André Burakovsky goal, Joey Daccord save give Kraken 4-3 victory over Jets
WINNIPEG, CANADA - MARCH 5: Josh Morrissey #44 of the Winnipeg Jets plays the puck away from Andre Burakovsky #95 of the Seattle Kraken during first period action at the Canada Life Centre on March 5, 2024 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. (Photo by Jon
André Burakovsky’s second goal of the season couldn’t have come at a better time for the Seattle Kraken.
Burakovsky snapped a shot through the glove side of Winnipeg goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for a power play goal with 2:39 left to play to lift the Kraken to a 4-3 win over the Jets on Tuesday night.
Burakovsky unleashed a massive punch in the air in celebration as he snapped an 18-game goalless streak to give Seattle the lead.
"It felt very good," Burakovsky said. "It’s been a battle. With all the injuries and all the missed time, I think I’ve been playing some really good hockey lately, creating a lot and skating a lot. … It was nice to finally see one go in. I almost forgot what it feels like, so it was really nice."
The Kraken then needed to survive a late Winnipeg power play that saw a stickless Joey Daccord deliver a highlight save on Neal Pionk with seven seconds left to preserve the victory. Like Burakovsky, Daccord unleashed a fist pump to celebrate as time expired.
Jared McCann scored a shorthanded goal for the second straight night, and Justin Schultz and Tomáš Tatar each scored as well as the Kraken became just the third team since October 20 to score at least four goals on Hellebuyck, and the first team to do so in Winnipeg.
Alex Wennberg was held out of the lineup for a second straight night for trade-related reasons ahead of Friday’s trade deadline. McCann continued to center the second line in Wennberg’s absence.
Vince Dunn was also absent from the lineup after a vicious hit into the boards from Calgary’s Martin Pospisil last night left him unavailable in Winnipeg. Ryker Evans took Dunn’s place, getting his first action since February 13.
Meanwhile, Pierre-Édouard Bellemare returned to the lineup for the first time since Dec. 18 when he broke a leg bone blocking a shot against the Dallas Stars.
Despite the absences, the Kraken still managed to get a win on the road against one of the top teams in the Western Conference.
"What a team effort," Tatar said. "Coming here very late, back-to-back (games), such an important game of the season and we managed to grab two points. Every line, every single guy in the locker room chipped in and that’s just great to see."
Daccord made his first start in 10 days as Seattle has rode the hot hand of Philipp Grubauber in recent outings. But with the back-to-back in Calgary and Winnipeg, Daccord drew the duty against the Jets. Daccord made 30 saves on 33 shots for his 17th victory of the season.
"You work hard to overcome some of your mistakes, you make plays at the right time and get some contributions from everybody and every part of your lineup and we were able to do that both nights on this trip," head coach Dave Hakstol said.
The victory combined with an overtime loss by the Nashville Predators against the Montreal Canadiens allowed Seattle to claw back a point in the standings in the race for the final playoff spot in the West.
"We’re still in the fight here." Schultz said. "Guys want to be in the fight and we’re not giving up. These are two big wins for us. Need a lot more of them but we’re heading in the right direction."
Jaden Schwartz pressured the Jets into a turnover that led to a 5-on-2 rush chase for Seattle. McCann drove into the Winnipeg zone and created space for a trailing Justin Schultz as his shot slipped through goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to give the Kraken a 1-0 lead.
Kyle Connor evened the game up for Winnipeg 12 minutes into the second period. A terrific cross-ice pass from Mark Scheifele setup Connor’s 26th goal of the year to make it a 1-1 game.
For the second straight night, McCann cashed in a shorthanded goal on a breakaway chance. After a prime look from Josh Morrissey sailed wide of the net, Yanni Gourde won the puck off the wall and found McCann to spring the breakaway. McCann ripped a shot by the glove side of Hellebuyck to give Seattle a 2-1 lead with just over two minutes left in the second period. It was McCann's 27th of the season.
The lead wouldn’t make it into the intermission, however. Inaugural Kraken member Mason Appleton delivered a perfect pass from behind the net to a driving Adam Lowry with just nine seconds left in the period to bring the score back level at 2-2.
The Jets jumped out front just over a minute into the third period. A try by Schultz to keep the puck in the offensive zone backfired to spring a Winnipeg rush. Nino Niederreiter’s drive on net saw his shot rebound off Daccord, back off Niederreiter and through Daccord into the net for a 3-2 lead.
But it was a short-lived advantage for the Jets. Less than 30 seconds later, Tatar deftly redirected a Matty Beniers shot toward the net over the shoulder of Hellebuyck to pull the Kraken back level with over 18 minutes remaining.
Seattle got their only power play chance of the night when Logan Stanley was called for slashing Tatar with 4:25 left to play. The Kraken moved the puck around the offensive zone before Burakovksy let it fire from the top of the right circle and slipped it under the left arm of Hellebuyck for the go-ahead goal.
Burakovsky is starting to look like himself again after dealing with multiple injuries dating back to last season. The Kraken need him to score goals and will hope this is a sign of more to come.
"It’s awesome to see Burky got one tonight," Hakstol said. "He did a really good job getting it, shooting through the defenseman. Makes it a really tough save for Hellebuyck. So it’s nice to see him get that one. I know it will make him feel good."
Winnipeg pulled Hellebuyck with over two minutes left to play pushing for the tying goal. A hooking call against Yanni Gourde with 23.8 left to play made it a 6-on-4 advantage for the Jets. Pionk found space in the low left circle for a prime scoring chance. Daccord had lost his stick when Scheifele was checked into him by Adam Larsson and had to do without it. Pionk needed a second to settle the puck and it was enough time for Daccord to get across and make the desperation save to secure the victory.
"The camaraderie on the team is just amazing battling for each other like that," Tatar said. "I’m just proud of every guy in the locker room right now."