McMann finishes the job in Philadelphia, but Kraken’s lead protection needs work.

Rain City Sports editorial desk | Recap and analysis | October 15, 2026

The Kraken beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3–2 in a shootout at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Tuesday, October 13. Bobby McMann supplied the deciding attempt. The final is confirmed by the NHL; the game date is Tuesday, even though several postgame reports were published Wednesday.

The result and the turning point

Reuters’ October 14 account records McMann and Ville Ottavainen as Seattle’s regulation scorers, Philipp Grubauer with 24 saves, and the Kraken improving to 3–0 on the road trip. Christian Dvorak and Trevor Zegras brought Philadelphia back from 2–0 down in the third period. McMann eventually settled the fifth shootout round.

Darren Brown’s Sound of Hockey report adds the shape of Seattle’s scoring. McMann converted a loose puck on the power play; Ottavainen’s first NHL goal came with Matty Beniers screening the goalie. Beniers and McMann then converted in the shootout, while Grubauer denied four Philadelphia attempts.

That is a valuable collection of contributions: a special-teams finish, a defenseman producing through traffic, and a goalie keeping the contest available to win. It is also a reminder that the final score contains more than one performance. Seattle built an advantage, lost it, then found a way back.

Expectations after another road win

Our analysis: the next step is preserving the initiative that creates a lead. Retreating can feel like the responsible choice because fewer players are committed forward. But if every possession is returned to the opponent, the defending team can spend longer protecting increasingly difficult situations.

The aim should be controlled aggression. A supported forecheck, a clean exit and an available outlet can all reduce pressure without requiring an unnecessary risk. Protecting a lead is a shared possession problem as well as a defensive one. A goalie’s saves buy time; teammates decide how that time gets used.

What the coach and players said

In Brown’s October 14 report, Lane Lambert criticized the stretches when Seattle backed away instead of forechecking, while approving of the response after the tying goal. Ottavainen described settling into his role through skating, physical play and straightforward decisions. Those comments identify a practical standard rather than declaring the early work complete.

Brown also highlighted Grubauer’s performance and confrontations with Zegras. Our takeaway is narrower than the spectacle: an emotional game still requires the next save and the next organized shift. The useful evidence is whether concentration survives the interruption. These are documented individual perspectives, not a measure of the whole fan base.

What needs to improve

Seattle should review the possessions immediately following an opponent’s surge. Does the puck carrier have a short passing option? Are forwards positioned to turn a clearance into a controlled exit? Can a line spend useful time away from its own net before changing? Those questions are more actionable than simply asking for greater urgency.

The same standard should apply after conceding. A response cannot depend on one player making an exceptional play each time momentum turns. Repeatable support gives the team a way to recover before the score changes again. Tuesday’s recovery is encouraging, but avoiding the next collapse would be stronger evidence of progress.

What comes next

The club lists Tampa Bay next, on Thursday, October 15, at 4 p.m. Pacific. That is a new test, not an extension of the Philadelphia result. No injury diagnosis is inferred from Tuesday’s confrontations or player usage.

Watch whether Seattle can keep an outlet and apply pressure while ahead. Banking points matters, and the Kraken earned another pair. Making the route to those points less dependent on a late rescue is the next improvement worth tracking.

Sources

• NHL.com — Official October 13 final (checked 2026-10-15)
• Reuters — October 14 game report (checked 2026-10-15)
• Darren Brown, Sound of Hockey — October 14 takeaways and attributed comments (checked 2026-10-15)
• Seattle Kraken — Official next-game listing (checked 2026-10-15)

Analysis and recommendations are the editorial desk’s interpretation. Reporting and attributed perspectives are linked above. Information is current as of the publication date.