The Seattle Kraken forced their second Game 7 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 6-3 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of their Western Conference semifinal series. Eeli Tolvanen built the foundation for Seattle’s victory, as the Finnish forward scored or assisted on his team’s first three goals to become the first Kraken player with three points in a playoff game.
This game quickly got out of Dallas’ grasp as the Kraken outscored them 2-1 in the first period before bolstering their lead with two additional goals over the first five minutes of the second. The Stars cut Seattle’s lead to two thanks to a Joe Pavelski goal at 5:37 of the second period, but couldn’t find the back of the net for the rest of the frame. Seattle and Dallas then traded a goal apiece over the first 10 minutes of the third period, making it a two-game goal until the final minute, when Jordan Eberle scored an empty-netter to give Seattle the 6-3 lead it would hold until the final buzzer.
While Tolvanen became the first Kraken player to hit the historic three-point playoff mark for Seattle, Eberle became the second by virtue of his empty-netter. Tolvanen scored his lone goal of the game at 1:34 of the second period, and he assisted on goals by Eberle and Yanni Gourde. In addition to his empty-netter, Eberle scored a goal at 16:46 of the first period and assisted on a third-period goal by Matty Beniers.
The series will shift to Dallas for Game 7, where the Stars have gone 2-1 this series. Seattle showed it doesn’t fear the Game 7 stage just last round, as they topped the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche at Denver.
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