While Eberle leads the home squad with 24 goals scored for Seattle, trade acquisition Bobby McMann scored his 27th goal on the season, with the last eight coming in the 10 games he has played for the Kraken. Overall, he has 12 points in the ten-spot of games and, not surprisingly, drew some monumental cheers when he was announced in the starting lineup.
Record-Setter for Newcomer McMann
McMann’s goal was a thing of both beauty and perseverance. Linemate Kaapo Kakko started the scoring sequence, sending the puck up ice to be pursued by center Chandler Stephenson and McMann. As that entered the Utah zone, somehow the puck stayed in their drive to the net. McMann regained puck control near the crease, spun and scored on a backhand move that adds to his early repertoire of scoring moves.
McMann set a record for most goals, eight, in his first 10 games with the Kraken, breaking Brandon Tanev’s mark of six during the inaugural season. McMann’s 12 points easily cleared the previous mark of nine points held by Jared McCann (early 2021-22 season), Matty Beniers (late 2021-22) and Brandon Montour (early 2024-25).
It should be noted that Kakko is enjoying his work alongside McMann. The Finnish forward now has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his last nine games. For his part, Stephenson has been a standout player in all zones during that timeline.
It was heartening for the Kraken players and head coach Lane Lambert to see the top two lines register a two-goal lead in the first 14 minutes. Both lines had strong shifts and were playing fast. Just what this squad needed after scoring just two goals between losses in Buffalo and Edmonton, both solid games as described by Lambert pre-game.
Utah halved the lead on a power play with rookie Jacob Melanson in the penalty box for slashing. But Kraken goalie Joey Daccord did more than his part in keeping this game within reach of two standings points. The Mammoth outshot the Kraken, 12-9, in the opening period, most especially turning up the heat in the last six to seven minutes. Daccord made Grade-A saves throughout the period with both strong positioning and protecting against rebounds.
Per Natural Stat Trick, Daccord stopped four high-danger chances in the opening frame, but there were two or three more shots that prompted pivotal Daccord saves to keep the one-game margin at first intermission.
Lauding Larsson
Kraken original Adam Larsson played his 1,000th game in Florida during the recent road trip, but Thursday was the first home-game opportunity to celebrate the ironman defenseman’s benchmark at the relatively tender age of 33. The Seattle stalwart is signed for three more seasons beyond this year.
After Thursday’s morning skate, the Swedish-born former No. 4 overall draft pick covered how much he has appreciated and enjoyed the Kraken faithful from Game 1 of the franchise, plus “a full house of family” in town and more.
“It’s probably the most fun I’ve had playing in this league over my five years here in Seattle,” said Larsson. “It’s been a really good ride … just the atmosphere [in the arena on any given night. They show up even through some tough stretches here … we like the city as family. We like everything about it. I’ve enjoyed my time here for sure.”
Larsson’s wife, daughter, mother, sister, brother and a full handful of kids are in town for the festivities. This reporter can confirm their arrival, entering security with several little ones wearing kid-size Larsson jerseys, naturally bearing the number 1000.
The ceremony allowed the locals to shower the cheers on “Big Kat,” who was even louder when the D-man was announced in the starting lineup. Kraken owner Samantha Holloway presented Larsson with a commission painting of him raising his arms upon scoring a goal. Ron Francis presented the traditional silver stick, along with a mini-silver stick, to Larsson’s toddler daughter, Alta. In a tribute video, Hall of Famer Francis, who played the fifth-most NHL games all-time, noted the Kraken D-man is just the 160th defenseman to reach that mark, praising Larsson’s “rugged style every shift every night.” For Eurocentric fans, Larsson is the 23rd Swede to reach the milestone.
At morning skate, Lane Lambert commended his top-pair defenseman: “It’s nice to see good things happen to good people. And he’s a good person, a great teammate, a great leader, a quiet leader, but when he speaks, they listen. He’ll do anything for the team. Honoring him will probably make him uncomfortable. That’s just the type of person he is. He’s unselfish. He’s been a tremendous player for this organization.”
