Karson Kuhlman comes up big in third period to give Kraken much-needed win

DENVER – There were moments throughout this contest against the defending Stanley Cup champions when the Kraken showed signs of “lapses” that coach Dave Hakstol warned had cost his team a couple of nights prior.

While the Kraken led much of Friday night’s game after early second-period goals by Jaden Schwartz and Jared McCann just 22 seconds apart, things appeared headed in a different direction when a third-period turnover led to a tying Avalanche marker. But then, out of nowhere in that final period, Karson Kuhlman raced down the right side and muscled a puck past goalie Pavel Francouz to hand the Kraken a stunning, much-needed 3-2 win after a struggling early season start that needed a boost.

Kuhlman had hulking Avalanche defender Kurtis MacDermid draped all over him but somehow got enough on the puck to fire it past Francouz to improve the Kraken’s record to 2-2-2.

For much of this game, it was former Avalanche netminder Philipp Grubauer stealing the show at Ball Arena against his former team. Grubauer ultimately left the game with an apparent injury suffered midway through the final period, leaving Martin Jones to finish things off.

While much of the pregame focus was on forward Andre Burakovsky, who signed with the Kraken last summer after winning the Cup with the Avalanche, it would be Grubauer reminding fans of what he’d done for the home team before signing with the Kraken in July 2021.

Grubauer, of course, got his homecoming serenade last January in his first trip back to Ball Arena. He was spotted a two-goal, second-period lead in that game much like he was Friday.

That it was even still scoreless by the time Schwartz scored on the power play was a testament to Grubauer, who somehow kept the puck out despite a flurry of Avalanche chances at the goalmouth. On one play, he made a brilliant pad stop on Alex Newhook after the Avalanche forward danced through the defense and made a strong deke attempt on the goalie.

Grubauer didn’t bite and stuck his pad out at the last second as Newhook attempted to hoist the puck by him.

In that game here last January, the Avalanche trailed 3-1 before scoring late in the second period to trail by one at intermission. They added a pair of third-period goals to win 4-3 and ruin what had been one of Grubauer’s better efforts all season.

The Avalanche appeared to be following that script Friday, with Evan Rodrigues getting his team on the board at 5:55 of the middle frame by tapping in a goalmouth pass from Valeri Nichushkin. That made it a 2-1 contest and the Avs nearly tied it later in the period when Newhook got in alone on Grubauer again.

Newhook fired a wrist shot from 16 feet out but Grubauer held his ground and made the stop to send his team to the second intermission with its one-goal lead intact.

Colorado finally did tie it early in the third when Burakovsky coughed up a puck along the side boards on a power play, leading to an odd-man rush the other way. Trail man Bowen Byram took the drop pass and fired it past Grubauer in what looked to be a definite momentum turner.

Grubauer hurt himself on the play, went to the bench momentarily but then remained in the game until leaving soon after.