Eeli Tolvanen nets pair vs. former team, leads Kraken over Preds

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Eeli Tolvanen scored twice towards his former workforce, his first multi-goal recreation within the NHL, because the Seattle Kraken defeated the host Nashville Predators 7-2 Saturday afternoon.

Jared McCann had a purpose and two assists, Oliver Bjorkstrand had one in all every and Daniel Sprong and Adam Larsson additionally scored for Seattle (40-24-8, 88 factors), which leads the Western Convention’s wild-card playoff race.

Vince Dunn added two assists and goaltender Philipp Grubauer, who returned after lacking two video games with a non-COVID sickness, made 14 saves.

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Tyson Barrie and Matt Duchene every had a purpose and an help, Philip Tomasino added two helpers and Juuse Saros stopped 32 of 39 photographs for Nashville (36-27-8, 80 factors), which had a two-game successful streak snapped. That included a 2-1 shootout victory Thursday towards the Kraken within the opener of the two-game collection.

Seattle took a 2-0 lead within the first interval whereas outshooting the Predators 13-1.

Sprong opened the scoring at 3:13, placing a rebound of Ryan Donato’s shot into the web.

Tolvanen, a 2017 first-round decide by the Predators who was picked up off waivers by Seattle in December, prolonged the lead on the ability play at 17:37, placing a wrist shot from the highest of the precise faceoff circle previous a screened Saros.

Barrie made it 2-1 on a rebound of Tomasino’s shot 1:43 into the second.

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Tolvanen scored his second unassisted at 17:16 of the second. Saros got here out of his crease to play the puck and forestall a breakaway, however his clearing try ricocheted off the left-wing boards and proper to Tolvanen, who fired the puck into the open web from the highest of the faceoff circle. It was Tolvanen’s fifteenth purpose in 38 video games with the Kraken.

The Predators once more pulled inside a purpose as Duchene tipped Barrie’s shot over Grubauer’s shoulder simply 53 seconds into the third.

Larsson, Matty Beniers, McCann and Bjorkstrand scored within the third as Seattle pulled away.

The Kraken set an NHL report for largest second-season enchancment for an enlargement franchise. They’ve gathered 28 extra factors than throughout their inaugural marketing campaign, breaking the report of 26 set by the 1925-26 Boston Bruins and matched by the 1973-74 New York Islanders.

–Discipline Degree Media

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