Philipp Grubauer turns it up for Kraken and is outdueling Stars’ struggling Jake Oettinger

SEATTLE – 

You never know which goaltender will become a postseason revelation, but you hope it’s yours.

His second half of the regular season was strong and promising, but so far these playoffs have shown another side of the Kraken’s Philipp Grubauer. He’s been the only one to man the net for Seattle with a sturdy .918 save percentage.

During Game 3’s second period, a Stars shot went off Kraken defenseman Jamie Oleksiak and shot into the air. It could have landed on or near the crease, ready for a quick smack and a chance to get back into the game for Dallas.

Few in the building knew where the puck was, but Grubauer was one of them. In a split second he was up off his knees and using his goalie stick to smack the puck out of midair, over the net and to safety.

“For me, I think that’s going in the net,” coach Dave Hakstol said Monday.

“A little bit hidden in the score is the importance of his play for us last night.”

Meanwhile, Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger has unexpectedly struggled in Round 2. Oettinger’s 2.37 goals-against average during the regular season was good for seventh in the 32-team NHL and his .919 save percentage was sixth. His five shutouts were one off the league lead.

He has a sparkling .933 save percentage and two shutouts in 18 career playoff appearances, but he has given up three-plus goals in a matter of minutes in both Games 1 and 3 against Seattle. He was yanked before the third period Sunday after allowing five goals on eight shots. He didn’t look like the Stars’ elite goalie.

His team left him vulnerable, of course, but he usually would have had Alex Wennberg’s wrist shot. He was beaten low by Carson Soucy and Matty Beniers on the Kraken’s third and fourth goals, respectively, and wasn’t screened. Soucy went for Oettinger’s five-hole.

The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf reported that Sunday marked the worst statistical night (.706 save percentage) of Oettinger’s NHL career, regular season or playoffs. In three games, the Kraken have scored 14 goals, the same number of goals Oettinger allowed against the Minnesota Wild in the entire six-game first round.

Meanwhile, Grubauer’s modest numbers — 2.85 GAA, .895 save percentage, 17-14-4 record with no shutouts — hint at a stretch this winter in which he couldn’t bribe his teammates for some goal support. It went to teammate Martin Jones instead.

They’ve made amends in the postseason. Seven different players scored in Game 3, the fifth time this season that’s happened. They’re the fifth team in the past 25 years to have 16 different players score a goal within the first 10 games of a single playoff run. Soucy’s goal left the Kraken with just two players who have appeared in every postseason game without scoring.

“The score says one thing, but he had a couple big saves that could have changed the outcome of the game,” defenseman Justin Schultz, one of Sunday’s goal scorers, said of Grubauer.

However, the period wasn’t completely dominated by Seattle. Though they outscored the Stars 5-1, Dallas outshot the Kraken 17-8. Roope Hintz had a chance on a breakaway and Grubauer’s midair swat maintained a 3-0 lead.

“We let (Jason) Robertson get in behind (our defense), Hintz get in behind. These guys, they’re not easy to handle in those situations,” Hakstol said. “He did a nice job there and, more importantly, did a nice job through traffic. This team generates a lot with pucks coming to the net through traffic. He battled hard on those last night.”

The Stars generated consistent traffic in front of Grubauer and took Game 2, 4-2.

“I felt like after Game 2, there were going to be some areas of his game that he wanted to challenge himself on to be a little bit better,” Hakstol said.

“I felt like he was no different than anyone else on our roster. He could benefit from a couple of days, a little bit of rest, then push himself to be at his very best.”

Hakstol offered no update Monday on fourth-line winger and 21-goal scorer Daniel Sprong, who left in the second period of Sunday’s Game 3 after nine shifts and 6:36 of ice time. Sprong has a goal and an assist through 10 playoff games.

He also shared few further thoughts on Jared McCann, who is practicing in a regular-contact jersey and could be nearing a return. McCann missed his sixth straight game Sunday after a late hit from the Colorado Avalanche’s Cale Makar sent him to the locker room in Game 4 of the first round.

“We want to get him back as soon as we can, hopefully it will be some time this series,” Hakstol said.

In order for McCann to fit right back into his old spot on the first line, Tye Kartye would be the odd man out. There could still be room for him, Hakstol said, as player availability “changes on a nightly basis.”

“He’s been as reliable as anyone we’ve had in the lineup, and as consistent as anyone we’ve had in the lineup since he entered,” he said of Kartye.

“He’s continued to bring us good value at this time of year. Those are the types of players that you want to have in the lineup and that you need to have.”

If the Kraken continue on in the postseason, winger Andre Burakovsky’s time frame for return from surgery could become relevant. Burakovsky hasn’t appeared in a game since Feb. 7, when he suffered a lower-body injury and went on to experience multiple setbacks, finally opting for a procedure April 11. He was expected to miss about six weeks and at least the first two rounds. There have been no further updates.

“I’d like to be around long enough to get them both back,” Hakstol said with a smile.