It didn’t take long for Seattle Kraken fans to take to Brandon Tanev after he was selected in the 2021 NHL expansion draft.
Maybe it was the flowing locks or the wide-eyed mug shot or his straight-ahead style — or maybe all three.
So expect a warm welcome Sunday when Tanev returns to Seattle for the first time since being traded to Winnipeg for a second-round pick on March 7.
“Brandon is an energetic, speedy and forward-playing player, and that’s what he brings each and every night,” Kraken coach Dan Bylsma said. “And when he’s not there, you’ll miss it.”
For Tanev, leaving Seattle was made easier not only because he was returning to Winnipeg, where he started his NHL career in 2015, but also because he was joining the Western Conference leaders.
“I mean, the Jets are a very good team and it’s an easy team to come into when there’s so many good players and they make things easy for you,” Tanev said.
“When you go out there, you put a familiar jersey on that you’re so used to, and you’re excited to play. … It’s a group I know very well, a city I know well, and they’ve had great success this year so I’m just trying to come in and do whatever I can. The team is playing some great hockey so whatever role I need to play or do is what I’m willing to do.”
Tanev has been playing on the fourth line for the Jets and has helped kill penalties.
“It’s preferable to have him on your team,” Jets captain Adam Lowry, noting Tanev’s abrasive style. “He doesn’t seem to have an off switch. He’s always kind of in high gear, high-strung and ready to go. It doesn’t matter the score.”
Jets coach Scott Arniel said even he was surprised by Tanev’s speed.
“Yeah, you can tell Tanev is an experienced guy on his feet,” Arniel said. “I knew he had some quickness to him, but you really notice that on your side, he closes quick and he’s smart.”
The Jets entered the weekend with a two-point lead on Washington in the chase for the Presidents Trophy, which goes to the team that leads the league’s overall standings when the regular season ends.
Winnipeg beat visiting Dallas 4-1 Friday as Kyle Connor had two goals and an assist, Mark Scheifele added three helpers and Connor Hellebuyck made 24 saves. That extended the Jets’ lead over Dallas to 10 points in the Western Conference.
“I thought we dictated the pace right from the hop,” Connor said. “Played with a lot of pace, played within our structure, defended first. You look at a couple of goals there that we scored, the first one they have possession in our zone for a little bit, we just kept it simple, trusted each other, made the turnover and then resulted off the rush scoring a goal. We stuck to our identity and were able to dictate the play there.”
The Kraken have won three of four games since the deadline and are 2-0-0 on their three-game homestand that wraps up Sunday. They beat Utah 4-2 Friday as Eeli Tolvanen had two goals and an assist. Jordan Eberle added two assists and Philipp Grubauer made 23 saves to post his first victory at home since Dec. 30.
“The guys have had, the last few games, a good mindset of just staying with it,” Bylsma said. “It doesn’t happen in the first second, it doesn’t happen in the first 10-20 minutes. It’s over (60 minutes) and you stay with it and you stick with it and you grind it out, and this one we had to grind out. It was a hard-fought game.”
–Field Level Media
