Deadspin | Kraken stay in playoff hunt with shootout win over Knights 
Apr 9, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Kraken forward Jordan Eberle (7) and forward Bobby McMann (74), left, battle Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel (9) for puck during the second period at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images Rookie Berkly Catton sparked a rally from a two-goal deficit in the third period and scored the winner in the fifth round of a shootout as the Seattle Kraken kept their slim postseason hopes alive with a 4-3 victory against the visiting Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday.
Jared McCann and Bobby McMann also scored in regulation and Vince Dunn had two assists for the Kraken (33-34-11, 77 points), who snapped a six-game skid (0-5-1). Goaltender Joey Daccord made 31 saves and stopped four of five shootout attempts.
Mark Stone scored twice, Brett Howden also tallied and Adin Hill stopped 30 of 33 shots for the Golden Knights (36-26-17, 89 points), who lost for the first time in five games under new coach John Tortorella. Vegas is tied with the Anaheim Ducks for second in the Pacific Division, both teams one point behind the Edmonton Oilers.
With Seattle trailing 3-1, Catton scored a fluke goal at 6:11 of the third. Adam Larsson dumped the puck into the offensive zone and it took a strange bounce off a stanchion, ricocheting in front of the crease after Hill had skated behind the net. Catton tapped the puck into the yawning cage.
The Kraken tied it on McMann’s wrist shot from the right faceoff dot into the far upper corner of the net at 9:16.
The Golden Knights opened the scoring at 10:04 of the first period. Stone scored on a wrist shot from the slot after taking a pass from Rasmus Andersson.
Seattle’s Brandon Montour was whistled for hooking Jack Eichel just before the buzzer ending the period, giving Vegas a power play to start the second. The Golden Knights tallied 55 seconds into the middle frame as Eichel sent a pass from the left faceoff circle to the far post, where Stone tapped it in while battling Kraken defenseman Jamie Oleksiak for positioning.
The Kraken pulled within 2-1 on McCann’s slap shot past a screened Hill from the top of the right faceoff circle while on the man advantage at 17:54 of the second.
The Golden Knights restored their two-goal advantage on a 4-on-2 rush at 1:11 of the third. Mitch Marner’s centering pass went off Pavel Dorofeyev’s stick and then Howden’s skate on its way into the net.
–Field Level Media
#Deadspin #Kraken #stay #playoff #hunt #shootout #win #Knights
Apr 9, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Kraken forward Jordan Eberle (7) and forward Bobby McMann (74), left, battle Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel (9) for puck during the second period at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images Rookie Berkly Catton sparked a rally from a two-goal deficit in the third period and scored the winner in the fifth round of a shootout as the Seattle Kraken kept their slim postseason hopes alive with a 4-3 victory against the visiting Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday.
Jared McCann and Bobby McMann also scored in regulation and Vince Dunn had two assists for the Kraken (33-34-11, 77 points), who snapped a six-game skid (0-5-1). Goaltender Joey Daccord made 31 saves and stopped four of five shootout attempts.
Mark Stone scored twice, Brett Howden also tallied and Adin Hill stopped 30 of 33 shots for the Golden Knights (36-26-17, 89 points), who lost for the first time in five games under new coach John Tortorella. Vegas is tied with the Anaheim Ducks for second in the Pacific Division, both teams one point behind the Edmonton Oilers.
With Seattle trailing 3-1, Catton scored a fluke goal at 6:11 of the third. Adam Larsson dumped the puck into the offensive zone and it took a strange bounce off a stanchion, ricocheting in front of the crease after Hill had skated behind the net. Catton tapped the puck into the yawning cage.
The Kraken tied it on McMann’s wrist shot from the right faceoff dot into the far upper corner of the net at 9:16.
The Golden Knights opened the scoring at 10:04 of the first period. Stone scored on a wrist shot from the slot after taking a pass from Rasmus Andersson.
Seattle’s Brandon Montour was whistled for hooking Jack Eichel just before the buzzer ending the period, giving Vegas a power play to start the second. The Golden Knights tallied 55 seconds into the middle frame as Eichel sent a pass from the left faceoff circle to the far post, where Stone tapped it in while battling Kraken defenseman Jamie Oleksiak for positioning.
The Kraken pulled within 2-1 on McCann’s slap shot past a screened Hill from the top of the right faceoff circle while on the man advantage at 17:54 of the second.
The Golden Knights restored their two-goal advantage on a 4-on-2 rush at 1:11 of the third. Mitch Marner’s centering pass went off Pavel Dorofeyev’s stick and then Howden’s skate on its way into the net.
–Field Level Media
![CSK vs DC, IPL 2026: How DC’s ‘yorker king’ Natarajan took the long road back to success There was a sense of familiarity when T. Natarajan walked into the press conference room at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai ahead of the IPL 2026 encounter between the Delhi Capitals (DC) and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The DC pacer had a wide smile on his face when he walked into a room full of journalists who had been witnesses to his rise from the grounds of Chinnapampatti in Salem to the Gabba in Brisbane. The smile turned into a chuckle when one of them prompted, “Tamil or Hindi?”The 35-year-old seemed to be in high spirits after a tough year and a half, during which he grappled with injury, playing just a solitary T20 game, which came in the IPL for the Capitals. “Last year, my collarbone was broken. Not many people know it. I was not 100% fit,” Natarajan said.“I think a lot about injury. It’s always there in the back of my mind. Even when there is soreness, the injury comes back to mind. The last year has been a struggle. I’ve had to motivate myself to come back from all these,” he added. The left-arm pacer was painfully frank about the mental toll these injuries had on him, but said the challenge of coming back from injury was in no way comparable to the stress he endured in his first year as a First-Class cricketer. Natarajan made his Tamil Nadu debut in a Ranji Trophy encounter against Bengal in Kolkata, after which he was called out for a suspect action by match officials. He remained out of contention for more than a year before a splendid showing in the maiden season of the Tamil Nadu Premier League brought him back into the TN setup and gave him his first IPL contract with the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings). “I’ve had some three to four surgeries so far. Physically and mentally, I’ve overcome a lot of challenges. The biggest challenge for me was coming back from being called for suspect action. Injuries are a part of the game, and it’s not in my hands, but this is different. I was mentally weak at the time, and coming back from that gave me the confidence that I can overcome any challenge, including injuries,” the pacer said. Natarajan credited the Capitals management for backing him doubtlessly during the previous IPL season. The franchise even took him to the UAE during the ILT20, where he trained along with the sister team, the Dubai Capitals. “The support staff and team management in DC have been in constant touch with me, monitoring my progress. [Hemang] Badani sir (DC head coach), often chats with me and we even met during the TNPL. I attended a lot of camps in Delhi, Surat and Hyderabad and also spent three weeks in Dubai. I even played in the DY Patil tournament in Mumbai as preparation, which helped me get back in rhythm,” he explained.ALSO READ: CSK vs DC, IPL 2026: ‘Criticism is fair when you’re not doing well,’ says Chennai Super Kings coach FlemingFitness is not the only aspect Natarajan worked on during his long layoff. The left-armer, who earned the moniker of ‘yorker king’ during his initial spell in the T20 showpiece event, has had to relearn the craft after constant interruptions. He says he has now upskilled himself by bowling yorkers by holding the seam. Earlier, he could only bowl cross-seam ones, he admits. “Bowling with the seam has been very difficult. But I had that question in mind: ‘Why can’t I do it?’ Ellaralayum panna mudiyum na [if everyone can do it], I can do it too. I have been able to naturally get some dip on it,” the DC quick said. The Tamil Nadu bowler explained that he continues to practice with the tennis ball at the T. Natarajan Cricket Academy, which he built in his hometown to perfect the yorker. “I started playing cricket with a tennis ball at the age of 20. Bowling with it helps me improve my confidence. I practised with a weightless ball, the red-coloured tennis ball and then even with the red ball. When I was at Sunrisers Hyderabad, Bhuvi bhai [Bhuvneshwar Kumar] said he practices with the red ball a lot during the off-season. I’ve been doing the same,” he quipped. After multiple false starts, the season has begun positively for Natarajan. He has picked up four wickets in three matches this season at an impressive economy rate of 7.90. He will hope he can take a further step forward when he steps into the hallowed turf at Chepauk, where he has spent countless hours in his inspirational journey to the top. Published on Apr 10, 2026 #CSK #IPL #DCs #yorker #king #Natarajan #long #road #success](https://i3.wp.com/ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/bqhszk/article70848493.ece/alternates/LANDSCAPE_1200/DSC_7539.JPG?ssl=1 "CSK vs DC, IPL 2026: How DC’s ‘yorker king’ Natarajan took the long road back to success There was a sense of familiarity when T. Natarajan walked into the press conference room at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai ahead of the IPL 2026 encounter between the Delhi Capitals (DC) and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The DC pacer had a wide smile on his face when he walked into a room full of journalists who had been witnesses to his rise from the grounds of Chinnapampatti in Salem to the Gabba in Brisbane. The smile turned into a chuckle when one of them prompted, “Tamil or Hindi?”The 35-year-old seemed to be in high spirits after a tough year and a half, during which he grappled with injury, playing just a solitary T20 game, which came in the IPL for the Capitals. “Last year, my collarbone was broken. Not many people know it. I was not 100% fit,” Natarajan said.“I think a lot about injury. It’s always there in the back of my mind. Even when there is soreness, the injury comes back to mind. The last year has been a struggle. I’ve had to motivate myself to come back from all these,” he added. The left-arm pacer was painfully frank about the mental toll these injuries had on him, but said the challenge of coming back from injury was in no way comparable to the stress he endured in his first year as a First-Class cricketer. Natarajan made his Tamil Nadu debut in a Ranji Trophy encounter against Bengal in Kolkata, after which he was called out for a suspect action by match officials. He remained out of contention for more than a year before a splendid showing in the maiden season of the Tamil Nadu Premier League brought him back into the TN setup and gave him his first IPL contract with the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings). “I’ve had some three to four surgeries so far. Physically and mentally, I’ve overcome a lot of challenges. The biggest challenge for me was coming back from being called for suspect action. Injuries are a part of the game, and it’s not in my hands, but this is different. I was mentally weak at the time, and coming back from that gave me the confidence that I can overcome any challenge, including injuries,” the pacer said. Natarajan credited the Capitals management for backing him doubtlessly during the previous IPL season. The franchise even took him to the UAE during the ILT20, where he trained along with the sister team, the Dubai Capitals. “The support staff and team management in DC have been in constant touch with me, monitoring my progress. [Hemang] Badani sir (DC head coach), often chats with me and we even met during the TNPL. I attended a lot of camps in Delhi, Surat and Hyderabad and also spent three weeks in Dubai. I even played in the DY Patil tournament in Mumbai as preparation, which helped me get back in rhythm,” he explained.ALSO READ: CSK vs DC, IPL 2026: ‘Criticism is fair when you’re not doing well,’ says Chennai Super Kings coach FlemingFitness is not the only aspect Natarajan worked on during his long layoff. The left-armer, who earned the moniker of ‘yorker king’ during his initial spell in the T20 showpiece event, has had to relearn the craft after constant interruptions. He says he has now upskilled himself by bowling yorkers by holding the seam. Earlier, he could only bowl cross-seam ones, he admits. “Bowling with the seam has been very difficult. But I had that question in mind: ‘Why can’t I do it?’ Ellaralayum panna mudiyum na [if everyone can do it], I can do it too. I have been able to naturally get some dip on it,” the DC quick said. The Tamil Nadu bowler explained that he continues to practice with the tennis ball at the T. Natarajan Cricket Academy, which he built in his hometown to perfect the yorker. “I started playing cricket with a tennis ball at the age of 20. Bowling with it helps me improve my confidence. I practised with a weightless ball, the red-coloured tennis ball and then even with the red ball. When I was at Sunrisers Hyderabad, Bhuvi bhai [Bhuvneshwar Kumar] said he practices with the red ball a lot during the off-season. I’ve been doing the same,” he quipped. After multiple false starts, the season has begun positively for Natarajan. He has picked up four wickets in three matches this season at an impressive economy rate of 7.90. He will hope he can take a further step forward when he steps into the hallowed turf at Chepauk, where he has spent countless hours in his inspirational journey to the top. Published on Apr 10, 2026 #CSK #IPL #DCs #yorker #king #Natarajan #long #road #success")
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