Backlund scores twice as Flames use 3-goal 3rd period to beat Kraken 4-2

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Mikael Backlund had two goals, and the Calgary Flames scored three times in the third period to beat the Seattle Kraken 4-2 on Thursday night.

Matt Coronato and Nazem Kadri also scored for the Flames, and Rasmus Andersson had three assists. Dustin Wolf had 21 saves to help Calgary improve to 6-1-1 in their last eight home games.

Chandler Stephenson and Kaapo Kakko scored for the Kraken, who have lost seven of eight (1-7-0) in December. Joey Daccord stopped 42 shots.

Kadri's power-play one-timer at 9:56 of the third tied the score 2-2.

Coronato gave the Flames the lead with 8:41 remaining as he got a pass from Andersson in the neutral zone and skated up and beat Daccord high on the glove side. Jonathan Huberdeau had an assist on the play for his 800th career point.

Backlund added an empty-netter with 8 seconds to go.

Stephenson gave Seattle a 1-0 lead 7:52 into the second period, going forehand to backhand and beating Wolf.

Andersson's pass deflected off Backlund's skate and past Daccord at 10:20 to tie it. It was Andersson's 200th career assist.

Kakko redirected a pass from Ryker Evans past Wolf on the power play with 2:44 to go in the middle period to give the Kraken a 2-1 lead.

Flames coach Ryan Huska said defenseman Jake Bean will undergo surgery and is out indefinitely.

Kraken: At San Jose on Saturday.

Flames: Host Vegas on Saturday.

AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/NHL

Seattle Kraken's Chandler Stephenson, centre, celebrates his goal with teammates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Calgary Flames, in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Seattle Kraken goalie Joey Daccord (35) hits the puck away from Calgary Flames' Jonathan Huberdeau, center top, during second-period NHL hockey game action in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Seattle Kraken's Shane Wright, left, and goalie Joey Daccord react as Calgary Flames' Mikael Backlund, right, celebrates his goal with teammate Blake Coleman, centre, during the second period of an NHL hockey game, in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Calgary Flames' Nazem Kadri celebrates after his goal during third-period NHL hockey game action against the Seattle Kraken in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

Calgary Flames' Matt Coronato, left, celebrates his goal with teammates Rasmus Andersson, center, and Jonathan Huberdeau during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand on Thursday helped launch a global effort to fight the spread of online scams that include criminal enterprises based largely in Southeast Asia estimated to bilk billions of dollars annually from victims around the world.

Thailand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime hosted a conference in Bangkok on Wednesday and Thursday culminating in the announcement of the new initiative called the Global Partnership Against Online Scams.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said in his keynote speech Wednesday that online scams “reveal a deeper problem — a collective vulnerability that no country can address alone.”

The partnership agreement signed by conference participants Thailand, Bangladesh, Nepal, Peru and the United Arab Emirates will include political commitment, law enforcement, victim protection and public awareness and cross-border collaboration, a statement said.

The conference received assistance from the private sector including internet giants Meta and TikTok.

Meta, the corporate owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, presented a threat report underlining the increased use of artificial intelligence by scam networks and protocols the company is using in its attempts to stop scams on its social media platforms.

Social media application TikTok signed on to the conference's closing statement, becoming one of the first private sector members of the partnership. The company on Thursday also said it had signed agreements with major investors to form a new TikTok U.S. joint venture.

TikTok, which primarily focuses on short-form videos is one of the world's most popular social media platforms but has faced challenges from various governments including the U.S. over its Chinese ownership, the European Union over transparency breaches, Canada regarding child protection protocols and data sharing in Indonesia.

Scam centers, which extort money from victims online through bogus investment schemes and faked loved interests, have proliferated across Southeast Asia. Scam victims lost between $18 billion and $37 billion in 2023, the UNODC estimates.

The importance of private partnerships in anti-scam initiatives was stressed throughout the two-day conference in Thailand's capital, which was attended by more than 300 participants from nearly 60 countries.

Brian Hanley, Asia-Pacific director of the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, which TikTok joined this month, explained it will be harder to combat criminal networks without “all the major stakeholders at the table."

“Scams are exploiting, not only transnational boundaries, but also the seams across various platforms from banks, telcos, to social media platforms,” Hanley said.

The alliance describes itself as a collective effort to combat the scam problem by governments, law enforcement, consumer protection organizations and companies involved in social media, cybersecrity and other aspects of the internet.

“TikTok is the one that we’re talking about today, but hopefully tomorrow everyone’s joining,” Hanley said. “We’re starting to get critical mass and momentum as everyone realizes it’s affecting their bottom lines and consumer trust.”

Recent scam center raids in Myanmar, victim repatriation issues in Thailand and the death of a South Korean student forced into scam work in Cambodia have spurred demand for regional action.

Cambodia is known as a hub for scam compounds and has been criticized by its neighbor Thailand, but the two countries are engaged in an armed conflict and Cambodia was not represented at the conference.

Similar pledges to fight scam networks were made by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the months leading up to the Bangkok conference.

They include the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime, which more than 70 countries signed in October in Vietnam. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called the document “a vow that no country, no matter their level of development, will be left defenseless against cybercrime.”

FILE - In this image provided by the Myanmar military on Oct. 19, 2025, soldiers stand next to Starlink satellite internet devices as they seize KK Park online scam center in Myawaddy township, Karen State, Myanmar. (The Myanmar Military True News Information Team via AP, File)

FILE - In this image provided by the Myanmar military on Oct. 19, 2025, soldiers raid the KK Park online scam center in Myawaddy township, Karen State, Myanmar. (The Myanmar Military True News Information Team via AP, File)

FILE - People from China, Vietnam and Ethiopia, believed to have been trafficked and forced to work in scam centers, sit with their faces masked while in detention after being released from the centers in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanaphon Wuttison, File)

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul delivers his keynote speech during the International Conference on the Global Partnership against Online Scams in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Anton L. Delgado)

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul answers journalists' questions during the International Conference on the Global Partnership against Online Scams in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Anton L. Delgado)