It was full service for winger Andre Burakovsky. He fired a stumbling call, wiped slush off his knees, stayed for the ensuing power play and scored to briefly bring the Seattle Kraken back into the game Monday night.
Just 18 seconds later, however, the two-goal cushion was back and the Carolina Hurricanes cruised to a 5-1 win at Climate Pledge Arena.
A pair of quick penalties to Seattle winger Jordan Eberle with 27 seconds of peace between the two gave the Hurricanes a chance to extend their lead before Burakovsky cut it briefly.
“Our PP has again given us an opportunity. There were parts of this game where, under pressure, we were able to overcome that pressure and generate [offensive] zone time,” coach Dave Hakstol said. “Not enough, but there was some.”
Philipp Grubauer got the start in front of goal for the Kraken (1-2-1) and faced 11 shots in the first period. He was pressed against the post but left enough room for former Portland Winterhawks (WHL) star Seth Jarvis to make it 1-0 for the Hurricanes.
Grubauer stopped a shorthanded 2-on-1 for Carolina, following a blocked shot at the point. Still on the power play, Yanni Gourde found himself alone in front of Frederik Andersen at the other end but sent the puck directly into the Hurricanes goalkeeper’s pads.
After the period break, Brandon Tanev was brought down on the goal line and made himself useful there, registering an unofficial save as Grubauer was on the other side of the crease.
It was a single well-executed Kraken goal. Jared McCann tapped it on Eberle, who sent a pass across the ice and Burakovsky’s waiting stick, which slipped it between Andersen’s glove and pad. That gave the Kraken one power-play goal in all four games this season, and Burakovsky has the team’s lone leading possession (2 goals, 3 assists). Seattle center Matty Beniers failed to score a point for the second time in 14 career NHL games.
“We have to find a way to bounce back earlier,” Burakovsky said. “We have to fight back and find a way to score more goals. At the moment I think we are not scoring enough goals.
On the next shift, the Hurricanes patted the puck around the crease, flicking Grubauer (29 saves) back and forth until Andrei Svechnikov put it over the net. Svechnikov also made it 4-1 just 1:10 later.
“They all got through our layers,” McCann said. “We need to do a better job of blocking shots as wingers and assisting our D.”
Jordan Martinook scored the Hurricanes’ last goal and only of the third period.
There was an easy, no-look pass between the Hurricanes players that was exactly the type of play that burns the Kraken when they attempt it.
“We throw a puck in the middle of the ice and it comes back down our throat,” Hakstol said. “It’s something we need to clean up and it needs to be cleaned up now.”
The core of the Hurricanes have been playing together for quite a while. The difference between that group and the Kraken, who have played together just over a season at most, was stark in points on Monday.
“We’re four games down and it’s still a new team, a lot of new guys,” Burakovsky said. “I think it’s up to everyone to look their best.”
In his second regular season game, 2022 18-year-old first-rounder Shane Wright recorded a team-low 6:50 ice time. He was up slightly in the third period, but still hasn’t played seven minutes. He was scratched from the last two games.
“That’s how the game went,” Hakstol said. “It’s partly the special teams and partly the flow of the game.”
