MacKinnon, Rantanen sink Kraken in 6-4 loss to Avalanche in Game 3
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - APRIL 22: J.T. Compher #37 of the Colorado Avalanche scores against Philipp Grubauer #31 of the Seattle Kraken during the first period in Game Three of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Climate Pledge Arena on
SEATTLE - The stars that carried the Colorado Avalanche to a Stanley Cup last year rose up to ruin the home playoff debut for the Seattle Kraken on Saturday night.
Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen each scored a pair of goals with last year's Conn Smythe Trophy winner Cale Makar adding a goal as well as the Avalanche grabbed a 2-1 series lead with a 6-4 victory at Climate Pledge Arena.
"We gave them too much time and space a little too easy tonight, right?" head coach Dave Hakstol said. "They're going to work, they're going to generate, they're going to get their opportunities. When we're taking away some of that time and space and defending and making it a little more difficult, that's obviously a better scenario for us."
MacKinnon and Rantanen scored goals 88 seconds apart in the opening five minutes of the third period to break open a 3-3 tie. Rantanen added an empty net goal for good measure as Colorado grabbed control of the series after losing the opening in Denver on Tuesday.
"I mean whenever you get the opportunity as a coach to coach superstar players and you get in situations where games are even bigger and mean more and they're more important and you know what you can expect from a guy like Nate, it's a high standard. He sets that standard," Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said.
Saturday's game was purely an example of Colorado's best players outplaying Seattle's best. Matty Beniers' goal in the second period was the first goal in the series by one of the Kraken's top seven point scorers from the regular season.
Jaden Schwartz had a pair of goals for Seattle in the loss. Jamie Oleksiak and Beniers each scored 19 seconds apart in the second period as the Kraken rallied from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game. The Avalanche then took control in the third period to race away to victory.
"This is definitely the hardest first round I've been in, I think. ... They're really good and we're gonna have to continue to be our best to beat them," MacKinnon said of the Kraken.
As they have in each of the first two games, the Kraken struck first to grab an early lead. Schwartz found a pair of looks in front of the net as Seattle applied pressure. The puck found its way to the top of the zone and Schwartz managed to deflect a point shot from Justin Schultz by Alexandar Georgiev to give Seattle a 1-0 lead just over six minutes into the game.
Seattle had been a bit fortunate in the lead up to Schwartz's goal. Will Borgen seemed to catch Evan Rodrigues with a high-stick that wasn't called. Then a defensive zone giveaway came directly to Rantanen for a prime shot attempt only for him to miss the net.
Colorado then began to apply a load of pressure after Carson Soucy took a slashing penalty to give the Avalanche the man advantage. Grubauer robbed Artturi Lehkonen on a great look from directly in front of the net and added another big stop on Rantanen as Oleksiak was caught without his stick. Even after the power play ended the pressure didn't stop. Logan O'Connor had a rebound chance sail across the goal front finding the net as Seattle clung to their advantage.
Grubauer made 28 saves on 33 shots in net for Seattle as he did his best to keep the Avalanche from turning the game into a rout.
"We had a good start and some momentum and got some energy, spent a lot of time in their zone. And then they grab the momentum back on just a couple errors that end up in the back of our net," Schwartz said.
Samuel Girard tripped Alex Wennberg to give Seattle a power play chance to regain their lead. Instead, Colorado scored short-handed to jump out front. Daniel Sprong fell down at center ice and Makar and J.T. Compher got a two-on-one chance as Compher maneuvered the puck around Grubauer for the tying goal with just under four minutes left in the period.
MacKinnon then showed off his elite speed as he chipped a puck by a crashing Vince Dunn to spring a breakaway chance that he finished over Grubauer's left pad to make it a 3-1 Avalanche lead.
"We dive in on a four-on-four when [MacKinnon] is on the ice. I mean, that's something you can't do," Hakstol said of Dunn's play.
Then just as the Avalanche did in Game 2, the Kraken scored twice in less than a minute to tie up the contest and get the home crowd back re-energized.
Oliver Bjorkstrand won a puck off Lehkonen to keep possession in the offensive zone. Yanni Gourde found Oleksiak, and he crossed over Rantanen and beat Georgiev with a back-handed finish to cut the Colorado lead to 3-2 with 6:09 left in the second period.
Just 19 seconds later, Beniers chipped a puck over the right pad of Georgiev for the tying goal as Climate Pledge Arena sprung back to life. Jared McCann won a puck off Devon Toews behind the Colorado net and got the puck to Beniers in front of the net as he controlled it with his skate and scored his first playoff goal to bring the game level.
"We can't all score pretty goals. We got to definitely bear down and score some of the gritty ones too," Oleksiak said.
But unlike Colorado in Game 2, the Kraken were unable to turn that comeback into a victory. That's when the Avalanche's stars took full command instead. Rantanen slammed a pass from Devon Toews through the legs of Grubauer on a rush to restore the Colorado lead just 3:01 into the third period.
Then just 88 seconds after Rantanen's tally, MacKinnon drove by Ryan Donato and snapped a shot past Grubauer to take a 5-3 lead.
"We got to do a better job as a group on those guys," Hakstol said.
Rantanen scored his empty net goal with 2:14 left to play to put the game away for Colorado. Schwartz scored a late power play goal to cut the final deficit to two as the Avalanche gained control of the series.
"You know it wasn't going to be easy. We've got a lot of faith in our game, lot of belief in each other. Just gotta regroup and get ready for the next one. It's obviously big," Schwartz said.
Notes:
– Kraken forward Morgan Geekie did not play against the Avalanche in Game 3 as his wife went into labor.
Geekie did not take part in the team's morning skate on Saturday with head coach Dave Hakstol calling it a "maintenance day." Jesper Froden dressed in Geekie's place with Brandon Tanev moving up to Geekie's spot alongside Alex Wennberg and Jaden Schwartz. Froden took Tanev's spot on the fourth line with Ryan Donato and Daniel Sprong.
– The Kraken recalled forward Max McCormick from AHL Coachella Valley just prior to game time on Saturday night. He was one of four players scratched for the game, including Geekie, Cale Fleury and Jaycob Megna.
– Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin did not play due to "personal reasons," per Colorado head coach Jared Bednar. There is no timeline of Nichushkin's return to the team and whether he would be back in time for Monday's Game 4.