Thoughts From My Couch

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes got their three-game road trip started in Toronto on Friday night. During a slow and uneventful opening 20 minutes, the Maple Leafs struck first, scoring on a Dakota Joshua rebound goal to get the party started. The second period was when things started to go the Hurricanes' way. After drawing a double-minor for high-sticking, the Canes' power play drew them even. Seth Jarvis threw a shot at the net that Jordan Staal tipped past Joseph Woll to tie it up. Eric Robinson, whose face drew the power play, also drew a penalty shot for himself, and he buried it past Woll's glove to put the Canes in front. John Tavares scored a soft goal to tie it at two, but the Canes ended the middle frame in front once more. K'Andre Miller brought pressure to Morgan Rielly and forced him to turn it over, creating a short-handed breakaway for himself. Miller made no mistake, freezing Woll and regaining the Canes' one-goal advantage. William Nylander scor...

It's time for another road trip, but the Carolina Hurricanes aren't straying from their time zone, so that in itself is a win. The Canes begin by heading to the center of the hockey universe to battle the Toronto Maple Leafs, who look very different from the last time they faced the Canes in December. They're without their captain, Auston Matthews, who had season-ending knee surgery this week. They also traded three forwards at the break, allowing a few others to step into the lineup. Still, there is no shortage of top players at the top of the lineup, anchored by the trio of William Nylander, Matthews Knies, and John Tavares. The Canes have played a few very interesting games over the last week, including their wild back-and-forth affair with the Penguins on Wednesday. They haven't put together a 60-minute effort in a good bit, so it would be nice to get that from them tonight. Scoring Summary 1st Period TOR (11:48)- Dakota Joshua (9) (Bo Groulx (2) & Mattias Macce...

Last Game: Wednesday night in Raleigh featured a barnburner between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Canes got off to an early start when Jordan Martinook buried a short-handed breakaway to break the ice. The Penguins got it back midway through the second when a returning Sidney Crosby slid it five-hole on Frederik Andersen. Late in the period, Jackson Blake did the same thing to Stuart Skinner after a power play expired, giving the Canes a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes. No one was prepared for the insanity that the third period brought. Aided by a carry-over penalty and an early trip to make it a 5-on-3, Erik Karlsson hammered a shot off the post and in to tie it. The Stankoven line got it back on a beautiful passing play that Taylor Hall finished. However, a fanned shot by Jaccob Slavin ended with Bryan Rust burying a breakaway to tie it at three. Once again, the Canes retook the lead after Logan Stankoven scored on the power play. Not only did the Penguins tie it...

If the Hurricanes were hoping for an easy ride back into town against the Penguins tonight, they'd be sorely mistaken. Last week, they barely squeaked out a shootout victory after blowing a multi-goal lead in the final three minutes. That was without two of the Penguins' top players in the lineup. Tonight, both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin took the ice for Pittsburgh, hoping to shrink the Canes' lead in the division further to close their road trip. The Canes didn't put together a great effort on Tuesday in Columbus, but they've been very good against the division and the top teams in the league this season, giving us a glimmer of something that they'd be able to turn it around tonight. For their sake, I certainly hope they can. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (9:36-SH)- Jordan Martinook (10) (Jordan Staal (13) & Jaccob Slavin (4)) 2nd Period PIT (9:57)- Sidney Crosby (28) (Rickard Rakell (20) & Erik Karlsson (43)) CAR (16:51)- Jackson Blake (20) (Tayl...

Last Game: There wasn't much to like about the Carolina Hurricanes' effort in Columbus last night. The Canes immediately found themselves on the wrong side of the game after Mason Marchment scored on the power play early in the first period. The Blue Jackets' man advantage struck again during the final minute of the frame, with Charlie Coyle burying one past Brandon Bussi. The Canes showed signs of life midway through the second, with Nicolas Deslauriers dropping the gloves and Andrei Svechnikov scoring during a 4-on-4 soon after. However, Danton Heinen scored a controversial goal to restore Columbus's two-goal lead, and Denton Mateychuk scored less than a minute later to extend it to three before the end of the second. Mathieu Olivier added one more in the third to complete a 5-1 win for the Blue Jackets. Injury Report Shayne Gostisbehere: He didn't play on Tuesday, and all signs point to him missing tonight's contest as well, with a chance of playing on the up...

If there was ever a victory for the Hurricanes to build upon, Saturday's triumph in Tampa Bay would be at the very top of the list. Outside of a few sketchy minutes late in the second period, the Canes were the better team against their fellow conference powerhouse, allowing them to maintain a healthy lead in the division and their small lead over Buffalo for the top seed in the East. With a divisional back-to-back staring at them next, the Canes hoped to continue their general mastery of their division foes in Columbus on Tuesday. The Blue Jackets have been one of the hottest teams in the league over the last two months, thanks to a coaching change that has turned their season back around. With a playoff spot within their grasp, the Canes' failure to match their desperation would likely signal disaster. Maybe, having a new body in the lineup would help matters. Scoring Summary 1st Period CBJ (5:25-PP)- Mason Marchment (16) (Charlie Coyle (36) & Adam Fantilli (29)) CBJ (19:...