It was not the prettiest of victories, but the Seattle Kraken managed to grind out a 4\u20133 shootout win in Vancouver to sweep another back-to-back. Yes, you read that right: shootout, back\u2011to\u2011back, and win in the same sentence.<\/p>\n
The Kraken opened the scoring with the most unlikely of goal scorers. Cale Fleury, who had been a healthy scratch for the first 30 games of the season and hadn\u2019t scored since November, 2019, uncorked a bomb to net his first goal as a Seattle Kraken.<\/p>\n
1-0 #SeaKraken<\/a><\/p>\n Cale Fleury with his first goal with Seattle! pic.twitter.com\/C8ibMEhDn4<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Alison (@AlisonL) January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The Kraken added a second goal on a wild power\u2011play sequence when Jordan Eberle found Chandler Stephenson on a rush chance down low halfway through the second. That goal came moments after Vancouver had flubbed a 2-on-0 opportunity at the other end, failing to put a shot toward Joey Daccord. <\/p>\n The fourth line chipped in again at a critical moment. Late in the second, after the Canucks had pulled within one, Jacob Melanson made a sharp defensive\u2011zone play to spring Ryan Winterton through the neutral zone. Winterton streaked down the boards, drove low, and eventually found Ben Meyers, who out\u2011hustled a pair of Canucks to bury a perfect feed for Seattle\u2019s third goal of the night. It\u2019s exactly the kind of play we\u2019ve come to expect from this trio, and it couldn\u2019t have come at a better time.<\/p>\n KRAKEN GOAL!!!! The 4th line comes through again. Melanson-Winterton to Ben Meyers. Huge goal in the final minutes of the 2nd period. #SeaKraken<\/a> up 3-1. pic.twitter.com\/Co6lxewnfh<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Vancouver answered with a power\u2011play goal late in the second to pull within one, then tied it in the third on a Linus Karlsson backhander that forced the overtime.<\/p>\n The game would eventually land in a shootout where Vancouver\u2019s first three shooters could not convert while Freddy Gaudreau and Kaapo Kakko<\/a> fell short for Seattle. That would set up Matty Beniers as the final shooter of the night.<\/p>\n Matty. Beniers. pic.twitter.com\/DTApgyjmw9<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n There were long stretches where it felt like the Canucks were dictating play with sustained zone time, but as we\u2019ve seen time and time again this season, the Kraken\u2019s defensive structure kept them afloat long enough to steal the win.<\/p>\n Takeaway 1: A shootout win, in this economy?<\/p>\n Before Friday night, the Kraken were 0\u20134 in shootouts this season, and their shooters were converting at just 16.7 percent, well below the league average of 31.9 percent. It was starting to feel like simply reaching a shootout meant a loss was incoming.<\/p>\n Speaking to the media after the game, head coach Lane Lambert admitted they needed to shake things up: \u201cThis is no disrespect to any of the guys that have gone previously, we just haven\u2019t been able to win one. So we had to switch it up, and we did.\u201d<\/p>\n Never a doubt!!! pic.twitter.com\/Z9jkrTx5Uy<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Matty Beniers entered the night 1\u2011for\u201110 in his career and hadn\u2019t taken a shootout attempt in the previous four shootout games this season. His last and only shootout goal came back in December, 2023.<\/p>\n Takeaway 2: Bend, don\u2019t break<\/p>\n As mentioned above, Vancouver controlled massive stretches of play with sustained pressure in the Kraken zone. While Seattle would have preferred not to surrender the tying goal in the third, it could have been far worse given how much time the Canucks spent buzzing in the Kraken zone. And yet, the Kraken actually out\u2011shot Vancouver 28\u201323. As we\u2019ve talked about all season, this team is perfectly comfortable in tight, low\u2011event games, and Friday night was another classic example of what this 2025\u201326 Kraken group is all about.<\/p>\n Takeaway 3: Contributions of Shane Wright<\/p>\n Going a little off the board here, but Shane Wright deserves recognition for two specific plays. He wasn\u2019t on the scoresheet and has struggled offensively of late, with just one shot in each of his last four games and no goals since Dec. 16. He\u2019s well off last season\u2019s pace in both goals and assists, but that doesn\u2019t mean he isn\u2019t contributing.<\/p>\n His first impact play came on Fleury\u2019s goal, where he planted himself net\u2011front and created the perfect screen. The first goal is always huge, and I\u2019m not sure that puck goes in if Shane isn\u2019t on top of the crease stirring things up.<\/p>\n WE HAVE A #SEAKRAKEN<\/a> GOAL. Cale Fleury with an absolute bomb. Kraken take a 1-0 lead with less than two minutes left in the first. pic.twitter.com\/iprzoiM7mt<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sound Of Hockey (@sound_hockey) January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The second contribution was arguably a turning point. With the game tied and Seattle on the power play, Ryker Evans committed a brutal turnover that led to the aforementioned 2\u2011on\u20110 shorthanded opportunity for Vancouver. Wright never gave up on the play, hustling back to get his stick on Kiefer Sherwood\u2019s pass to Drew O\u2019Connor, who had an empty net waiting. The Kraken scored 25 seconds later.<\/p>\n KRAKEN GOAL!!!! what a sequence of events\u2026almost a disaster. Stephenson will eventually score on a great feed from Eberle. #SeaKraken<\/a> up 2-0. pic.twitter.com\/z4uy652EUG<\/a><\/p>\n