Matty Beniers scores in shootout to give Kraken 4-3 win over Canucks
Seattle Kraken's Matty Beniers (10) celebrates his winning goal against the Vancouver Canucks with his teammates in shootout NHL hockey action in Vancouver, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. Credit: AP/Ethan Cairns
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Matty Beniers scored the only goal int he shootout to give the Seattle Kraken a 4-3 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night.
Cale Fleury, Chandler Stephenson and Ben Meyers all scored in regulation for the Kraken, who are 6-0-1 in their last seven games. Joey Daccord had 20 saves through overtime.
Jake DeBrusk had a goal and two assists for his first multipoint game of the season, and Kiefer Sherwood and Linus Karlsson also scored for the Canucks. Thatcher Demko finished with 25 saves.
After the first five skaters failed to score in the tiebreaker, Beniers skated in on Demko from the left side, deked the goalie to his left and cut back and put it into the open side of the net for the win.
Karlsson’s goal tied the score 3-3 at 6:15 of the third period and came hours after he signed a two-year, $4.5-million extension with the Canucks.
Fleury gave Seattle a 1-0 lead with 2:26 remaining in the first period for his first goal in nine games this season. Stephenson doubled the lead with a one-timer past Demko on the power play at 8:53 of the second.
Sherwood got the Canucks on the board with a power-play goal with 6:54 to go in the middle period.
Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) stops Seattle Kraken's Matty Beniers (10) during the first period of an NHL game in Vancouver, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. Credit: AP/ETHAN CAIRNS
Meyers restored the Kraken's two-goal lead with 1:47 remaining in the period, but DeBrusk's power-play goal 1:09 later pulled the Canucks to 3-2.
Up next
Kraken: At Calgary on Sunday.
Canucks: Host Boston on Saturday.
