Kraken eliminated from playoffs, lose 5-1 to Stars

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - MARCH 29: Roope Hintz #24 of the Dallas Stars celebrates with Mikko Rantanen #96 of the Dallas Stars and Jason Robertson #21 of the Dallas Stars after scoring against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena on March 29, 2025 (Ryan Sun / Getty Images)

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SEATTLE - Jason Robertson netted his 33rd goal of the season, Jake Oettinger finished with 34 saves, and the Dallas Stars clinched a playoff spot with a 5-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Saturday night.

For the fourth consecutive season, Dallas will vie for the Stanley Cup and now sit four points behind Winnipeg for the best record in the conference.

Robertson’s goal about eight minutes into the first period tied the game at 1-1 then Roope Hintz scored on the power play with 1:36 left until the second to put the Stars ahead for good.

Mason Marchment added a power-play goal in the third, part of an efficient night where the Stars registered just 21 shots on goal, but kept the pressure on the Kraken defensemen.

The Stars added two more goals in the final 20 minutes.

Seattle struck first at 1:27 of the first period with an Eeli Tolvanen goal that was caused by turnover near the blue line and James McCann found Tolvanen crashing the side of the net. The Kraken finished with 35 shots on goal.

Takeaways

Stars: Dallas has shown to be one of the best teams in the league from the opening month of the season and Saturday provided more evidence. It is a team that isn’t flashy and grinds opponents out.

Kraken: In a matchup against one of the league’s best, Seattle didn’t shy away from contact by registering 17 hits and laying out with 21 blocked shots.

Key moment

A high-sticking call against Seattle’s Brandon Montour 14 seconds into the third period turned into a power-play goal from Dallas’ Marchment, his 19th of the season.

Key stat

Dallas, one of the top-eight teams in the league in face-off win percentage, nearly doubled up Seattle on Saturday with a 55-44 percent advantage in face-offs.