The Seattle Kraken made sure Halloween ended on a high note, even if they kept their fans on edge right to the final seconds. Seattle beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 at Climate Pledge Arena, finishing off a game it never trailed in regulation but still nearly let slip away in the third period.
Brandon Montour delivered the dagger with 32.7 seconds left, hammering home the winner after Auston Matthews had just tied it for Toronto with 1:30 remaining. It was the kind of late swing that turned a chaotic night into a Kraken victory - and one that happened in regulation, instead of stretching into overtime or a shootout like some of Seattle’s recent tense finishes at home.
Montour’s goal was the second-latest game-winner in Kraken history, falling just one second short of Oliver Bjorkstrand’s winner in Colorado on November 9, 2023.
“I thought we were hard to play against for the most part,” Kraken head coach Lane Lambert said, “and I thought we played a pretty good hockey game.”
Seattle had built a 4-2 cushion entering the third period on goals from Berkly Catton, Josh Mahura, Chandler Stephenson, and Ryker Evans. Toronto chipped away from there, first cutting the margin to one on a Jack Roslovic goal before Matthews found the equalizer late. But the Kraken answered almost immediately.
Matty Beniers won the faceoff that set up the decisive sequence, and the puck came back to Montour, who scored from distance on what looked like an unscreened shot.
Philipp Grubauer started in net for Seattle and allowed just one goal at 5-on-5. Toronto’s other three came on the power play, in a four-on-four situation, and on a 6-on-5 with Leafs goalie Sergei Bobrovsky pulled.
“5-on-5 I liked our game a lot,” Lambert said. “They didn’t get a scoring chance 5-on-5 in the third period, let’s put it that way.”
The win pushed Seattle to 8-4-1 through 13 games, good for fourth in the Western Conference. The Kraken finished their homestand 3-1 and now head to Calgary for one game on Friday before returning home to face the Flames again on Wednesday, November 6th.
In Other News...
Kraken Blue Line Just Powered A Wild Win Over Toronto
Seattle got one of those results that can reshape a road trip mood in a hurry, outlasting Toronto 5-4 in a game that kept tilting back and forth all night. The Kraken leaned on an unusual source of offense, with goals from Josh Mahura and Ryker Evans helping power a win that also featured notable contributions from rookie Gavin McKenna and a busy night for Philipp Grubauer and Sergei Bobrovsky in net.
The penalty kill spent plenty of time under pressure, and the late stages turned into a test of patience as the teams traded momentum and lead changes. In the end, the difference came from the blue line again, with Brandon Montour finishing off the kind of wild finish that can leave a room buzzing long after the final horn. [Read more 🡒]
Kraken Just Got A Clear Look At Torontos Biggest Problem
The Maple Leafs got a timely boost from Gavin McKenna in their recent game, as he scored twice on the power play and offered a glimpse of how well he can work alongside Auston Matthews. For a team still sorting through its identity early enough in the season, those kinds of flashes matter, especially when the top end of the roster can look dangerous in the kind of structured, special-teams-heavy hockey that travels well.
Even with that wrinkle in their attack, Toronto is still weighing a bigger question in net as it heads toward Vancouver. Sergei Bobrovskys recent play has become part of the conversation, and the staff is considering whether Anthony Stolarz should get another opportunity, a decision that could say plenty about where the Leafs think their steadier option really is right now. [Read more 🡒]