Kraken lead after first period but Oilers pull away for 4-2 victory

Kate Shefte, The Seattle Times on Jan 28, 2025

Published in Hockey

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In his seventh straight start, Joey Daccord made 27 saves Monday night, but the Kraken fell behind the Edmonton Oilers for good midway through a 4-2 loss in Edmonton.

After Edmonton didn’t look quite ready to start the game on the power play, with Kraken defenseman Ryker Evans tripping superstar Connor McDavid just 41 seconds into the game, Eeli Tolvanen was the one to open the scoring.

The Seattle winger was the trailer on a Shane Wright-John Hayden odd-man rush, 3:37 into the game. Oilers goaltender Calvin Pickard was pressed into his own net when Tolvanen swooped in and scored, so the Edmonton bench tried unsuccessfully to overturn the goal.

Tolvanen has goals in back-to-back games and 13 through 51 outings this season.

After the Oilers tied the game, Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn also scored his second in two games.

Dunn’s goal on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Penguins came during a lengthy five-on-three. The Kraken had more than a minute of a two-man advantage to work with on Monday night and didn’t score.

McDavid returned after serving a three-game suspension for cross-checking Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland. The Kraken might have preferred a lengthier punishment. After drawing that early penalty, McDavid put a shot on Daccord, who seemed to lose track of the rebound. The Kraken goalie looked the wrong direction for it as McDavid put it away.

Corey Perry, one of just four 39-year-old active players in the NHL, saw his point-blank shot go off the Kraken crossbar. He was getting his ninth goal of the season one way or another. He cherry picked at the Kraken blue line and accepted a lob from Edmonton teammate Darnell Nurse, who was all the way back with Daccord. Perry’s snap shot made it 3-2 Oilers.

The Kraken failed to get it back and pulled Daccord for the extra attacker with two minutes left. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored into the empty net.

Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner was absent after welcoming a baby boy, Edmonton announced. Edmonton signed former Everett Silvertips goaltender Tyler Palmer, 21, to an amateur tryout, similar to what the Kraken had to do when Daccord fell ill before a game at the New York Rangers earlier this season. Palmer backed up Pickard (26 saves).

Palmer has history with not just Washington, but the Kraken. He was a rookie camp invitee in 2023, before his last season in Everett. He joined then-teammates Kaden Hammell, a Kraken draft pick, and Eric Jamieson at KCI.

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