Larsson's OT goal pushes Kraken past Stars
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DALLAS (AP) — Defenseman Adam Larsson scored on a breakaway backhander 1:52 into overtime and emergency callup goaltender Joey Daccord made 25 saves in his first NHL appearance since Nov. 1 as the Seattle Kraken beat the Dallas Stars 5-4 on Tuesday night.
Brandon Tanev had two goals and an assist, fellow fourth-line forward Daniel Sprong had a goal and an assist and Jared McCann added his team-best 34th goal plus an assist for the Kraken, who bolstered their hold on the first wild-card playoff position in the Western Conference.
Jamie Benn sent the game into overtime with the tying goal with 0.7 seconds left and had two assists. Miro Heiskanen and Joe Pavelski each had a goal and an assist and Wyatt Johnston also scored for the Stars, who rallied from a two-goal deficit in the final four minutes.
Larsson took a pass off the boards from McCann, near Seattle’s goal line, and sprinted toward the net, getting behind Heiskanen.
“Those are the kind of plays you need this time of year,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “When you give up those two (goals) at the end, it can be pretty disappointing. Yet we went out and found a way to win it.”
Dallas has 90 points with 11 games to play and is tied for first place in the Central Division with the Minnesota Wild. Jake Oettinger, who went in sixth in the NHL with a 2.46 goals-against average, came off a 6-5 win at Calgary that capped a 4-2 road trip – two of those wins at Seattle.
“Given up 10 goals in the last two games,” said Oettinger, whose primary backup, Scott Wedgewood, has been out for a month with a knee injury. “Something’s gotta change.”
Daccord was called up from Coachella Valley of the AHL on Monday with No. 1 goalie Philipp Grubauer unavailable with non-COVID illness. It was the 13th career NHL start for the 26-year-old Daccord, who improved to 3-8-1 in his NHL career.
“It was a pretty crazy 24 hours,” Daccord said. “It didn’t really give me time to think. Just get in there and do it.”
Tanev had his first two-goal game since Oct. 26, 2021, and his first three-point game since Nov. 29, 2021. His second goal put Seattle ahead 4-2 at 14:03 of the third period.
Johnston’s goal was his 21st, the most among league rookies, and gives him a five-game goal streak.
Dallas appeared to pull within 4-3 seconds later, but Ty Dellandrea’s goal was successfully challenged for goaltender interference on Max Domi.
Pavelski, scoring at 16:34 of the third, and Benn each scored with an extra attacker on the ice. Benn has 30 goals for the fifth time.
Heiskanen has an 11-game points streak, tying the Minnesota-Dallas franchise record for defensemen set by Craig Hartsburg in 1986-87.
BLUELINE HISTORY
Heiskanen’s points streak combined with a 12-game streak brought in by Kraken D Vince Dunn made for the first NHL game ever featuring multiple defensemen with double-digit scoring streaks. Dunn’s streak, which was the longest current streak in the NHL, ended.
TRAVELIN’ MEN The Kraken are 23-9-3 away from Seattle for 49 points, the most of any West team in road play. They also improved to 28-1-3 when leading after two periods.
NOTES
Kraken F John Hayden is out for at least 12 weeks following surgery Monday on his right leg after being injured in a fight during Saturday afternoon’s loss to Edmonton. … Pavelski played in his 1,239th career NHL game, moving him into 14th place among all-time American-born players.
UP NEXT
Kraken: The middle games of a four-game road trip will be played Thursday and Saturday against the Nashville Predators.
Stars: Host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.
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