BOSTON (AP) — Marat Khusnutdinov and Viktor Arvidsson scored in the first 3:45 of the game, and the Boston Bruins held on to beat the Seattle Kraken 4-2 on Thursday night after raising Zdeno Chara's No. 33 to the rafters.
Mark Kastelic added a short-handed goal in the second period, and Jeremy Swayman stopped 26 shots for Boston, which swept a five-game homestand for the first time since 2019 and won for the seventh time in eight games. David Pastrnak scored an empty-netter with 15 seconds left after the Kraken picked up back-to-back penalties, then pulled the goalie to play five-on-four.
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Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara speaks during his number retirement ceremony before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins' Viktor Arvidsson is congratulated at the bench after scoring against the Seattle Kraken during the first period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman makes a save as defenseman Nikita Zadorov and Seattle Kraken's Frederick Gaudreau look for the rebound during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins' Mark Kastelic eyes a loose puck as he gets past Seattle Kraken's Matty Beniers during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Seattle Kraken's Chandler Stephenson deflects the puck past Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman for a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Chandler Stephenson and Eeli Tolvanen scored, and Joey Daccord made 20 saves for the Kraken, who have lost four of their last five games.
The Bruins began the night by honoring Chara, the Hall of Fame defenseman who was the captain of their 2011 Stanley Cup championship team. Hall of Famers Bobby Orr and current Bruins president Cam Neely were among those who took part in the ceremony, which ended with Chara's children raising his number to the TD Garden rafters.
Khusnutdinov took a long pass from Charlie McAvoy, skated in on Daccord and slipped in a backhand to make it 1-0 54 seconds into the game. Less than three minutes later, Arvidsson tried to center the puck to Casey Mittelstadt, but it was deflected into the net by Seattle's Jordan Eberle.
The Kraken called an early timeout, leaving them without one when they might have needed it down two players in the final minute.
After Stephenson made it a one-goal game, Kastelic poked the puck away from Kraken forward Matty Beniers and skated in on Daccord for the short-handed goal that made it 3-1.
The Kraken visit Utah on Saturday.
The Bruins visit Chicago on Saturday.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara speaks during his number retirement ceremony before an NHL hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Seattle Kraken Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins' Viktor Arvidsson is congratulated at the bench after scoring against the Seattle Kraken during the first period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman makes a save as defenseman Nikita Zadorov and Seattle Kraken's Frederick Gaudreau look for the rebound during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Boston Bruins' Mark Kastelic eyes a loose puck as he gets past Seattle Kraken's Matty Beniers during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
Seattle Kraken's Chandler Stephenson deflects the puck past Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman for a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market is recovering Wednesday from two days of punishing swings after oil prices stopped spiking and reports gave encouraging updates on the economy.
The S&P 500 rose 0.7% in morning trading and is on track to claw back the majority of its loss since the war with Iran began. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 232 points, or 0.5%, as of 10:50 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.2% higher.
The strength followed a scary start to Wednesday, when South Korea’s Kospi stock index plunged 12.1% for its worst day in history. Uncertainty about the war has sent prices in financial markets careening up and down hour by hour this week, with most taking their cues from what the price of oil is doing.
But oil prices moderated through the day as trading moved westward from South Korea and the rest of Asia to Europe. After briefly topping $84 per barrel, the price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, eased back to $81.02, a 0.5% dip. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell 0.5% to $74.15.
Stocks also got a boost from increased hopes for the U.S. economy.
One report said growth for U.S. businesses in the real estate, financial and other services industries accelerated last month at the fastest pace since the summer of 2022. Encouragingly for inflation, it also suggested that prices for such businesses are increasing at a slower rate, at least before the war with Iran began.
A second report suggested U.S. employers outside of the government picked up their hiring last month by more than economists expected. That could be an encouraging signal for the more comprehensive report coming Friday from the U.S. government about the strength of the job market.
In financial markets, worries are centered on how long the war with Iran could last, how high inflation will go because of more expensive oil and how much corporate profits will sink because of it.
“I think the Iran situation is getting out of hand, and I think that U.S. President Donald Trump miscalculated enormously,” said Francis Lun, CEO of Venturesmart Asia. “The situation is very grim.”
But the U.S. stock market also has a history of shaking off military conflicts in the Middle East relatively quickly, though that comes with a caveat that oil prices don’t jump too high. That has some professional investors suggesting patience through the volatility, at least when it comes to financial markets.
On Wall Street, a mix of companies helped drive the market higher.
Stocks enmeshed in the crypto industry climbed as bitcoin's price rebounded back toward $73,000. Coinbase Global jumped 14.1%, and Robinhood Markets rallied 8.2%.
Retailers and travel companies also strengthened with hopes that a solid economy and an easing for jumps in gasoline prices will mean their customers may have more to spend. Ross Stores rose 6.8%, and Expedia Group climbed 3.1%.
Big Tech stocks, meanwhile, were some of the strongest forces lifting the market. Nvidia added 1.2%, and Amazon rose 3.3%. Because they’re among the biggest stocks in the U.S. market in terms of total value, their movements carry more weight on the S&P 500.
In stock markets abroad, indexes rebounded in Europe following sharp drops in Asia. France’s CAC 40 rose 1.2%, and Germany’s DAX climbed 1.8%. That followed losses of 2% for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and 3.6% for Japan’s Nikkei 225, along with Seoul's historic plunge.
In the bond market, Treasury yields ticked higher after jumping early in the week with worries about worsening inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.08% from 4.06% late Tuesday.
Tuesday's strong reports on the economy were welcome news for the Federal Reserve, whose job it is to keep the U.S. job market healthy and inflation low. The Fed’s job has become more difficult because of the jump in oil prices, which is pushing upward on already high inflation.
The Fed could keep interest rates high to keep a lid on inflation. But high interest rates would also keep borrowing costs more expensive for U.S. households and companies, grinding down on the economy.
The central bank had earlier been on track to resume its cuts to interest rates later this year, in hopes of giving a boost to the job market and economy. Because of the war, traders are pushing back their forecasts for when the Fed could begin cutting rates again.
AP Writers Matt Ott, Kim Tong-hyung and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.
Financial information is displayed on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Anthony Spina works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Anthony Confusione works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
A dealer walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer talks on the phone at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near a screen showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A person walks by an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm in Tokyo Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (Masanori Kumagai/Kyodo News via AP)
