Montour rescues Kraken after another late lead disappears

Brandon Montour supplied the last answer on a night when Seattle repeatedly needed one. His late winner gave the Kraken a 5–4 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Climate Pledge Arena on Wednesday, October 28. Seattle improved to 8–4–1 and completed a 3–1–0 homestand.

The faceoff that settled it

Toronto had erased a 4–2 third-period deficit, with Jack Roslovic scoring before Auston Matthews tied the game with 90 seconds remaining. Seattle then won an offensive-zone draw through Matty Beniers, Jordan Eberle moved the puck to Montour, and the defenseman’s slap shot restored the lead with about 33 seconds left. The sequence turned a potential surrender of a standings point into a regulation win.

Chandler Stephenson finished with a goal and an assist; Mackie Samoskevich and Beniers each supplied two assists. Berkly Catton, Josh Mahura and Ryker Evans were Seattle’s other scorers. Matthews and Gavin McKenna each produced three points for Toronto, with McKenna scoring twice on the power play.

A productive second period

Catton opened the scoring before McKenna’s first power-play equalizer. Mahura restored Seattle’s advantage sixteen seconds into the middle period, finishing a rush with Ben Meyers. Toronto answered on the power play again, but Stephenson put Seattle back ahead with its own man-advantage goal and Evans extended the margin to two.

Cameron Riggers’ Sound Of Hockey live coverage documented an important change within that period: Seattle outshot Toronto 8–2 and limited the Leafs to one five-on-five shot. The Kraken were creating off the rush while keeping Toronto’s even-strength attack quiet. That stretch is the strongest evidence of a repeatable performance beneath the dramatic finish.

The conversation around the lead

In the Kraken’s postgame report, Stephenson identified the danger of becoming too passive: “sometimes you almost over defend.” That observation fits a match in which the cushion vanished before Seattle generated the decisive response. It also provides a useful distinction between defending responsibly and allowing the opponent to dictate every possession.

The injury context remains significant. Jared McCann is expected to miss ten weeks with a lower-body injury, according to the NHL’s October 25 status report. Jani Nyman made his season debut Wednesday. In Darren Brown’s October 28 Sound Of Hockey report, coach Lane Lambert explained that Nyman’s opportunity reflected the need to generate more after the Minnesota loss and confidence in his development. Those were documented pregame comments, rather than a postgame verdict on the new combination.

Analysis: preserve the attacking outlet

Seattle should keep the second period’s useful habits when protecting a lead: move the puck with support, give the carrier an outlet and make the opponent defend after a turnover. Retreating into an extended sequence of clearances can reduce immediate risk while increasing the number of attacks the defense must absorb. A two-goal lead is more secure when the other team occasionally has to skate backward.

Penalty discipline and clearance execution deserve attention as well. Toronto’s two early power-play goals repeatedly canceled Seattle’s work at even strength. The win shows that the Kraken can respond; the next improvement is reducing the number of responses required. Montour’s finish rewarded a clean faceoff sequence, but relying on another final-minute winner is an unnecessarily narrow route to two points.

What comes next

Seattle visits Calgary on Friday, October 30, before returning home for games against the Flames and Rangers. The immediate benchmark is a complete third period: keep an attacking option available, protect the middle and force Calgary to earn its chances without repeated extra opportunities.

Rain City Sports editorial desk | Published October 29, 2026. Sources checked October 29, 2026. Image: illustrative Seattle scene.

Sources

• NHL official final result (checked 2026-10-29)
• Kraken postgame report and Stephenson comments (checked 2026-10-29)
• Reuters/Field Level Media match report (checked 2026-10-29)
• Cameron Riggers: Sound Of Hockey live coverage (checked 2026-10-29)
• Darren Brown: Nyman opportunity and Lambert comments (checked 2026-10-29)
• NHL injury status: McCann (checked 2026-10-29)

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