Mid-second period, in a familiar scene, the aforementioned Stephenson huddles on a shift alongside linemates and veterans Jordan Eberle and Jaden Schwartz with the Kraken still trailing by just a goal. Stephenson was deployed for the power play all game and got his first penalty-kill duty in the middle frame. He finished the game with the most time on ice for Kraken forwards.
Power Outage as Opportunity Knocked
The Kraken were awarded two power plays in the opening minutes, but neither of the two-minute segments paid dividends. Burakovsky did have a Grade-A chance on Oettinger on the first power play with traffic out front, but it was the only shot of that effort. Same goes for the second power play, with Brandon Montour notching the first and only shot on goal. Seattle finished zero-for-four on the power play.
Stars Power for the Visitors
Dallas’s first line now features center Roope Hintz between Jason Robertson and the newly acquired Mikko Rantanen. That’s a dangerous group and the stats back it up. Robertson scored Dallas’s first in the opening 20 minutes, while Hintz has been the Stars’ leading scorer over their now five-game win streak (part of an eight-game point streak). Hintz scored the second Dallas goal in the period on a late power play with Rantanen and Robertson earning the assists.
It should be noted that the Kraken were up eight to three in shots on goal during the first eight minutes of this first of two-straight home games against Dallas (the rematch is Monday). The period finished 12 shots to nine in favor of the home squad, but Daccord faced seven high-danger scoring chances. He made some big stops to keep this game within reach, including a breakaway save on young star Wyatt Johnston during Seattle’s first power play of the night. Johnston (now 29 goals) is one of four players who have scored 27 or more goals to date this season. The others are Robertson (now at 33), Matt Duchene (28), and Hintz (now 27). Rantanen has notched 31 goals, 25 with Colorado, two more in a short stint with Carolina, and four with Dallas (including the fifth Dallas goal Saturday). In his last four full seasons with the Avalanche, Rantanen has racked up 30, 36, 55, and 42.
With the score 2-1 Dallas at intermission, the visitors put a stranglehold on the night with an early third-period power play goal from Mason Marchment and a mid-period score by Wyatt Johnson to put the game out of reach. Rantanen
Winterton, Firkus Fuel AHL Win in Playoff Home-Ice Chase
While Firebirds’ goal-scoring leader Jani Nyman (his 26 still leads all CVF players) remains on the Kraken roster, fellow top prospects Ryan Winterton and Jagger Firkus provided clutch scoring for a needed 3-2 overtime on the road against the Chicago Wolves. Coachella Valley is fourth in the Pacific Division (the last of three spots with home-ice advantage in the divisional first round of the playoffs; the first-place team gets a bye). The Firebirds have the opportunity to climb into a tie for third with another win Sunday in suburban Chicago. Winterton scored both of CVF’s goals in regulation with rookie defenseman Ty Nelson getting assists on both scores. Winterton now has 17 goals on the season, third best on the Firebirds. Firkus scored in the final minute of overtime for his 12th goal in his rookie season.
