Stars’ Oettinger pulled as ‘aggressive’ Kraken roll
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Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter
SEATTLE — Needing a response to keep their season alive, the Seattle Kraken found exactly that in a 6-3 series-tying win Saturday against the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of this Western Conference semifinal at Climate Pledge Arena.
A number of items allowed the Kraken to break out for six goals, prompt the Stars to pull star goaltender Jake Oettinger and ultimately force a Game 7 slated for Monday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
For the Stars, a Game 7 win would see them advance to the Western Conference final for the second time in four seasons. As for the Kraken, winning Game 7 would see the second-year franchise reach the conference finals for the first time in team history.
“We were ready tonight. I feel like the last couple games, they were the ready team at the start,” said Kraken winger Eeli Tolvanen, who finished with a goal and three points. “I think that was the big key today. All four lines were ready to play and showed up.”
Gaining some sense of control was a challenge for the Kraken throughout their losses in Games 4 and 5. The Kraken struggled in 5-on-5 play, as they failed to even meet their averages in certain offensive categories such as shots per 60, scoring chances per 60 and high-danger scoring chances per 60.
That wasn’t an issue Saturday. Having that control was how the Kraken staked themselves to what at one point was a three-goal lead. They held possession like a grudge with a shot-share percentage of 63.3% while owning at least a 10-shot differential throughout the latter stages of the first period.
Yanni Gourde gave the Kraken a 1-0 lead when he took a drop pass from Tolvanen and skated in for a point-blank chance that was initially stopped by Oettinger before Gourde recovered his rebound and scored with 11:01 left.
Only for the Stars to tie the game 31 seconds later on a goal from Mason Marchment.
Though Marchment’s game-tying goal was jarring, an argument could be made the power-play goal that allowed the Kraken to regain the lead was just as much of a contrast.
Capitalizing on the extra-skater advantage was a challenge in the regular season which is why the Kraken were 19th with a 19.8% success rate. The postseason has not seen much of a deviation with the Kraken converting 14.7% of their chances, which ranks 14th out of 16 teams. It’s also the lowest conversion rate for teams still alive in the playoffs.
What they did against the Stars was show the sort of fluid movement that has eluded them at times both in the regular season and in the playoffs. They found the sort of connectivity that set up Jordan Eberle to get the puck at the net front and elevate his shot above what was a sprawling Oettinger for a 2-1 lead with less than four minutes left.
“I thought we played aggressive, and we also played smart,” Eberle, who finished with two goals and three points, said. “We tried to limit their chances but also stay on our toes. We had nothing to lose. Obviously, backs are against the wall so we’re going to have the same effort in Game 7, and we know they’re going to have their best. That’s all you can ask for.”
Tolvanen scored a little more than 90 seconds into the second to push the lead to 3-1 before rookie Tye Kartye, who the Kraken signed as an undrafted free agent, pushed it to a 4-1 edge which forced Stars coach Pete DeBoer to pull Oettinger.
“We didn’t give him any help and this is a grind,” DeBoer said. “At that point we’re looking for a spark for the team, looking down the road to make sure Jake’s got energy, the fresher goalie for Game 7, all those things come into play.”
It was the second time this series the Kraken forced Oettinger into an early exit. The first time came in Game 3 when he allowed five goals over 40 minutes and finished with a .706 save percentage in what was ultimately a 7-2 loss.
On Saturday, Oettinger lasted less than 25 minutes with DeBoer electing to use backup Scott Wedgewood to finish the game. Oettinger finished with a .778 save percentage which was still higher than his effort in Game 3 but his goals-against average for the game was 9.84.
“Getting back to the pace we knew we needed to play with,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said in response to a question about what changed in front of Oettinger on Saturday. “Getting traffic. Find a rebound. That’s a good step for us.”
The Stars allowed 12 high-danger chances in 5-on-5 play — the same amount they allowed in their Game 5 victory Thursday. It’s just that the average distance for the four goals Oettinger allowed was just over 15 feet with the furthest being Kartye’s wrist shot from 31 feet, according to IcyData.
“It was just the mindset to get [inside the Stars’ defense] and we lacked a little bit of that before,” Tolvanen said. “It was great to see we can flip the switch and do things.”
Dallas would get its goals. Joe Pavelski scored in the second and after Seattle’s Matty Beniers scored to restore that three-goal lead, the Stars’ Joel Kiviranta kept it within two goals.
Although Pavelski scored a power-play goal to cut the lead in half and Kiviranta scored later in the third with more than 10 minutes left for the Kraken to hold a 5-3 lead.
Yet even with those three goals, the Kraken found a way to prevent the Stars from having the sort of three- and four-goal periods that have been one of the trademarks of this series.
Then there’s this detail that may have been lost in the Kraken’s victory.
Stars forward Roope Hintz, who entered Friday tied for the league lead in playoff points, was held to zero points but still got four shots on goal. The Stars’ top line, which is anchored by Hintz, also features Pavelski and 100-point scorer Jason Robertson. The trio finished with zero points in 5-on-5 play with Robertson getting the assist on Pavelski’s power-play goal.
“It was just getting back to who we are,” Hakstol said. “Those guys are tough to play against if you’re a little bit off. They had a big say for sure the entire series but over the last few games, they’ve elevated, and we haven’t been able to match that. Don’t get me wrong, they had their looks tonight. You look back through the chances and you’re going to see those guys involved. By us, it’s got to be by committee and it was. Everybody did their part and when we can have that type of rhythm, it allows us to have good energy, good pace and that makes us hard to play against.”
The Cincinnati Reds on Monday acquired veteran infielder Gavin Lux from the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Los Angeles will receive a Competitive Balance Round A pick (around No. 37) and outfield prospect Mike Sirota in the deal for Lux, 27, who hit .251 last season with 10 home runs and 50 RBIs.
The Reds have been looking for infield help after they dealt second baseman Jonathan India to the Kansas City Royals in November. Cincinnati added veteran right-handed pitcher Brady Singer from the Royals in the India deal.
Lux played in 139 games for the Dodgers last season, and 129 the season before. In Los Angeles’ run to the World Series title last season, he had one home run and four RBIs in 12 games.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After some uncertainty, the Tampa Bay Rays now support a $55.7 million city plan to repair hurricane-shredded Tropicana Field in time for the 2026 season opener, while the team prepares to play this year at the New York Yankees‘ spring training home in nearby Tampa.
Matt Silverman, the Rays’ co-president, said in an email to the St. Petersburg chief administrator that the team wants to “clear up” any questions about its support for the reconstruction. The city must pay for the work under its current contract with the Rays.
“While we had been open to considering a scenario in which the city bought out of its obligation to rebuild the ballpark, the Rays support and expect the city to rebuild Tropicana Field in accordance with the terms of the current use agreement,” Silverman wrote.
Hurricane Milton tore the Trop’s fabric roof to pieces when it came ashore Oct. 9, causing water and other damage to interior parts of the now-exposed ballpark. Work has been ongoing to ensure no further damage is caused by weather but there had been questions about the full repair in part because it would eventually be torn down to make way for a new, $1.3 billion ballpark under current plans to keep the Rays in St. Petersburg another 30 years.
Time is of the essence, Silverman said in his Dec. 30 email to the city, which released it Monday. Even a partial 2026 season at Tropicana Field “would present massive logistical and revenue challenges for the team,” he wrote.
“It is therefore critical that the rebuild start in earnest as soon as possible” with a realistic construction schedule to be ready by Opening Day 2026, he added.
The city had no immediate comment on the email. Its own architect presented the repair proposal initially Dec. 12 but it has not yet been fully approved. Members of the city council have balked at the cost, especially with residents and businesses still recovering from Milton and Hurricane Helene before that.
St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch has said that insurance and Federal Emergency Management Agency funds should cover the bulk of the cost. Silverman said Major League Baseball has told the team it will hire its own adviser to monitor the repair work and timeline.
The planned new downtown Rays ballpark is part of a $6.5 billion project that will include affordable housing, a Black history museum, retail and office space, restaurants and bars. The project is known as the Historic Gas Plant District, which was once a thriving Black community displaced by the construction of the ballpark and an interstate highway.
The Rays are preparing to play 2025 home games at Steinbrenner Field, the Yankees’ 11,000-seat spring training location in Tampa. Once Tropicana Field is repaired, Silverman acknowledged the Rays are obligated to play there three more seasons under the contract with St. Petersburg.
“We look forward to a grand reopening,” Silverman said.
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