Kraken upset defending champion Avalanche in Game 7 to win 1st series in franchise history | CBC Sports

Oliver Bjorkstrand scored twice, Philipp Grubauer was stellar in stopping 33 shots and the visiting Seattle Kraken eliminated the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche with a 2-1 win in Game 7 on Sunday night.

Bjorkstrand scored one goal on a fortuitous deflection — the puck hit off a stick and glove — and another with a liner past goaltender Alexandar Georgiev that clanged off the post. Seattle grabbed the lead in every game in the series.

Next up for the second-year Kraken is a second-round series against the Stars that opens in Dallas on Tuesday night. Seattle was 1-1-1 against Dallas in the regular season.

Mikko Rantanen was credited with a power-play goal for Colorado after a shot by Nathan MacKinnon clipped him and went in. MacKinnon appeared to score early in the third period to tie it at 2, but Seattle challenged the play and the goal was disallowed due to Colorado being offside.

The Avalanche pulled Georgiev with under 2 minutes remaining but couldn’t get the equalizer. It allowed the Kraken to accomplish another franchise first — a series-clinching celebration.

Colorado has now lost its last six Game 7s. The last time the Avalanche won a winner-take-all Game 7 was 2002, when they beat San Jose 1-0 courtesy of a goal from Hall of Fame forward Peter Forsberg.

MacKinnon energized the crowd with what looked like a tying goal. But it was taken off the board following a successful challenge by the Kraken. Artturi Lehkonen was ruled in the zone before the puck entered.

It’s the second time this series the Kraken have used a challenge to negate an Avalanche score.

The Kraken also deflated the capacity crowd by doing what they’ve done in every game this series — score first.

Held without a goal all series, Bjorkstrand picked a good time to find the net. He was credited with a goal in the second period that glanced the stick of Alex Newhook and then off the glove of Ben Meyers and into the net. Bjorkstrand scored again nearly four minutes later with a pinpoint shot on a breakaway down the side to make it 2-0.

Bjorkstrand nearly had a hat trick but his shot late in the game hit the post.

With 27.3 seconds left in the second period, MacKinnon lined a shot that glanced off Rantanen and went by Grubauer. MacKinnon’s assist on the play was his 100th career playoff point. He joins the company of Joe Sakic (188) and Forsberg (159) as the only Avalanche players to reach the 100-point milestone in the postseason.

Georgiev finished with 25 saves.

The banged-up Avalanche were missing forwards Darren Helm (upper body), Cogliano and Valeri Nichushkin (personal reasons), along with defenceman Josh Manson (lower body) in Game 7.

They’ve been without captain Gabriel Landeskog all season after he underwent knee surgery in October.