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Kraken fall again in tight battle as Stars shine through in overtime 

By
Charles Hamaker
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Photo by Aaron Nelson / fi360 News

Seattle, WA – As the clock hit triple zeroes to end regulation, the way things had played out felt disappointingly similar to the last game the Seattle Kraken had played, as again they fell in a tightly contested battle with a tough opponent. The Kraken lost 4-3 in overtime to the Dallas Stars, a top team in the Western Conference, in the first of two games that the teams will play in a span of three days. The Kraken battled hard, just as they had against Ottawa, but still cannot put the finishing touches on these intense battles. Seattle has proven that they can hang with the best teams in the league, including the Boston Bruins, but they can’t shut the door on them just yet.  

“It was a really competitive game out there, I thought we did okay for the most part. A really disappointing result again when we’re up close in the end, so we’ll learn from it, look at it, we’ll find a way to break them down, we have them again here very soon. Just forget it, it’s an important point that we got, and we’ll move on,” Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn reflected.  

If you were to lay out the games Seattle played at home against Boston, Ottawa, and Dallas, you’d think you’re looking at the same contest in different font with minor tweaks here and there. All three of those hotly contested battles have been against quality opponents and came down to the Kraken failing to find a way to put the final nail in their opponents’ coffin. Seattle, obviously still only in their second year as a franchise, have experienced numerous growing pains through the season but have been able to learn from them enough to adjust and move forward. Ironically enough, one of those pains that they had “grown” out of came back to bite the Kraken.  

Seattle begrudgingly took the game to overtime; having blown the late lead they had taken on an Oliver Bjorkstrand power play goal, when they allowed a score with 1:10 to play in period three. After going winless in their first three overtime games to start the season, the Kraken heavily practiced their three-on-three play to prepare themselves for that situation, and they proceeded to win the next seven games decided in the overtime period. That streak came to a halt tonight, as even though Seattle had far higher possession of the puck in overtime, the Kraken couldn’t get a good look on Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger. Dallas took the puck the other way and cycled it enough to find a wide-open Miro Heiskanen, and just like that Dallas had secured victory from the jaws of defeat in Seattle.  

“They made a play to win it, we had a couple of looks, but we didn’t get inside on them. We had a couple opportunities where we had tired legs on the ice on their side. Wenny had the one look from outside, Ebs had one that maybe could have taken inside a little harder, but he had a look from the outside and he’s pretty confident from there. But they made play,” Seattle head coach Dave Hakstol said about the overtime period.  

Seattle will have a team day off to get away from the rink before these two teams face off in the rematch on Monday, March 13th inside of Climate Pledge Arena with a puck drop of 7PM PST. Knowing the issues that resulted in their defeat, the Kraken seemed eager and ready to get back to work immediately following the loss, so this game already seems like it’s going to have that “big fight feel.” On that night, Seattle will be celebrating it’s “Pride night,” their second to last Hockey is for Everyone night of the season.  

Kraken nearly mount fierce comeback, cannot overcome self-inflicted mistakes in 5-4 loss to Senators 

By
Charles Hamaker
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Period 1

Seattle, WA – A desperate and angry Ottawa Senators team came into Climate Pledge Arena, looking to gain valuable points in their pursuit of a playoff berth while also having the task of ending Seattle’s five-game win streak. Ottawa pounced on the home team early, punching in three goals within the first ten minutes, but nearly blew that lead in stunning fashion. The Kraken were able to battle back in a scrappy way, but ultimately Seattle’s failure to clear the puck from their zone and turnovers in that zone resulted in numerous self-inflicted wounds that they couldn’t overcome.  

The defensive aspect of the Kraken has been an issue throughout their existence, and even during their win streaks as well as overall turnaround this season, that remains an issue. Seattle defenseman Vince Dunn compared tonight’s loss to the one the team suffered against Boston last month, and he’s right to do so considering that both contests saw the Kraken fight hard, score a lot but ultimately fall because of their defense. Ottawa’s goals tonight can all fall into two ugly categories: The Kraken failing to clear the puck from their own zone, leaving a Senators skater unmarked/alone, or sometimes both. The Kraken started the game out making those sorts of mistakes, and it set them back too far. Had that start not occurred and Seattle got out on the right foot, that big deficit doesn’t come to fruition and the Kraken settle in to play their game against an offensive-minded squad. 

“I think we were a bit casual and relaxed in the first ten minutes. Our recipe is pretty simple; it’s pucks north and establish a forecheck, that’s when we start to build our game and we definitely didn’t do that in the first 20 minutes as a whole. We turned it around, gave ourselves a chance to win, we just need to find a way to do it, Vince Dunn reflected.  

Seattle forward Jared McCann is on some kind of tear, not only setting career marks but in doing so, giving his hockey club the best chance, they can get. The Kraken have seen many different faces play a part in their offense, and it has hardly ever been just one skater, but it’s hard to downplay what McCann has been doing since the calendar year of 2023 began. McCann, on today which is the year anniversary of him signing a five-year extension with Seattle, has tallied 17 points over the course of a 14-game stretch and 30 points over 31 games since January 1st. He’s been an incredibly valuable piece to this offensive attack, and you could potentially argue that he’s helped fill in the hole left by injured forward Andre Burakovsky.  

“Just wasn’t good enough, start wasn’t good enough. We didn’t come ready. It was a pretty simple message; if we wanted to get back in the game, we had to figure it out, and we did that. At the same time, we have to have a full 60-minute effort,” Jared McCann said about the loss.  

The Kraken will hit the practice rink tomorrow, looking to clean up some of their issues prior to the first of two big battles when the Dallas Stars come to town for two matchups in three days. The first of those two comes on Saturday, March 11th with a puck drop at 7PM PST. It will be a tall task for the Kraken to turn things around and be fully prepared for this Dallas team, who is coming off a 10-4 victory tonight against the Buffalo Sabres. To close out the month of March, Seattle will play nine games and seven of them are against teams that are jockeying for their playoff lives. Points will be harder and harder to come by for the Kraken, so they’ll have to find another gear quickly.  

Kraken handle business against Ducks, but not before tempers flare  

By
Charles Hamaker
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Period 3

Seattle, WA – In their third matchup of the season and first since way back in November, the Seattle Kraken began a pivotal four game homestand with a sound 5-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. Several of Seattle’s stars who are setting career highs in goal and point scoring contributed to this victory, like Jamie Oleksiak who began the night with a goal a little under four minutes into the opening frame. Despite winning this battle in a fashion where the game was never in doubt, the Kraken had some issues with the Ducks on a few hits throughout the course of the third period including one that saw star defenseman Vince Dunn exit the game due to a decision from off-ice officials. Seattle secured two key points as they march towards the end of their second season, but they didn’t do so without a few extra bruises.  

Kraken forward Jared McCann continues to etch his name into Seattle’s history books and hearts, as the first player in franchise history to sign an extension and record 30 goals in a season for the team notched a goal and assist in this win over Anaheim. Those two points on the night pushed his season total to 100, another “first ever” accomplishment for the Stratford, Canada native that continues to produce at a torrid pace for a team that seems playoff bound. With the calm, steady McCann having tallied a point in eleven of his last 13 appearances, the Kraken have gotten consistent offensive production and an elite shot out of a forward that was looked over just like many of his current Seattle teammates.  

“Not so much, I’ve been very lucky to play with two great linemates in Ebs and Matty, obviously Matty is a special player. Ebs has been dishing it to me a lot since I’ve been here, so I’ve just been trying to capitalize on those,” Jared McCann said when asked if he’s seen anything different this year compared to last when it comes to his goal scoring.  

Heading into a third period where Seattle held a two-goal lead against an inferior opponent, it felt like the Kraken were going to be able to add a few more goals and secure the two points without too much resistance. Anaheim had other plans for those final two minutes, showing the “physical” side of their game with a few high hits to Kraken players Jordan Eberle, Adam Larsson, and Vince Dunn. The most notable perhaps was the last player listed in Vince Dunn, as he had to leave the game due to the hit laid on him. For context Jordan Eberle and Adam Larsson had both taken hits to the upper body and above area without a call, with Larsson notably holding the back of his head after getting off the ice and slamming the bench door after his shift had ended.  

With under eight minutes to play in the final frame and the game all but decided, Dunn was hit high by Ducks forward Max Comtois after the puck was out of Dunn’s reach. Dunn was left bloodied and called for a hit to the head but was ignored. Once on the bench, Dunn proceeded to yell at the officials about his anger at the no call and slammed his stick on the ice, which resulted in an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Not even a minute into serving that penalty, the on-ice officials were instructed by off-ice officials to send Dunn off the ice for concussion protocol, ending his night.  

“He was pissed off, and I get why. It was a little bit late; he held his cool getting off of the ice and he snapped on the bench. His teammates had his back, got the job done, and that’s it, we’ll move on. He’s been a heck of a competitor for us all year long, he’s head great presence of mind, that’s one situation where his teammates had his back and got him through it… I don’t have an update, I don’t have any reason for any concern right now,” Dave Hakstol said when asked about the hit that Vince Dunn received and if he had an update on his condition.   

Seattle will have a day of practice in between games, as their next game comes on Thursday, March 9th with a puck drop of 7PM PST against the Ottawa Senators. The Kraken will host an Ottawa team that sits at fifth in their division and may be looking to get some revenge on Seattle for their January contest when the Senators lost 8-4. Ottawa, having acquired highly coveted defenseman Jacob Chychrun via trade, is in a similar situation to Seattle where every point is critical through these final weeks of the regular season.  

UCLA extends Kelly Contract

By
Christopher Floch
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UCLA head coach Chip Kelly

WESTWOOD, CA – After two straight seasons in which the UCLA Bruins football program has once again become relevant nationally, UCLA has extended Bruins Head Coach Chip Kelly’s contract to lead UCLA until 2027.

Kelly, who led UCLA to a mark of 9-4, concluding with a heartbreaking 37-34 loss in the Sun Bowl, has brought discipline while revamping the Bruins offense over his tenure.

UCLA averaged a scorching 39 points per game last season.

In addition, the 2022 team became the school’s first to average more than 500 yards of total offense. It finished fourth in the nation at 503.6. UCLA was the only FBS team with 3,463 passing yards and 3,084 rushing yards.

LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 20: UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) runs the ball for a gain during a college football game between the UCLA Bruins and the USC Trojans on November 20, 2021, at United Airlines Field at The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/fi360 News)

Kelly is 27-29 through five seasons in Westwood, but is 16-8 the past two years. He took over after Jim Mora Jr. was fired in 2017 and had a roster predominantly filled with underclassmen his first two seasons.

The Bruins were 3-9 in Kelly’s first year in 2018 and 4-8 the following season. During the shortened 2020 season, a turnaround began with a 3-4 mark.

Kelly is 72-36 as a college coach, signed a four-year contract last year.

The Bruins averaged 237.2 rushing yards per game, ranking sixth nationally and first in the Pac-12. Charbonnet averaged a conference-best 135.9 rushing yards and an FBS-leading 168.0 all-purpose yards.

Due in large part to the Bruins three-headed monster; Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson Wide Receiver Jake Bobo and Running Back Zach Charbonnet. His winning percentage has increased in each of his five seasons.

UCLA running back Zach Charbonnet (24) finds room to run in the third quarter against Colorado at Folsom Field in Boulder CO on Saturday September 24, 2022. UCLA won by a score of 45 to 17. (Photo by Laura Domingue/fi360 News)

Last season was the first time since 2014 that the No. 21 Bruins were ranked in the final AP Top 25 and AFCA Coaches polls.

“Kelly and his talented staff,” UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond said in a prepared statement. “The football program is on an upward trajectory, both on the field and in the classroom. Coach Kelly and his staff have done a tremendous job developing young men as demonstrated by their academic excellence.”

the two-year extension ensures Kelly will make $6.1 million during the 2023 and 2024 seasons before getting bumped up to $6.2 million per season in 2025, 2026 and 2027.

Kelly’s greatest accomplishment as the Bruins Head Coach, despite his well deserved reputation across the college football landscape as a bona fide genius on the offensive side on the ball. Ironically, it’s been his presence and coaching prowess transforming UCLA’S defense into a ferocious beast.

Defensively, the Bruins held teams to 130.3 rushing yards per game. Edge rusher Laiatu Latu, who was named a College Football Comeback Player of the Year Award winner in his first year since transferring from Washington, had 10.5 sacks and three forced fumbles.

November 24, 2018 Pasadena CA, UCLA Bruins head coach Chip Kelly during the Stanford Cardinal vs UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA on November 24, 2018 (Photo by Jevone Moore)

UCLA will go into its final season in the Pac-12 with plenty of questions. The Bruins were fifth in the nation in total offense, but quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson graduated and running back Zach Charbonnet left early for the NFL draft.

Kelly will also have his third defensive coordinator in as many seasons after hiring D’Anton Lynn.

Chip started with a group of Freshmen, whose to say he can’t mold next year’s underclassman to future success.

Maple Leafs trounce flailing Kraken, 5-1 as Seattle continues to fall in standings

By
Charles Hamaker
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Photo by Aaron Nelson / fi360 News

Seattle, WA – In their final home game of the month of February, the Seattle Kraken were dominated in disheartening fashion by the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs. Despite scoring first on a Vince Dunn wrist shot from the slot, the Kraken continue to have their defensive miscues taken advantage of as Toronto skaters were left unmarked. Seattle couldn’t buy a goal today after Dunn’s, with several shots and opportunities just off the mark as if there was a force field protecting the Maple Leafs net. It’s another tough loss for Seattle, the blowout variety after the thrilling fall to Boston, as the Kraken continue to tumble down the standings.  

The defensive issues for the Kraken have been around since the team’s inaugural season, and they do not seem to be improving as we head into the final few months of the 2022-23 regular season. The Kraken were able to survive these issues when their offense was pumping out high scoring games, but that isn’t the case anymore. Seattle continues to leave skaters open when they’re in their own zone, and they must be better with the puck. Their passing and puck management has been poor, creating more issues for themselves on top of the poor puck management.  

Those issues were displayed today by the Kraken in four of the Maple Leafs goals. Toronto was able to get open back door on two of their goals (John Tavares and Auston Matthews), left Timothy Liljegren open backside in the faceoff circle unmarked, and failed to clear the puck as Auston Matthews played hack and whack. These issues have been present throughout the course of the season and must be corrected for this team to keep their playoff hopes alive.  

“I think that we’re working hard but we could work a little smarter, compete a little harder. It’s the little things that are killing us right now, battles, puck management, blocking shots, not giving up second chances. It’s unfortunate giving up these goals because our goalies are actually playing pretty well for us, unacceptable for Grubi there, there’s not much he can do on many of those goals. We’ll have to look at it, take a step back here and breathe a little bit. A lot of us are maybe being a little too hard on ourselves, clenching our stick a little bit. When the plays are there, we have to make them,” Vince Dunn said when asked about the defensive issues.  

Seattle’s offensive attack has been able to put up some big numbers virtually all season long, but in the months of January and February, they’ve seen a drop in production. Obviously considering that playoff races are heating up and the sort of production that the Kraken saw in the month of November was not sustainable, the drop off makes some sense. The Kraken have excellent shot finishers and have gotten some fortunate bounces, and that may have created some bad habits in the offensive zone. While this is true, it’s also true that Seattle got unlucky on a few of their attempts today that just barely missed the mark.  

“I felt that we created chances, there were opportunities to score no question. We sustained O-Zone pressure but we couldn’t really find anything inside. The story of the night was that we started off well, obviously got off to a lead, and then we watched them play for 15 minutes. Obviously with the firepower that they have they’re gonna score eventually,” Jordan Eberle on Seattle’s offensive attack in the loss.  

The Kraken will now head out on the road for a four-game slate, which begins on Tuesday, February 28th against the St. Louis Blues. The Kraken will now play nine of the next 15 games for the against teams not currently in a playoff spot. Out of the remaining 23 games, 14 of them are against non-playoff teams. The Kraken will faceoff with the Blues in St. Louis with a puck drop of 5PM PST, as one of the them will have to pick up a victory as they have both struggled in their past ten games.  

Kraken battle hard, fall just short of season sweep of Bruins in 6-5 loss 

By
Charles Hamaker
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Seattle Kraken (Photo by Megan Connelly / fi360 News)

Seattle, WA – Similar to their first matchup in January that saw the Kraken march into Boston and shutout the Bruins, the rematch was exhilarating from start to finish. The Kraken and Bruins traded haymakers throughout the 60 minutes, as a total of four response goals were traded between the two teams. Ultimately, Boston was able to take advantage of a few too many mistakes made by Seattle, scoring the game winner on a tip in by Jake DeBrusk in the final minutes. The Kraken, just like in their first matchup with the Bruins, proved that they belong amongst the NHL’s elite, but they must clean up some minor issues to remain in that tier.  

Coming off an embarrassing shutout loss to a depleted San Jose Sharks team, Seattle needed to see a drastic change in effort and execution when they faced off against the Bruins. They got just that, pushing the pace against Boston from the very start. Perhaps the primary issue from the loss was that Seattle had too many mistakes on a night that was on par with the Bruins otherwise. Of the six goals that Boston tallied in game, three of them came from Bruins’ skaters who were left unmarked, while another was off a turnover at the blue line while the Kraken were on the power play. Mistakes will happen in virtually every game, but the ones that Seattle made were far too critical and against a team that will make you pay for those errors every single time.  

“If you’re gonna score five goals, usually you’re gonna win. I thought that we made a lot of dull mistakes, I had one on my part, I got beat to the net. Marchand had an empty net there, that’s on me, I have to box him out, I have to find him. Grubi was good, but again I thought that we have to pick our sticks up more,” Yanni Gourde said about the loss.  

While it’s a loss that doesn’t give the Kraken any help in the standings, they fell to the first wild card in the Western Conference, this game means more than just a notch in a column. Seattle showed once again that they belong with the NHL’s elite and very well can topple a great team on any given night. Yes, the shutout loss to a bottom feeding team like San Jose is embarrassing, but the Kraken at their height have the ceiling of a cup contending team. Displays of selfless defense, versatile offense, and phenomenal goaltending show what this team can be when they click. In addition, all of tonight’s efforts were done without the help of forward Andre Burakovsky who is still week-to-week. This Kraken team, and its franchise, has the wheels of success set in motion and the journey from here is a very promising one. Who knows, these two teams very well could meet again if the stars align just right.  

“I thought we played a good game honestly, they did too. I think that we can build some momentum off of this, even though it was a loss we did a lot of good things offensively and defensively. Hopefully we can take the good out of it and keep rolling,” Matty Beniers said about playing his hometown team.  

The Kraken will get a day off and a practice day prior to their next contest, a showdown with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Like their contests against Boston, the Kraken marched into Toronto last time around and stunned the Leafs, now looking to do the same in Seattle. The Maple Leafs and Kraken will face off against each other for the second time this season on Sunday, February 26th with a puck drop of 4PM PST. Seattle will aim to get some positive momentum rolling before they head into a four game, eight-day road trip.  

Rahm pushes through for 2 shot victory

By
Jevone Moore
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(Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

Pacific Palisades, CA- Even after a tuff turn to the back 9, your 2023 Champion Jon Rahm muscled through to win the Genesis Invitational with a final round of -2 under par and -17 under for the tournament.

The top two golfers in the world paired up all day battling back and forth feeling the pull and tug from each other pushing for the chance to raise the trophy.

Rahm enjoying the victory on 18th green. (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

“It was a tough week and tough Sunday.” said Rahm

Both Max Homa and Rahm lying in the right bunker on the 17th hole, Rahm jumped out while Homa chilly dipped it as it rolled right back into the sand. Homa was able to save par and stay 15th under, while Rahm left the door open by missing his birdy attempt.

Rahm on 3rd tee. (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

As they stood on the 18th tee box Rahm tee off knowing par wins with two shot lead. Smooth off the tee while Homa had to push to try and add the last bit of pressure on him.

Homa’s caddie wore a bib that read 2021 Champion to see the whole round. Even down to the second to last shot on 18 he hit the flagstick trying to push and add pressure to Rahm who held two shot lead on 18th.

“Well I kept telling myself after 12 it’s a difficult course to finish, and I just needed to finish under par,” said Rahm.

Max Homa watching his shot out of the sand. (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

Just think if he didn’t dig deep after a bogey on the 10th hole that let Homa get to with in one stroke, later to give up the lead after another bogey on 12th that was a self-inflected mistake.

Tournament Host Tiger Woods had a respectable Sunday with a final round of +2 over par but -1 under par for the four days. Woods finished 45th but gave his fans some great memories and birdies over the last few days.

“It was progress, but obsessively I didn’t win,” said Woods, “Overall it was a successful weekend for the foundation and the fans.”

Tiger Woods chipping out of the sand. (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

After today win Rahm has won 5 of the last 9 starts just being on fire on the courses he has played. Now increased Fedex Cup points leads by 426 points better then none other then Homa who is over Kegan Bradley by 568 points (994)

“It’s  a tremendous amount of turnover,” said Woods “A lot of new face that will be the future of our Tour.”

Champion Rahm and host Tiger. (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

The PGA Tour will now switch coast to Florida for the Honda Classic.

Kraken able to make timely plays in 4-2 victory over soaring Red Wings 

By
Charles Hamaker
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Period 3

Seattle, WA – On a night where the organization celebrated Black Hockey History, the Seattle Kraken pulled out a tight, gritty victory against the Detroit Red Wings. With the teams’ fathers/mentors in attendance, the Kraken made the most of their opportunities in a closely contested matchup with a Red Wings team that had won their last five games coming into the February 18th battle. Kraken alternate captain Jordan Eberle scored two goals through two periods and Seattle goaltender Philipp Grubauer put out another excellent performance in the win. Every point matters for the Kraken, amidst a race in the Pacific Division where the margin for error is razor thin.  

Kraken alternate captain Jordan Eberle has been on a tear as of late, totaling seven points in last four games including tonight’s three-point effort. Eberle began the games scoring, a goal that went five hole on Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso. With speed out of his defensive zone, Eberle nearly took the puck coast to coast before firing a shot away from the slot. Despite having three Detroit skaters surrounding him, Eberle’s shot barely caught Husso before he could get into his butterfly, clipping his inside leg leaking through for the goal. 

Eberle’s second goal of the night was beautifully set up by linemate Matty Beniers following a Detroit turnover in the neutral zone. Beniers entered the Red Wings zone with Detroit forward Dylan Larkin on his hip, drawing the attention of another skater in the process. Beniers’ effort gave Eberle just enough time and space to receive the pass and fire away at a tiny window between Husso’s shoulder and the pipes, scoring for the second time in the game. With little opportunity being given by a hot Detroit team, Eberle and the Kraken took advantage of what was given. Eberle discussed his team’s ability to strike at the right time, postgame.  

“We responded, anytime you get scored on late in the period it can be tough and a little deflating. We got one early in the second, the one at the end of the second was big, and then early in the third. Timely goals are always key to put teams away, especially when you’re up two going into the third… you wanna try and stay on your toes to get that next one to put the game out of reach,” Eberle said.  

Since the calendar year began, Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer has been excellent between the pipes. Since his first start of the year Grubauer has a save percentage of .926, and that success continued tonight against a Red Wings team that had scored at least four goals in their last four games. Despite a heavy Red Wings attack with numerous near miss opportunities, Grubauer remained locked in and ready for the next shot throughout the entirety of the game. Grubauer, with the help of a teammates block here and there, was able to stay active in the crease and make the necessary freezes and stops to help his team get the winning edge. Grubauer discussed how his team has played in front of him, postgame.  

“It’s been incredible, I think that it started a couple of games ago. We’re doing the right things and it looks more like playoff hockey. We’re making the right decision in the moment for the team, and we’re not making any selfish plays. We just get the job done, and we’ve got to continue that. There’s not much hockey left, our division is pretty tight, so we need every point,” Grubauer reflected.  

The Kraken will head down to California for a quick one game road trip before returning home for two major matchups to end the month of February. On Monday, February 20th, the Kraken head to San Jose for a Presidents Day battle with the Sharks. Puck drop for the divisional battle of the aquatic teams is at 1PM PST, as the Kraken will look to collect their third win in a row against a Sharks team that has lost their last three.  

Homa beats the darkness to hold 36 hole lead

By
Jevone Moore
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Max Homa (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

Pacific Palisades, CA – Even with a sunny but chilly first two days of the Genesis Invitational 36 hole leader Max Homa at 10-under 132. The question is who will make the cut, due to darkness play was halted and several players will finish Saturday morning with a projected cutline +1.

The field is right on Homa’s heels with Keith Mitchell, Jon Rahm, and Lee Hodges just one shot behind. The golfers who have had best scores today have been good on the greens putting.  

On 13th hole Homa hit a laser on the green to drop another birdy keeping his round going strong on the back nine.

“I’m not really sure why I play so well in California. Obviously there’s some comfortability with the grass and how far the ball goes,” said Homa, “I can rest on the fact I’m playing great golf and I’m just going to try and do that for two more days.”

Jon Rahm (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

Rahm got a big break on 17th hole with his second shot going wide get the perfect bounce off the grandstands back towards the green passing the sand trap to within 3 feet from the hole. He dropped his eagle to move him temporarily tied for the lead at 10 under but gave one back on 18th.

“Obviously I got very fortunate to get that bounce not only to go on the green, but to have
basically three feet straight up the hill. That’s arguably the best bounce I’ve seen in person
my whole golf career and it would be hard to beat in the future,” said Rahm, “For those wondering, no, did I not call bank. I don’t think anybody calls bank in that situation.”

Even with familiar faces on the top there are 10 players with 5 shots of the lead so this next 54 leader can change.  

Tiger Woods (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

Tournament host Tiger Woods has been feeling the heat on and off the course. With the cut line right on his number of +1. Either way he would be around for the weekend but he will tee it back up Saturday and look to get his putter back on track.

“I did not putt well today, I blocked a lot of putts early and this is probably the highest score I could have shot today,” said Woods, “Just didn’t make the putts early and the middle part of the round when I had those opportunities.”

Xander Schauffele (Photo by Brenton Tse / fi360 News)

One of the other exciting shots was on 17th Xander Schauffele holes it if off the pole for an eagle on the par 5 to hang around for a great weekend with a great field for the Genesis.

Kraken don’t show Flyers any brotherly love in 6-1 blowout 

By
Charles Hamaker
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Photo by Aaron Nelson / fi360 News

Seattle, WA – The Seattle Kraken sent the home crowd at Climate Pledge Arena home happy, as they easily glided to a blowout victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. The win gives Seattle a season sweep over the physical Flyers team that they had faced just days ago and puts Seattle back in the win column at home for first time in 18 days. The Kraken scored in several different ways, including power play goals, a shorthanded goal, and a score on an advanced penalty in addition to some five-on-five. The win pushes Seattle back to second in the Pacific Division, as the Kraken fight their way through a thick playoff race.  

While Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol declined when asked to highlight an individual performance, forward Yanni Gourde played an excellent game on both ends of the ice. Gourde is the definition of an all gas, no brakes player, consistently outworking teammates and opponents on the ice. While that doesn’t always necessarily translate to points on the stat sheet, Gourde was able to find success tonight as he tallied three points (two goals and an assist) in the win over the Flyers. Gourde was excellent in front of the night, recording a tip in goal and screened Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart for Justin Schultz’s goal, while assisting on Oliver Bjorkstrand’s breakaway goal. Kraken forward Matty Beniers discussed Gourde’s effort and drive.  

“He’s awesome, every night. No matter whether he’s scoring two goals or no goals. Everyone sees that he’s just as effective and plays every single night. He’s been playing great,” Beniers stated. 

A key aspect to tonight’s victory for the Kraken was their defensive effort throughout the first two periods. While they sagged a bit in the final 20 minutes, allowing two goals and multiple sloppy turnovers, the first two frames were a clinic in disrupting the Flyers attack. Seattle’s stout defensive presence and shot blocking resulted in only one shot on goal for the Flyers after the first period, a franchise record for fewest shots allowed in a period. The Kraken blueliners stayed focused and sacrificed their bodies to ensure that the Flyers didn’t get off to the start that happened in their early meeting on the 12th of the month. Seattle forward Jared McCann discussed his team’s effort on the defensive end. 

“Everybody was in lanes, we were blocking shots, we were making them miss the net when they had to. I feel like that speaks to our character in the room, guys stepping into lanes and blocking shots,” McCann said.  

The Kraken will have a quick turnaround practice before their Saturday, February 18th matchup against the Detroit Red Wings. The Kraken will be celebrating “Black hockey history” that day, donning specially designed warmup jerseys for the “Hockey is for everyone” night that will be auctioned off for charity. Puck drop is at 7:30PM PST for the battle between the Red Wings and Kraken, the first time that the two teams have faced each other this season. Despite a mediocre overall record, Detroit has won seven of their last ten as of tonight.  

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