened space for Coronato to hammer home another goal. Ryan Strome added Calgary’s sixth, keeping the pattern alive in a strange way: the winning team in every Kraken-Flames game has now scored six goals.
The night also featured an unusual heavyweight bout just two minutes in, when Seattle’s Curtis Douglas fought Calgary’s Adam Klapka. Douglas picked up an extra minor on the play, and that penalty helped lead to the Flames’ first goal.
By period, Calgary outscored Seattle 1-3-2, while the shot total ended 27-23 in the Flames’ favor. Calgary went 2-for-2 on the power play; Seattle finished 1-for-4.
And the schedule offers a quick twist. Seattle, now 8-5-1, won’t play again until next Wednesday.
When it returns to Climate Pledge Arena, the opponent will be Calgary once more, completing the season series on Nov. 4.
In Other News...
Tye Kartye Is Giving The Rangers A Boost They Desperately Needed
Tye Kartye has quickly gone from a waiver pickup to one of the more important forwards in New Yorks early-season mix. Since arriving, he has settled into a meaningful role on the Rangers third and second lines, giving them a steady blend of energy, defense and offense at a time when they needed help up front. For a club looking for dependable wingers, Kartye has been one of the brighter surprises in the opening stretch.
The Rangers have leaned on him more than they probably expected, and that kind of usage tends to say plenty about where a player stands with a coaching staff. If Kartye keeps producing at this level, his place in the lineup should only get stronger, with a contract extension becoming a real possibility down the road. For Seattle, it is another reminder of how quickly a useful piece can become someone elses answer. [Read more 🡒]
What Shane Wright Really Brings To The Predators Now
Seattles latest roster move sends a familiar young forward out the door after Shane Wright spent parts of multiple seasons with the Kraken and their AHL affiliate. The trade gives the organization a different kind of prospect to work with in Matthew Wood, a first-round pick in 2023 who arrives after completing his rookie season with Nashville.
For the Kraken, the deal also closes the book on a player whose development had been watched closely since he entered the league as a top pick. Wrights path in Seattle included stretches with both the NHL club and its AHL affiliate, and the swap reflects another shift in how the team is shaping its young core while adding a player with a fresh start and a different timeline. [Read more 🡒]
Kraken Just Made A Shane Wright Move Fans Will Judge Quickly
The Kraken made a notable roster swap just ahead of a stretch that will put them face-to-face with Nashville, sending forward Shane Wright to the Predators and bringing in Matthew Wood, a 21-year-old right wing who was taken in the first round in 2023. General manager Jason Botterill announced the deal, which gives Seattle a different young forward to work into the mix and adds another layer of intrigue to a matchup already carrying some extra edge.
Wood arrives with NHL experience from last season, while Wright leaves Seattle after being drafted in the first round in 2022. Both players are expected to join their new clubs before the upcoming games between the Kraken and Predators, so this is the kind of move that gets judged quickly, especially when the two teams are about to see each other and the swap is still fresh enough to color the conversation around both benches. [Read more 🡒]