SEATTLE KRAKEN NOTES:
LAST GAME
St. Louis 2 at Seattle 5
Goals: Donato, Soucy, Sprong, McCann, Tanev
Goalie: Jones (22/24)
PP: 0/3 PK: 2/3 Shots: St. Louis 24 – Seattle 33
CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 85)
Chris Driedger (ACL; IR) – 31 games – month-to-month
Joonas Donskoi (upper body; IR) – 31 games – day-to-day
TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
Dec. 18, 2022: Reassigned D Gustav Olofsson to Coachella Valley (AHL)
UPCOMING GAMES
Wednesday, Dec. 28: Calgary at Seattle, 7 p.m. PT
Friday, Dec. 30: Edmonton at Seattle, 7 p.m. PT
Sunday, Jan. 1: NY Islanders at Seattle, 5 p.m. PT
Tuesday, Jan. 3: Seattle at Edmonton, 6 p.m. PT
Thursday, Jan. 5: Seattle at Toronto, 4 p.m. PT
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
• Tonight is Seattle’s second of four meetings with the Canucks this season and the first one in Vancouver this year. The game is also the team’s final game before the NHL’s Christmas break, which will begin on Dec. 23. The Kraken are looking for their first-ever win against the Canucks.
• Yanni Gourde has five points (one goal, four assists) in his last five games played dating back to Dec. 12 at Florida.
• Will Borgen has already set a career high with 38 blocked shots this season and is just four hits shy of tying his career best of 89 that he set last year.
• The Kraken have had 16 different players score at least three goals this season. Entering play Wednesday, no team had had more players on its roster score three or more goals.
• Additionally, the Kraken were one of six teams (Arizona, Calgary, Dallas, Florida, NY Islanders) this season to have four different defensemen score at least three goals entering play Wednesday. Jamie Oleksiak (four), Vince Dunn (four), Adam Larsson (three) and Justin Schultz (three) have all scored at least three times for the Kraken this year.
• Martin Jones’ 14 wins were tied for the fifth-most in the NHL this season entering play Wednesday.
• According to Natural Stat Trick, the Kraken ranked seventh in the NHL with a 52.2 percent Corsi rating entering play Wednesday. The Kraken are outshooting their opponents 749-648 at five-on-five this season. Their 53.6 percent shot share was also good for seventh in the NHL entering play Wednesday according to Natural Stat Trick.
WHALE WATCHING
• Matty Beniers has recorded a point (one goal, one assist) in each of the two career games he has played against the Canucks.
• Will Borgen scored his first NHL goal against Vancouver on Jan. 1, 2022.
• Jordan Eberle has 14 points (10 goals, four assists) in his last 13 games against the Canucks, including recording his 400th NHL point (a goal) on Nov. 28, 2017.
• Jared McCann has notched a point in six of the last seven games he has played against the Canucks, totaling six points (two goals, four assists) during that span.
REGIONAL RIVALS
• Tonight’s game marks the second matchup of the season between the Kraken and the Canucks. The Kraken are searching for their first-ever win against Vancouver.
• The Canucks are the closest NHL team geographically to the Kraken. Climate Pledge Arena and Rogers Arena are located approximately 145 miles apart.
• It would take you approximately three hours to drive from Seattle to Vancouver, one hour to fly and two days to walk.
• The greater Seattle area has a population of approximately 4.02 million in comparison to 2.6 million in the greater Vancouver area.
• Seattle is home to seven professional sports teams in addition to the Kraken – the Seahawks (NFL), Mariners (MLB), Storm (WNBA), Sounders FC (MLS), OL Reign (NWSL), Dragons (XFL) and Seawolves (MLR). Similarly, Vancouver has six professional sports teams in addition to the Canucks – BC Lions (CFL), Whitecaps (MLS), Warriors (NLL), Canadians (NWL), BC Bears (CRC) and Knights (CT20).
• The Western Hockey League – a major junior hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States – has teams located in both Seattle (the Thunderbirds) and Vancouver (the Giants). Kraken prospect Alexander True played for the Thunderbirds prior to making his professional debut.
• Both Seattle and Vancouver used to be the home of NBA franchises. The Sonics were located in Seattle from 1967 to 2008 before relocating to Oklahoma City and becoming the Thunder, winning one championship (1979) during their tenure in the Pacific Northwest. The Grizzles resided in Vancouver for seven years (1995 to 2001) before moving to Memphis, where they are now known as the Memphis Grizzlies.
• Jared McCann played for the Canucks for one season (2015-16) after being drafted by the team in the first round (24th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft. He totaled 18 points (nine goals, nine assists) in 69 regular-season games before being traded to the Florida Panthers.
• Kraken assistant coach Dave Lowry was selected by Vancouver in the sixth round (110th overall) of the 1983 NHL Draft and went on to play for the Canucks for parts of three seasons (1985-86 to 1987-88), totaling 40 points (19 goals, 21 assists) in 143 regular-season games.
A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY
• Among NHL players that are averaging fewer than 11 minutes of ice time per-game, three of the four top scorers were Kraken players entering play Wednesday: Daniel Sprong, who has 17 points (eight goals, nine assists) in 10:37 of average ice time, Morgan Geekie, who has 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 10:04 of average ice time, and Ryan Donato, who has 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in 10:59 of average ice time. Sprong ranked first and Geekie and Donato ranked second and fourth, respectively.
• Sprong (eight) and Donato (seven) ranked first and second, respectively, entering play Wednesday in goals among players who are averaging less than 11 minutes of ice time per game. Geekie (four) is tied for sixth with four goals this season.
• Sprong was leading the NHL entering play Wednesday with 0.71 points per game among players that are averaging less than 11 minutes of ice time and have played in at least two games this season.
• The Kraken are the only team this season to have three players that are averaging less than 11 minutes of ice time to have at least five points this season.
• Additionally, Geekie (3.65) ranked 10th in the NHL entering play Wednesday is points-per-60 at five-on-five this season. o Kraken forward Jared McCann ranked fourth in the NHL enter play Wednesday with 2.29 five-on-five goals per 60 this season.
• According to Natural Stat Trick, all three of Donato, Geekie and Sprong rank in the top 10 on Seattle’s roster in five-on-five goal differential this season. Geekie leads all Kraken skaters with a plus-13 rating, Sprong is tied for fourth with plus-10 and Donato is tied for sixth with plus-nine.
• Both Geekie and Sprong are on pace to finish the year with new career highs in goals, assists and points and Donato is pacing to set a new career high in goals.
THE DON FATHER
• Ryan Donato enters tonight’s game riding a career-best, four-game goal streak.
• If he were to score tonight, he would become the first Kraken skater in franchise history to score a goal in five consecutive games. It would also make him the 14th player this season to score in five or more consecutive games.
• A goal tonight would also give Donato goals in three consecutive road games for the second time in his career, having previously done so last season from Dec. 1 to 15, scoring against the Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks.
• A goal or an assist tonight would extend Donato’s point streak to five games, which would match his career high that he set from Feb. 21 to March 2, 2019 when he was playing for the Minnesota Wild.
• According to Natural Stat Trick, when Donato is on the ice during five-on-five play this season, the Kraken are outscoring their opponents 17-8.
• Donato was a part of several franchise milestones during the Kraken’s inaugural season: he scored the team’s first-ever goal on Oct. 12, 2021 at Vegas and also scored the first-ever shootout-deciding goal in the team’s first shootout victory on Jan. 17, 2022 vs. Chicago.
ROAD WARRIORS
• The Kraken have posted an 9-4-1 record while playing on the road this season. The team’s nine road wins are just two wins shy of matching their total from last season (11) despite only playing in 14 road games so far this year.
• The Kraken were tied for fifth in the NHL in regulation wins on the road (eight) and ranked fourth in road points percentage (.679) entering play Wednesday.
• The team’s 3.93 goals-per-game played on the road ranked second the NHL entering play Wednesday, trailing only the Vegas Golden Knights (4.12).
• Matty Beniers is the Kraken’s leading scorer when playing on the road this season. totaling 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 14 games played.
• Yanni Gourde has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his last 10 road games dating back to Nov. 1 at Chicago and enters tonight’s game riding a three-game road point streak.
• Jordan Eberle has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last seven games played on the road dating back to Nov. 25 at Vegas.
• Daniel Sprong has six points (four goals, two assists) in his last six road games.
CHEERS TO BENIERS
• Matty Beniers leads all NHL rookies this season in goals (11) and points (24), and his 13 assists were tied for third entering play Wednesday. Beniers is ranked in the top five on Seattle’s roster in goals (second) and points (third) this season.
• He enters tonight’s game having totaled 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in his last 14 games played, dating back to Nov. 19 vs. Los Angeles. His 15 points during that span leads all rookies and all Kraken skaters.
• Beniers scored the game-winning goal in the Kraken’s game on Dec. 1, a 3-2 overtime win against the Washington Capitals. It was the first overtime goal of his career and his second game-winning goal of the season (Last: Nov. 1 at Calgary). Beniers’ overtime goal came seven seconds into overtime, the fastest overtime goal in franchise history. According to NHL Stats, it was also the fastest goal by a rookie from the start of a regular-season overtime in NHL history. Walter Jackson (0:08 on March 7, 1933) held the previous record. Entering play Wednesday, Beniers was one of three rookies (Nils Lundkvist, Fabian Zetterlund) to score an overtime goal this season and is also one of three rookies (Pontus Holmberg, Shane Pinto) to score two game-winning goals this year.
• Entering play Wednesday, Beniers was the only rookie this season to have two three-point games, doing so on Nov. 23 vs. San Jose and on Nov. 27 at Anaheim. Beniers’ six multi-point games led all rookies and were tied with Andre Burakovsky for the team lead entering play Wednesday.
• Beniers is also averaging 17:13 of ice time per game this season, which is the second-most among rookie forwards (Noah Cates; 18:06) and ranks fourth among Kraken forwards.
• The 20-year-old is currently on pace to finish the season with 29 goals, 34 assists and 63 points. Twenty-nine goals would be the most by a rookie since Patrik Laine and Auston Matthews had 36 and 40 goals, respectively, during their rookie season in 2016-17.
WHAT IN THE WORLD
• Three Kraken prospects have been selected to represent their home countries in the upcoming IIHF World Junior Championship – forward Shane Wright (Canada), goaltender Niklas Kokko (Finland) and forward Jani Nyman (Finland). The 2023 World Juniors will be held from Dec. 26, 2022 to Jan. 5, 2023 in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick.
• This year’s World Juniors will mark the second time that Wright will be playing for Team Canada at an international tournament, having also done so at the 2021 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship. Wright was also selected to Canada’s World Juniors’ roster last season, but the tournament was cancelled due to Covid concerns. Canada will play its first game on Dec. 26 against Czechia at 3:30 p.m. PT.
• Wright has split this season between the Kraken and their American Hockey League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. He has totaled two points (one goal, one assist) in eight NHL games and four points (all goals) in five AHL games. He had three points (two goals, one assist) in Canada’s first pre-tournament game on Dec. 19 against Switzerland.
• Kokko and Nyman have represented Finland in international competition together three times previously – at the 2022 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship, the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and the 2020 Youth Olympic Games. Nyman also played for Finland at the 2022 European Youth Olympic Festival. Finland will take on Switzerland in the first game of the tournament on Dec. 26 at 8 a.m. PT.
• Nyman currently has 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in 21 regular-season games for Ilves of Liiga (the top men’s professional league in Finland). His 10 points currently rank fourth among all Liiga rookies.
• Kokko has posted a 3-6-3 record with a .904 save percentage, 2.88 goals-against average and one shutout for Hermes of Mestis, the second-highest men’s hockey league in Finland.
EBS AND FLOW
• Jordan Eberle enters tonight’s game having recorded 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in his last 17 games played dating back to Nov. 8 vs. Nashville.
• His 17 assists and 25 points both rank second on Seattle’s roster, trailing Andre Burakovsky’s 18 assists and 28 points.
• Among players from the 2008 NHL Draft class, Eberle ranked third in scoring this season entering play Wednesday, trailing only San Jose’s Erik Karlsson (42 points) and Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos (37 points). Eberle’s 620 career points also ranked third among 2008 draftees, again trailing Stamkos (1,009) and Karlsson (702). Eberle was originally selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round (22nd overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft. He is one of 23 players from the ’08 class that are still playing in the NHL, a list that includes Kraken teammate Justin Schultz.
• The 32-year-old is currently on pace to finish the season with 21 goals, 45 assists and 66 points. Forty-five assists would be the most of his career, surpassing his current career high of 42 that he set in 2011-12 while playing for the Oilers. Sixty-six points would be the second-most of his career, 10 points shy of his career-best 76 points that he had in 2011-12.
• Eberle leads all Kraken skaters in career goals (270), assists (350), points (620) and games played (889).
BENNY AND THE VETS
• Since Nov. 13 vs. Winnipeg, forwards Matty Beniers, Jordan Eberle and Jared McCann have played on a line together, totaling 163:37 of ice time at five-on-five together during that span.
• According to Natural Stat Trick, since Nov. 13 when that line is on the ice during five-on-five play, the Kraken are outscoring their opponents 16-3, outshooting them 85-71 and have 81 scoring chances to their opponents’ 58.
• In the Kraken’s last game on Dec. 20 vs. St. Louis, when the Beniers/Eberle/McCann line was on the ice at five-on-five, the Kraken outscored the Blues 1-0 and outshot them 5-3.
• One of Beniers, Eberle or McCann have scored in 15 of the last 16 games the Kraken have played dating back to Nov. 13.
SETTING THE PACE
• With 31 games played this year, the Kraken are roughly 38 percent of the way through their second season. Heading into tonight’s matchup with the Canucks, nine of the 20 veteran skaters on the Kraken’s active roster are on pace to surpass their career highs in scoring.
• Will Borgen, Andre Burakovsky, Morgan Geekie and Daniel Sprong are all on pace to set new career highs in goals, assists and points. Borgen has already tied his career high with two goals this season and has set career highs in both assists (seven) and points (nine).
• Ryan Donato (20), Jared McCann (42) and Jamie Oleksiak (13) are both on pace to finish the 2022-23 season with a new career high in goals. If the pace holds, it would mark the first time in his career that McCann would surpassed the 40-goal threshold. Adam Larsson (eight) is on pace to tie his career highs in goals.
• Vince Dunn (37), Jordan Eberle (45), Yanni Gourde (41), Carson Soucy (13) and Brandon Tanev (26) are all pacing to finish the year with new career highs in assists. Olive Bjorkstrand (29), Adam Larsson (21) and Justin Schutlz (39) are all on pace to tie their career high in assists.
• Vince Dunn (48), Adam Larsson (29), Jared McCann (59), Jamie Oleksiak (22) and Brandon Tanev (40) are all playing at a pace to surpass their career highs in points. ON THE DL
• This season defensemen Vince Dunn and Adam Larsson have played 514:27 together during five-on-five play, starting every game of the season on a pair. Only Los Angeles’ Drew Doughty and Mikey Anderson (579:47) have spent more time together at five-on-five according to Natural Stat Trick. From the start of the 2021-22 season, no two Kraken defensemen have spent more time together at five-on-five than Dunn and Larsson (1101:17). Will Borgen and Carson Soucy, who have played 410:23 at five-on-five together, rank second.
• According to Natural Stat Trick, the Kraken have scored 29 five-on-five goals when Dunn and Larsson are on the ice together. Only New Jersey’s Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler (30) have been on the ice for more of their team’s five-on-five goals.
• The pair’s plus-11 goal differential at five-on-five ranks third among defensive pairs this season according to Natural Stat Trick.
• Additionally, according to Natural Stat Trick, the Dunn/Larsson pairing ranks fifth in the NHL with 22.5 expected goals at five-on-five.
• Dunn is pacing to finish the year with 37 assists and 48 points, both of which would surpass his current career bests (28 assists, 35 points). Larsson is on pace to tie his career bests with eight goals and 21 assists and set a career high with 29 points.
• The duo is pacing to finish the season as each other’s most consistent defensive partner. Prior to this year, the most amount of time Larsson had played with one partner was in 2015-16 when he played 1227:12 at five-on-five with Andy Greene. o Dunn’s 586:49 of five-on-five ice time with Larsson last year is the most he has played with a single partner to date.
• Dunn and Larsson have been on the ice for the most five-on-five goals (51) of any defensive pairing in franchise history. The Soucy/Borgen pair ranks second with 20.
• Of any two Kraken defensemen that have played at least 200 minutes together at five-on-five, Dunn and Larsson rank second with a 51.8 percent Corsi rating, trailing only Mark Giordano and Jamie Oleksiak (52.0).
SECOND TIME AROUND
• The Kraken enter tonight’s game with an 18-10-3 record, which is good for a .629 points percentage and 39 points.
• The team won their 18th game of the season on Dec. 20 vs. St. Louis, their 31st game played of the season. Last year, it took the Kraken 61 games and 151 days from the start of the season to reach 18 wins, earning their 18th win of the season on March 12, 2022, a 4-3 shootout win over the Montreal Canadiens.
• It took the Kraken 56 games to reach 39 points last season. This year, the Kraken earned their 39th point of the season in their 31st game played, a 5-2 win against the Blues on Dec. 20.
• Wednesday, Dec. 21 marked the 71st day of the 2022-23 NHL season, roughly 38 percent of the way through. Compared to the first 71 days of the 2021-22 regular season, the Kraken have won eight more games, earned 16 more points and have improved their points percentage by 0.246. The Kraken’s 0.246 points percentage improvement from the first 71 days of the 2021-22 season to the first 71 days of the 2022-23 season ranks third the NHL, trailing the New Jersey Devils (0.271) and Boston Bruins (0.262). Their eight extra wins are tied with Montreal for the fourth-best mark in the league. Only the New Jersey Devils (plus11), Boston Bruins (plus-11) and New York Islanders (plus-10) have a better year-over-year win improvement. The team’s 16 more points through the first 71 days of the 2022-23 season are tied with the New York Islanders for the third-best points improvement, trailing the Boston Bruins (22) and New Jersey Devils (19).
• Compared to this time last year, the Kraken have scored 42 more goals, allowed nine fewer goals, are scoring 0.68 more goals per game and allowing 0.41 fewer goals per game. Additionally, the team has improved its power-play percentage by 3.9 percent, increasing it from 17.5 to 21.4.
• The Kraken have been at or above a .500 points percentage the entire 2022-23 season. They did not achieve that mark past the first three games of the 2021-22 season.
• The team’s 18 wins this season have come against the Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings (3), Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins (2), San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets. 10 of those 15 teams made the playoffs last season.
UNDER THE SEA
• The Coachella Valley Firebirds – the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Kraken – played their first-ever home game at the recently completed Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs. The team defeated the Tucson Roadrunners 4-3 on Dec. 18 in front of a sold-out crowd of 10,000 fans.
• The Firebirds have posted a 15-6-3 record in 24 games played this season. They rank second in the Pacific with a 0.688 points percentage and rank third with 33 points.
• The team will next take the ice on Thursday, Dec. 22 on the road at Henderson, the first game of a home-and-home against the Silver Knights that will conclude at Acrisure Arena on Friday, Dec. 23.
• Kraken prospect Ryker Evans currently ranks third in scoring among rookie defensemen with 17 points (two goals, 15 assists) in 23 games this season.
STRAIGHT FROM THE SOURCE
• Hailey Salvian of The Athletic discusses what the addition of Matty Beniers to the Kraken roster means for the team in its second season and makes an early case for his Calder candidacy.
• Morgan Geekie joined NHL Now on the NHL Network on Dec. 14 to talk facing his former team, Mario Kart and the Kraken’s second season.
• Geoff Baker goes behind the scenes on Samantha Holloway becoming the co-owner of the Seattle Kraken, becoming just the third female principal team owner in the NHL.
• Kate Shefte of the Seattle Times dove deep into the Vince Dunn/Adam Larsson defensive pairing, explaining their success on the ice and their friendship off it.
• Matty Beniers joined John Buccigross on ESPN’s The Point on Dec. 2 to talk about his overtime goal against the Capitals, the team’s depth and more.
• Philipp Grubauer called into the Chuck and Buck show on KJR on Dec. 2 to talk about the Kraken’s overtime win the previous night against his old team.
• Jorden Eberle called into the Brock and Salk show on ESPN 710 to talk about the team’s overtime victory, what’s changed for the Kraken this season and his chemistry with his line mates.
• Kraken Head Coach Dave Hakstol, General Manager Ron Francis and CEO Tod Leiweke joined Ian Furness on KJR on Nov. 30 to talk all things Kraken and the team’s success in its second season.
• On Nov. 30, Kraken broadcaster Alison Lukan joined the Bump and Stacy Show live on ESPN 710 to breakdown the Kraken’s winning streak.
KRAKEN REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Borgen (84), Larsson (82), Tanev (80)
Blocked Shots: Larsson (64), Oleksiak (40), Borgen (38)
Shots: Bjorkstrand (80), Burakovsky (75), Eberle (70)
KRAKEN’S RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK]
1-10: 4-4-2 (10), 33/34, 10/37, 22/33
11-20: 8-1-1 (17), 37/22, 5/30, 23/29
21-30: 5-5-0 (10), 33/40, 6/28, 22/35
31-40: 1-0-0 (2), 5/2, 0/3, 2/3
OVERTIME RESULTS (4-3)
Oct. 12, 2022 at Anaheim: Terry
Oct. 19, 2022 vs. St. Louis: Faulk
Nov. 13, 2022 vs. Winnipeg: Scheifele
Nov. 17, 2022 vs. NY Rangers: Schultz
Nov. 19, 2022 vs. Los Angeles: Eberle
Nov. 29, 2022 at Los Angeles: Burakovsky
Dec. 1, 2022 vs. Washington: Beniers
SHOOTOUT RESULTS (0-0)
N/A
VANCOUVER CANUCKS NOTES:
MATCH-UP INFO
• Tonight marks the second of four meetings between the Canucks and Blues this season: Oct. 27 (5-4 W @ SEA), Dec. 22 (home), Jan. 25 (away), Apr. 4 (home).
• The Canucks are 5-0-0 all-time against the Kraken, including a 2-0-0 record at home.
• Among active Canucks skaters, Conor Garland leads the team in career points against Seattle with eight points (3-5-8) in five games played.
• J.T. Miller has seven points (1-6-7) in five career games against Seattle
• Quinn Hughes has six points (1-5-6) in four career games against Seattle.
• Bo Horvat has three goals in four career games vs Seattle.
• Andrei Kuzmenko tallied a goal and an assist in his first career game vs Seattle earlier this season.
• Spencer Martin is 1-0-0 in one career appearance vs Seattle, recording a 2.00 GAA and .938 save percentage.
QUICK NUMBERS
• Bo Horvat has nine goals and 14 points (9-5-13) in his last 15 games and is fourth in the NHL in goals (22) this season.
• Quinn Hughes has 27 points (0-27-27) this season and is tied for third in the NHL in assists among defencemen (27 in 27 GP). He also is ranked third among NHL defencemen in power play assists with 14.
• Andrei Kuzmenko has 15 points (6-9-15) in his last 14 games.
• Conor Garland has points in four of his last six games (2-2-4).
• Elias Pettersson has 16 points (7-9-16) in his last 13 games and leads the team with the most points (34) and multi-point games this season at 11 (11-16-27 in those 11 games).
• Luke Schenn holds the NHL all-time record of most hits (2,980) by a defenceman.
LAST MEETING – OCT. 27/22: VAN 5 at SEA 4
Ilya Mikheyev opened the scoring with his first goal as a Canuck at 4:38 in the first period…Luke Schenn and Andrei Kuzmenko each recorded their second assists of the season on the play…Mikheyev buried his second goal of the game to even the score at 3:58 in the second period on the power play…Sheldon Dries and Conor Garland registered the assists…Andrei Kuzmenko gave Vancouver a 3-2 lead on the power play at 14:17 in the second period, assisted by J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson…Pettersson also added a goal of his own at 1:16 in the third period, with Luke Schenn collecting his second assist of the evening…Conor Garland scored an empty-net goal, which would be the eventual GWG, at 18:35 in the third period, unassisted…Luke Schenn led the team in hits (7)…Bo Horvat won 22 of 30 face-offs (73%)…Thatcher Demko faced 36 shots.
2022.23 TEAM RANKS
VAN SEA
Goals For/Game 3.29 (11th) 3.48 (6th)
Goals Against/Game 3.90 (30th) 3.16 (17th)
Power Play % 25.9 (7th) 21.4 (19th)
Penalty Kill % 67.0 (32nd) 69.0 (30th)
Penalty Min./Game 11:00 (26th) 9:25 (17th)
*Rankings are accurate as of 4:00pm PT on December 21
Vancouver Canucks: Media Notes
LAST GAME PLAYED – DEC. 19/22: VAN 1 vs STL 5
Ilya Mikheyev evened the score at 1-1 with his 10th goal of the season at 12:24 in the second period, just 1:59 after St. Louis opened the scoring…It marked Mikheyev’s second career double-digit goal season (21 last season)…Quinn Hughes recorded the lone assist on the play for his 27th assist in as many games to start the season…Luke Schenn led all skaters in hits (6) and co-led in blocks (2)…Brock Boeser registered a team-high five shots on goal…Spencer Martin faced 27 shots.
LAST 5 vs SEATTLE
• Oct. 27/22: VAN 5 at SEA 4
• Apr. 26/22: VAN 5 vs SEA 2
• Feb. 21/22: VAN 5 vs SEA 2
• Jan. 1/22: VAN 5 at SEA 2
• Oct. 23/21: VAN 4 at SEA 2
SEATTLE CRACKIN’
Entering Thursday’s contest vs Seattle with an all-time record of 5-0-0 against the Kraken, the Canucks will tonight look to establish their second-longest win streak vs a single franchise since the opposition’s inception. Currently, Vancouver’s five consecutive wins vs Seattle since their first-ever meeting are tied for second-most in Canucks history:
• 9 straight wins vs Washington Capitals from Dec. 17/74 to Oct. 13/76
• 5 straight wins vs Tampa Bay Lightning from Jan. 4/93 to Feb. 26/94
SEEING DOUBLE (DIGITS)
Thanks to Ilya Mikheyev’s 10th goal of the season on Dec. 19 vs STL, the Canucks have five 10+ goal-scorers on their roster (Horvat [22], Kuzmenko [13], Pettersson [13], Miller [11], Mikheyev [10]) through the team’s first 31 games for the first time since 1992.93 (also five). Other occasions with at least five 10+ goal scorers through 31 team games include: 1986.87 (5), 1982.83 (5), 1981.82 (5), 1980.81 (5), 1979.80 (6), 1975.76 (5), 1974.75 (5).
• With Mikheyev’s goal, the Canucks also became just the fifth team in the NHL to possess five or more 10+ goal-scorers so far this season, joining Buffalo (6), Boston (5), Ottawa (5), and Tampa Bay (5).
ALL ABOUT APPLES
Collecting the lone assist on Ilya Mikheyev’s goal on Dec. 19 vs STL, Quinn Hughes registered his 27th assist of the season in his 27th game of the season and the 31st team game for Vancouver. In doing so, he became the third player (fourth occasion) in franchise history to record 27 or more assists in the team’s first 31 games, and first since Henrik Sedin (27) in 2011.12. Henrik Sedin has the most assists through the team’s first 31 games in a season with 31 (2010.11).
• With two assists on Dec. 3 vs ARI, Quinn Hughes surpassed Doug Lidster for fourth most multi-assist games among defencemen in Canucks history at 35 games.
LET’S GET IT STARTED
Scoring two goals just 34 seconds apart on Dec. 14 at CGY, Bo Horvat and Conor Garland recorded the fifth fastest two goals to start a game in Canucks history at 1:48 in the first.
• Scoring his team-leading 22nd goal on Dec. 17 vs WPG, Bo Horvat is the fourth skater in Canucks history to score at least as many goals in the team’s first 30 games of the season, joining Tony Tanti (22 in ’83-’84), Pavel Bure (25 in ’92-93) and Alexander Mogilny (22 in ’95-’96).
• Earlier this season, Horvat became the first player in franchise history to have five multi-goal games in the first 13 games.
MARTY MART AND THE WINNING BUNCH
Collecting his ninth victory of the season on Dec. 14 at CGY, Spencer Martin ranks third in Canucks history for most wins through the
first 15 appearances behind Ryan Miller (12 in 2014.15) and Kirk McLean (10 in 1991.92).
BELIEVING IN BRUCE
With the team’s 7-6 OT victory on Dec. 5 vs MTL, the Canucks overcame a 4-0 deficit for only the third time in franchise history to secure a 4-goal comeback win (Jan. 16/73 vs TOR 6-4 W & Oct. 15/71 vs CAL 9-6 W). Coincidentally, Bruce Boudreau also earned his third career win in a game where his team trailed by four-plus goals (Dec. 23/08 w/ WSH & Mar. 31/14 w/ ANA).
• With the team’s 4-3 (SO) victory on Dec. 14 at CGY, Bruce Boudreau surpassed Hal Laycoe for sole possession of 12th place on the Canucks all-time coaches wins list at 45.
PERISTENT PETEY
Scoring one goal and tallying two assists on Dec. 5 vs MTL, Elias Pettersson registered 32 points in (12-20-32) 26 games played, becoming the first Canuck to reach this mark in 26 or fewer games played since Daniel and Henrik Sedin in 2010.11 (30 points in 24 GP). It also marked Pettersson’s 20th career 3+ point game, tying him with Stan Smyl (1978-1983) for fifth-most 3+ point games in a player’s first five NHL seasons in franchise history.
• Dec. 7 at San Jose was Pettersson’s team-leading 11th multi-point game (1-1-2) this season and 66th of his career.
• Scoring at 3-on-3 in overtime on Dec. 7 at SJS, Pettersson tallied his 13th goal of the season, all of which have come at even strength. He ranks tied for sixth among NHL skaters for most even strength goals this season (13).
PUTTING THE ‘SUDDEN’ IN SUDDEN DEATH
Elias Pettersson’s game-winning overtime goal on Dec. 5 vs MTL came just 13 seconds into OT, making it the fastest goal to start a regular season overtime period in Canucks history. The previous record was held by Dixon Ward who scored 15 seconds into OT on Nov. 29/93.
