September 2025 – Page 5

Kraken 5, Canucks 3

Jani Nyman scored twice. Vince Dunn had three assists. Kaapo Kakko had two assists. The Seattle Kraken topped the Vancouver Canucks in the preseason opener for each team at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

It was Lane Lambert’s first game as coach of the Kraken and Adam Foote’s coaching debut with the Canucks.

Eduard Sale, John Hayden, and Jaden Schwartz also scored for Seattle. Joey Daccord made nine saves, allowing two goals; Nikke Kokko made 13 saves, allowing one goal.

Victor Mancini, Chase Stillman and Nils Aman scored for Vancouver. Nikita Tolopilo stopped 13 of 14 shots; Ty Young made six saves in relief.

Sale, selected No. 20 by the Kraken in the 2023 NHL Draft, scored 1-0 at 14:06 of the first period. He did this with a wrist shot that finished a 2-on-1.

Mancini tied it 1-1 at 3:25 of the second period. Nyman then scored the first of his two goals at 10:54. This gave Seattle a 2-1 lead.

Schwartz made it 3-1 at 13:45, and Nyman pushed it to 4-1 at 14:25.

Nyman’s two goals were each assisted by Dunn and Kakko.

Stillman cut it to 4-2 with an unassisted goal at 19:44 of the second.

Hayden gave the Kraken a 5-2 lead at 3:07 of the third period. Aman scored at 7:25 to make it a 5-3 final.

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Flames 3, Oilers 2

Morgan Frost scored twice. He scored 1:07 into overtime. This helped the Flames past the Oilers at Rogers Place in Edmonton.

Joel Farabee scored a power-play goal, and Dryden Hunt had two assists for Calgary. Ivan Prosvetov stopped 28 of 30 shots.

Matvey Petrov had a goal and an assist for the Oilers. Matt Tomkins made 11 saves.

Darnell Nurse scored at 3:46 of the second period to give Edmonton a 1-0 lead.

Frost tied it 1-1 at 7:14. Farabee then put the Flames ahead 2-1 at 11:02 on the power play. He tapped in a cross-crease pass from Rory Kerins.

Petrov tied it 2-2 at 18:41. He banked in a centering pass from behind the net. The puck deflected off the skate of Cakgary defenseman Ilya Solovyov.

Frost won it in overtime on a wrist shot from the left circle.

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Oilers 3, Flames 0

Kasperi Kapanen scored for the Edmonton Oilers. They shut out the Calgary Flames in split-squad action at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary.

Connor Clattenburg and Riley Stillman scored, and Samuel Jonsson and Nathaniel Day combined to make 20 saves for the Oilers. Jonsson stopped all 12 shots he faced. Day made eight saves in relief after entering the game at 10:29 of the second period.

Devin Cooley made 26 saves for the Flames.

Each team was playing its first game of the preseason.

Kapanen shot off Cooley’s glove and scored from between the hashmarks. This put the Oilers up 1-0 at 2:38 of the first period.

Clattenburg pushed the lead to 2-0 at 8:18 of the third period with an unassisted goal. It was a shot from the slot that beat Cooley over the glove. This happened after a turnover through the middle of the defensive zone by Matvei Gridin.

Stillman scored at 11:46 on a slap shot from the point. The puck went through a screen and beat Cooley glove-side for the 3-0 final.

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Sharks 3, Golden Knights 0

Newcomers John Klingberg , Jeff Skinner and Alex Nedeljkovic shined in their debuts. They played with the San Jose Sharks. The team won against the Vegas Golden Knights at SAP Center in San Jose.

Michael Misa, selected by the Sharks with the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, had one shot on goal in 17:40 of ice time.

Nedeljkovic, who was acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1, made 24 saves for the shutout.

Carl Lindbom started in goal for the Golden Knights. He stopped 10 of 11 shots. He was replaced midway through the second period. Jesper Vikman made eight saves in relief.

Klingberg is a defenseman who signed with San Jose as a free agent on July 1. He made it 1-0 with a power-play goal at 7:18 of the first period. Tyler Toffoli (one goal, one assist) won an offensive zone face-off. He got the puck to Klingberg. Klingberg’s wrist shot beat Vegas goalie Carl Lindbom. Klingberg played 21:15.

Skinner signed as a free agent on July 11. He made it 2-0 when he scored on a delayed penalty at 19:14 of the second period.

Toffoli scored an empty-net goal at 19:17 of the third period for the 3-0 final.

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Kings 3, Ducks 1

Alex Turcotte had a goal and an assist. The Los Angeles Kings defeated the Anaheim Ducks at Toyota Arena in Ontario, California.

Alex Laferriere and Andre Lee scored for the Kings. Carter George made 20 saves.

Nikita Nesterenko scored for the Ducks, and Ville Husso made 22 saves.

It was the first preseason game for each team.

Nesterenko opened the scoring 1:15 into the first period. He sent a wrist shot from above the right circle. It deflected off the back of Kings defenseman Kyle Burroughs.

Turcotte tied it 1-1 at 4:27 when he banged in a rebound off a point shot from Brandt Clarke.

Laferriere gave Los Angeles a 2-1 lead at 6:11 of the third period. Laferriere sent a pass to Turcotte on a short-handed rush. He then crashed the net and tucked in a rebound on the doorstep.

Lee scored an empty-net goal at 18:34 for the 3-1 final.

Source: nhl.com

CANUCKS AT KRAKEN

By Andrew Phillip Chernoff

September 21, 2025

The Vancouver Canucks lost to the Seattle Kraken. The final score was 5-3. This was their first preseason game of the 2025-26 NHL season. The Canucks fielded a young lineup with a number of prospects. They showed some flashes of promise. However, they ultimately couldn’t overcome a more veteran Kraken roster.

Rookie defenseman Victor Mancini had a strong showing. He scored the Canucks’ first goal of the game. It was a power-play marker in the second period. Chase Stillman also scored for Vancouver on a penalty shot, and Nils Åman added a goal in the third.

In net, the Canucks split the game between Nikita Tolopilo and Ty Young. Tolopilo performed solidly. He made 13 saves on 14 shots. Young faced a tougher second half. He allowed four goals.

For the Kraken, Jani Nyman was a standout, scoring two goals. Other Kraken goal scorers included Eduard Šalé, Jaden Schwartz, and John Hayden. Vince Dunn had three assists.

The Canucks struggled on the power play. They converted on only one of six opportunities. The Kraken were scoreless on their two power plays.

Vancouver outhit Seattle 34-15 and out shot them 25-24.

Kraken Stymie Canucks To Start Game

The first period of the exhibition game against the Seattle Kraken was physical and fast-paced. The Vancouver Canucks found themselves down 1-0. Eduard Sale of the Kraken scored the lone goal at 14:06 in the period. Jordan Eberle and Blake Fiddler assisted him.

The Kraken controlled the pace for most of the frame, outshooting the Canucks 12-5. Vancouver’s young lineup, featuring several prospects, struggled to generate consistent offensive zone pressure. The Canucks’ goaltender, Nikita Tolopilo, was solid, making several key saves to keep the game within reach.

Despite being outshot, the Canucks showed some physicality, racking up 10 hits compared to the Kraken’s 5. Vancouver’s only power play opportunity came after a tripping penalty by Ryker Evans, but the Canucks were unable to capitalize. The Kraken also had a power play. Danila Klimovich was whistled for tripping. However, the Canucks’ penalty kill was effective.

They were tested early by a Kraken lineup. This lineup included more veteran talent like Matty Beniers and Shane Wright. The first period was a challenge. However, it offered valuable experience for the young Canucks, as they continued their push to make the opening night roster.

Scoring Dominates Middle Frame

The Canucks started the middle frame with more energy. They generated a few decent scoring chances in the opening minutes. However, the Kraken’s defense, anchored by veteran Adam Larsson, held firm.

The Seattle Kraken dominated the second period. They scored three goals, all with assists from Vince Dunn. This gave them a commanding 4-2 lead. The Canucks’ second goal of the period came from a penalty shot.

The Canucks started the period strong. Their effort paid off at 3:25 with a power-play goal from defenseman Victor Mancini. The goal was assisted by Braeden Cootes and Kiefer Sherwood, tying the game at 1-1.

The Canucks changed goaltenders. Ty Young came in, and Nikita Tolopilo left. And Young got busy quickly for all the wrong reasons.

The Kraken quickly regained momentum.

Jani Nyman scored at 10:54, assisted by Kaapo Kakko and Vince Dunn, putting Seattle back in the lead. Just over a minute later, Jaden Schwartz scored at 13:45. He extended the lead to 3-1 with assists from Shane Wright and Vince Dunn. The Kraken kept the pressure on. Nyman scored his second goal of the period at 14:25. He was assisted by Vince Dunn and Kaapo Kakko. This pushed the lead to 4-1.

The Canucks managed to get one back at 19:45 on a penalty shot.

Chase Stillman was awarded the penalty shot after being slashed on a breakaway. He capitalized with a beautiful move to beat the goalie on the penalty shot. This made it 4-2.

Canucks Try To Get Traction For Comeback

Seattle switched goalies, bringing in Nikke Kokko and taking Joey Daccord out for the third period.

Seattle padded their lead early. John Hayden scored his first of the preseason. O. Fisker Molgaard assisted him, and it was 5-2 for the home team at 3:07.

Just over four minutes later, Nils Aman brought the Canucks back within two goals again at 5-3. He was assisted by Joseph LaBate (1) and Pierre Oliver Joseph (1) at 7:25.

The Aman goal brought some life to the Canucks roster. They started to get some play in the Kraken zone. They tried to get another goal to move closer, but it was not to be. They put on pressure in the final few minutes of the game, even generating a power play advantage.

NOTES

Elias Pettersson (the defenseman), Tom Willander, and Victor Mancini received significant ice time in this game. This was a deliberate move to see how they would act under pressure.

Pre-game news centred on the Canucks’ lineup, particularly the youth movement. The Canucks iced a very young squad for their first preseason game. They dressed the minimum eight veterans required by the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement.

Nikita Tolopilo was the best Vancouver player due to his stupendous goaltending in the opening period. He was followed by Victor Mancini for his leadership and for putting the Canucks on the scoreboard.

Then, players like Chase Stillman and Joseph Labate took charge. They brought intensity and energy to the Canucks game. This especially occurred in the final half of the 3rd period. The Canucks pressed the Kraken at every turn until the final buzzer.

Next exhibition game is Wednesday night in Abbotsford, B.C. when Vancouver welcomes the Calagary Flames for another Pacific division game.

Until next time, hockey fans