Kraken defeat Islanders in shootout for desperately needed win
ELMONT, N.Y. — A pair of Kraken players hoping to salvage what they can from frustrating seasons gave the visitors all the lift they could in squeezing out a desperately needed two points.
Matty Beniers again got blasted off his feet and to the ice by an opposing defender barely five minutes into Tuesday night’s contest, but then picked himself up and moments later fired home only his third goal in the last 25 games. And that goal stood up more than halfway through this eventual 2-1 shootout win over the New York Islanders, with Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer, making his first start in two months after an injury, keeping his team in it long enough for Tomas Tatar to score the lone goal of the shootout round.
Grubauer, who saved 25 of 26 pucks directed his way on the night, then stopped onetime Seattle Thunderbirds junior star Mat Barzal to clinch the victory.
Kyle Palmieri tied the game for New York on a late second period power play marker and the two teams would battle deep into a squared-up contest from there.
The Kraken had entered the night badly needing a victory after dropping eight of their last 10 and falling six points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot with only 30 games remaining. But the St. Louis Blues, holding down that spot, lost to Toronto on Tuesday, meaning the Kraken gaining the two points here has closed the playoff gap back down to four — though three other teams remain between them and St. Louis.
So, the Kraken needed his game even more badly than Beniers and Grubauer needed some strong performances.
They’d entered having given up 38 and 37 shots in their two losses this road trip coming out of the All-Star break, prompting coach Dave Hakstol to voice his dissatisfaction to players about their energy level and execution. That part was clearly elevated in this game, with the Kraken taking it to the Islanders early on and throughout.
Beniers, last season’s Calder Trophy winner as the NHL’s top rookie with 24 goals, was stuck on seven this difficult sophomore campaign and battling for a puck in the offensive zone when Islanders defender Ryan Pulock slammed him hard into the glass. The Kraken centerman, who has been tossed around plenty by opponents his first two seasons, immediately fell to the ice in obvious pain as play continued.
Kraken winger Jordan Eberle, a former Islanders player not exactly known for pugilism, immediately went at Pulock and the two locked arms for several seconds staring and jawing at one another. Meanwhile, play continued and Beniers was eventually fed the puck streaking down the right side.
He made it deep into the right faceoff circle and fired a laser wrist shot past goalie Ilya Sorokin to open the scoring. It was the first time in four games the Kraken have scored the opening goal and Grubauer made sure they didn’t squander it.
He displayed some fine athleticism moving across his crease to rob Brock Nelson on his doorstep a few minutes later. Not long after that, with the Kraken killing off a double-minor to Andre Burakovsky for high-sticking, Nelson had a point-blank chance from the slot that Grubauer again got in front of.
But Grubauer couldn’t stop everything and the Islanders eventually tied it 1-1 on the power play with just over five minutes to go in the middle period. Penalties have hurt the Kraken this trip and they paid instantly for a Yanni Gourde boarding call when Palmieri cashed-in on a bang-bang pass out in front that Grubauer had zero chance of stopping.
For Grubauer, it was his first action since leaving a Dec. 9 game against Tampa Bay with a lower body injury. He’s been plagued by groin issues the past several seasons and the long layoffs have no doubt contributed to some of his subpar numbers.
He entered Monday’s game with a 3.25 goals against average and .884 save percentage in 17 starts — numbers far lower than he wants or than the Kraken expected when signing him to his six-year deal back in July 2021.