Seattle Kraken down Utah as Eeli Tolvanen earns career milestone

Eeli Tolvanen is a 20-goal scorer. It’s been on his mind — probably too much.

The Kraken 25-year-old winger put back a rebound 51 seconds into Friday’s game and reached that threshold for the first time in his four full NHL seasons. Tolvanen handled the empty-netter as well as Seattle won its second straight at home.

The Kraken pulled ahead midway through a turbulent third period and downed the Utah Hockey Club, 4-2, at Climate Pledge Arena.

The Kraken picked up Tolvanen for free off waivers in late 2022. He scored 16 goals for the Kraken in 48 games that season and matched that number in 81 the following season.

“It means a lot. I’ve had a good opportunity here past two years,” Tolvanen said. “That’s been inside of my head, to try to get to 20.”

His recollections of the numbers and dates were a little off, but Tolvanen’s finish to the 2023-24 season was certainly slow. After a promising start, he called the second half of the season “awful,” saying he “started thinking too much.” He scored goal No. 15 on March 2, then just one in the final 21 games.

“It’s nice to get it done now,” he said. “It’s a big accomplishment.”

Tolvanen became the first Kraken player to reach that milestone in 2024-25. It looked like Jaden Schwartz would join him there, but a review showed Schwartz’s would-be 20th goal of the season actually went off the crossbar. It was close enough to fool the on-ice official, whose arm shot out immediately.

With 15 games left, Schwartz will almost certainly get there eventually. Matty Beniers is at 16, and though this season has been frustrating production-wise, Jared McCann (16) could still become the only Kraken player to score at least 20 goals in all four seasons of the team’s existence.

If he continues at this pace or something close to it, defenseman Brandon Montour (16) could eclipse them all. Montour, who set an NHL record by scoring four seconds into overtime Wednesday, tied Friday’s game at 2 shortly before the second intermission. March came in like a lion for the Kraken defenseman, who has six goals in seven games this month. He had three in the previous three months.

While Montour was off-balance after taking a stick to the back, Kraken captain Jordan Eberle flung the puck toward the net and it went off Montour’s skate blade. Eberle picked up his fourth and fifth assists in two games against
Utah.

After Schwartz’s apparent go-ahead goal was disallowed, Kaapo Kakko scored one that stuck. He just beat Utah goaltender Karel Vejmelka to the far post and used his big frame to score a wraparound goal.

Philipp Grubauer registered 23 saves, a total coach Dan Bylsma thought was low. The Kraken have won both of Grubauer’s starts since he was recalled after a monthlong stint in the American Hockey League, which followed seasonlong struggles.

Grubauer said the difference between then and now was “a rhythm.”

“It’s pretty hard to do when you sit on the bench for 25 days and then get thrown in there, but that’s my job,” Grubauer said. “So it’s been nice to play a couple games in a row, for sure.”

A Kraken power play had just expired when Utah scored its first. As soon as penalized player Kevin Stenlund rejoined the play, he came up the boards and fed teammate Nick Schmaltz. Schmaltz was left alone and evened the score at 1.

Montour spun and wiped out while trying to swipe the puck off Stenlund’s stick, leading to a 3-on-1 for the visiting team. Grubauer swatted the chance away with his elbow.

Utah took its first lead 7:35 into the second period. Chandler Stephenson tried to flip a puck to Vince Dunn at center ice but it was picked off and sent the other direction. Stenlund, who had his fingerprints all over the scoresheet, stood his ground in front of the net and scored his ninth of the season.

“A little chaos,” was how Grubauer described the ending. He was sprawled on the ice and fumbling for the puck as Utah came very close to tying the game late. A timeout dashed their hopes, however, as Tolvanen scored the empty netter seconds after play resumed.

Seattle has beaten Utah, which is still sorting out its more permanent team name, both times the teams have met at Climate Pledge Arena. Utah acquired the hockey assets of the Arizona Coyotes after the team suspended operations in 2024. The Kraken will travel to Salt Lake City for the first time April 8.