Kraken 4, Rangers 2

You’ll sometimes hear NHL coaches remind us that hockey is a game of mistakes, and the team that capitalizes on them the most will win.

That was clearly the case on Monday night at Madison Square Garden as the Kraken overcame their own shortcomings to beat the mysterious Rangers 4-2.

Every goal except for maybe one, Jordan Eberle’s 2-2 tying goal in the second period, came off some sort of, sometimes bizarre, turnover or bounce.

And even Eberle’s goal, created by in-zone puck cycling, looked weird as Rangers goalie Jonathan Quick, already in the butterfly position, seemed to slip and shrink to half size before the shot zipped over his glove. The top half of the net was wide open as Eberle fired from the high slot.

Mika Zibanejad opened the scoring early in the first by firing a shot wide of the net, off the end boards, that bounced back to him, where he was able to carom it in off Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer. Goals like this one often remind us of the famous version; Scott Niedermeyer’s Game-2, 3rd-period goal for the Devils in Detroit against the Red Wings in the 1995 Stanley Cup Final.

2:23 after Zibanejad tallied, Sam Carrick took an errant Jared McCann pass inside the Seattle zone and scored unassisted on Grubauer. It was a “thank you very much” moment considering McCann made the back pass from the neutral zone trying to connect with a streaking Kraken forward.

Seattle jumped on the board in the 2nd period on an Eeli Tolvanen goal that involved a Rangers neutral zone turnover and blown coverage. The goal came at the 1:00 mark and Eberle’s came 3:27 later.

Speaking of blown coverage, to watch Berkly Catton’s go ahead goal in the 3rd period at 12:02 is to marvel. The rookie’s fourth career goal and first career game winner on his own rebound after fanning on a shot along the side of the net is mystifying as it relates to New York’s coverage. Your guess is as good as mine.

McCann added an empty netter.

The win popped still red-hot Seattle into 3rd place in the Pacific Division with 50 points. The club continues its road trip against the Devils on Wednesday and the Boston Bruins on Thursday.

The aging Rangers continue to slip in the east.

Earlier Kraken:

— A Wild One; 3-2 Over The Kraken In OT

Earlier Canucks:

— Canucks Sherwood Trade Talk Lacks Predictability