CHICAGO — Kraken forward Alex Wennberg sure picked the right time to show what a two-way player he can be.
With his teammates scraping for goals any way they can find them, Wennberg not only provided a score with one of the better solo efforts seen all season, he provided stellar penalty killing and took away an opposing third-period chance with a stellar defensive effort. That and some strong goaltending by Philipp Grubauer in a 29-save performance helped the Kraken to a 2-0 victory in only their second shutout of the season.
Jordan Eberle added his second goal in two nights from the left faceoff circle with 1:36 remaining in regulation time to help silence a lively United Center crowd and allow his team to salvage a split of their brief two-game road trip. While the effort was there throughout, goals were hard to come by for the Kraken in both affairs — losing in St. Louis on Wednesday after squandering chances to tie a 2-1 game that wound up 4-1 against them.
Some offensive help is likely on the way with the anticipated arrival of top draft prospect Matty Beniers, whose University of Michigan team was ousted in the semifinal of the NCAA “Frozen Four” championship in Boston earlier Thursday. Kraken general manager Ron Francis said by text during Thursday night’s game he hopes to speak with Beniers on Friday about joining the Kraken for the final weeks of the regular season.
While Beniers won’t be the total answer, he at least brings a natural scorer’s touch to a lineup largely devoid of them. While the Kraken have worked impressively hard since dealing away six players at the trade deadline more than 2½ weeks ago, they’ve missed on opportunities to put games away much earlier on than they ultimately needed.
Thursday’s affair was emblematic of this as the Kraken thoroughly dominated the Blackhawks in the opening period, outshooting them 17-3. And yet, the teams headed to intermission in a scoreless tie and the Blackhawks were able to regroup for a much stronger middle period.
Wennberg got the jump on Chicago’s eventual revival, scoring the game’s opening goal just 47 seconds into the period. He took a pass at the blue line, split the defense and then undressed goalie Kevin Lankinen with a series of dekes before putting the puck in an empty net.
That highlight-reel goal was badly needed as the Kraken ran into penalty trouble late in the period. First, Ryan Donato was sent off for interference. Then, only four seconds later, Carson Soucy took a double-minor for high-sticking that left the Kraken two men down for most of a full two minutes.
But as they had in St. Louis the prior night, the penalty kill did yeoman work and the Blackhawks mustered very little. Wennberg then helped his team’s cause in the thirds period, racing back to thwart a potential Chicago breakaway chance after a neutral zone turnover.
A penalty taken by Soucy later that final frame led to some close calls, including a pair of goal posts hit by Chicago on the same power play shift. But the pucks stayed out and Grubauer ensured none entered the net from there.
