7's Take of the Game
Penalties continue to be Kraken's bane. A team near the top of the league in penalties taken continues their trend as they take 4 more tonight. They have the most successful penalty kills this season but it's a volume thing. Mike Hroch isn't perfect, and on his bad days he needs his team to not let him get shelled for 21 shots and 3 penalty kills in the later two periods. The first period showed that Carolina is capable of holding the momentum and executing their game plan, but they can't let it get away from them like that. How do you win faceoffs 53-31 and not dominate possession with the talent on that roster?

7's Blame of the Game
Rookies are gonna be inconsistent, even all-star rookies, but Ambacas Cuddles needs to be better for Carolina. Three penalties total (two of which led to Detroit power play goals), that disaster of a power play breakout that led to Jack Kanoff's shorthanded goal, and a lack of impact felt elsewhere (17/25 passes completed, no blocked shots, and only two hits over 18 minutes is not a pretty night. I love the guy, and what he brings to that Carolina team's roster, but games like that are going to cost them more games unless he becomes a better skater and sorts out his discipline.

7's Unsung Heroes of the Game
Detroit's top pair, Jack Kanoff and Guy O'Shea were a combined -3 today despite scoring 3 points, but they also were second and third on the team in shots while combining for five blocked shots today, on their 40 combined minutes. Kanoff's shorthanded goal broke the Carolina morale and set the tone for the second half of the game. It was uptempo and their disruption in the neutral zone was paramount in keeping the orange jerseys from building up strong attacks and their pressure in their own zone didn't let the Kraken stay long either.