Fourth line shines again as Kraken top Islanders for fourth win in a row

SEATTLE — For some teams, having the fourth line at times be the most productive group of forwards would be a concerning problem.

For the Kraken, it’s become a proven path to victory.

Seattle’s fourth line again stole the spotlight in a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday as the Kraken won their season-high fourth straight game.

Yanni Gourde scored his first goal of the season on a play where linemates Brandon Tanev and Tye Kartye both picked up assists.

And it was the fourth line that had a lengthy stint of time in the offensive zone and created the opportunity for Jamie Oleksiak to score the game-winner with 3:13 left on a shot from the blue line that slipped through Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin.

“That Gourde, Tanev line, and (Kartye) have been really good for us and the game-winning goal, didn’t do anything crazy, just worked hard, got the puck up to the point, got to the net and it went in for us,” Oleksiak said.

Jared McCann also scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season earlier in the third period. And Joey Daccord was again excellent in goal in earning his eighth win.

But this day belonged to Gourde and his line.

“Really, it’s a line goal. Yanni has been around the net a lot lately. He’s had some opportunities to score, but it’s only when it goes over the goal line that you get the satisfaction of playing the right way,” Kraken coach Dan Bylsma said. “That goal is completely playing the right way from his linemates and Yanni.”

Gourde’s goal ended a drought that had left one of the Kraken originals frustrated because his fourth line, alongside Tanev and Kartye, has at times been the most productive trio.

The goalless drought meant Gourde would take a goal any way he could, even if it meant using his chin rather than his stick. Seattle was able to generate a cycle behind the goal that allowed Tanev to pop free at the side of the net. Tanev’s shot was initially saved by Sorokin but the deflection climbed Gourde, appeared to clip his chin and trickled into the net.

“It was challenging. It’s tough to be out there and feel like you don’t help out that much your team to win games,” Gourde said. “There’s certainly other areas where I thought my game was good, but offensively I wanted to help out my team win every single night and I haven’t been able to do that, and it’s wearing on me. Getting the first one tonight felt very good.”

Gourde’s goal left Andre Burakovsky and Josh Mahura as the only players for the Kraken who have played in at least 10 games and not scored yet this season.

Mahura is understandable. He’s a third-pair defenseman who has played well but will likely return to being a backup whenever Vince Dunn is healthy; he’s not expected to be scoring goals.

Burakovsky’s lack of goals continues to be the bigger concern for Seattle. To that end, Burakovsky was elevated to the top line with McCann and Matty Beniers as the Kraken played the first of at least two games without captain Jordan Eberle after he violently slid into the end boards at nearly full speed in Thursday’s win over Chicago. Eberle was ruled out for both games this weekend against the New York combo of the Islanders and Rangers.

Through two periods, the move with Burakovsky didn’t seem to make a difference. But it paid off in a significant way in the third.

Less than a minute after the Kraken allowed their first short-handed goal of the season, Burakovsky sprung McCann free behind the Islanders defense and Seattle’s top scorer finished his ninth goal to pull even at 2-2 with 14:34 left.

“I think confidence is a big key. It’s hard to play when you not really feeling whole lot of confidence. That’s one thing I think it’s been coming back here in the, I don’t know, last eight games or something. I’m feeling confident having the puck. That was something I was maybe struggling with before that,” Burakovsky said.

While finding the goal has remained elusive, Burakovsky’s assist to McCann was his eighth. Only McCann and Chandler Stephenson have more for Seattle.

“I feel like I really want the puck a lot. I want the puck on my stick and I want to make plays. I want to escape with it and create chances and opportunities for my linemates and teammates,” Burakovsky said.

Daccord again had another excellent game in goal with 22 saves, none bigger than stopping Brock Nelson on a short-handed breakaway with 1:59 left in the game. He was also very good in the first period when the Islanders took advantage of some breakdowns by Seattle defensively to create some high-danger chances on the Kraken net.

“What a good team needs to have is a big save from a goaltender at a huge time in the game, and Joey’s been giving it to us,” Bylsma said.

Seattle also finally saw the debut of Daniel Sprong in the lineup after a lengthy delay with immigration paperwork kept him from joining the team for more than a week after his trade from Vancouver.

Bylsma had a wry grin pregame when asked about Sprong moving into the lineup, but his arrival didn’t lead to any immediate boosts at the offensive end.