Thoughts From My Couch

Last Game : The Carolina Hurricanes couldn't complete their weekend sweep on Sunday with the Montreal Canadiens in town. The script read similarly to their loss in Montreal on Tuesday. The Canes got on the board first when Andrei Svechnikov clapped a shot over Jakub Dobes' shoulder to get them off to a quick start. They were the far better team in the first period, but it all crumbled down in the second. Nick Suzuki tied it early in the second. Cole Caufield snapped one late in the period to give Montreal the lead. Suzuki added another in the final seconds of the middle frame on the power play. This would prove to be more than enough. The Canes continued to struggle for offense against Dobes, who stopped 34 shots in a 3-1 win for the Canadiens to complete their season sweep of Carolina. Injury Report Sean Walker : He collided with Juraj Slafkovsky during Sunday's loss, but it's unclear the severity of his injury, or if there is one to potentially keep him out. The Oppon...

The Hurricanes already got a good result this weekend, beating the Devils last night, 5-2. They played a very good game. However, the one everyone had circled was this one between two teams playing back-to-back. The Canadiens won last night, too, beating Nashville, 4-1, behind a dominant effort from their second line. For the Canes, there was a ton on the line. It was a chance to strengthen its division lead, shrink its magic number, and get a little revenge for Tuesday's loss in Montreal. For the Canadiens, this game meant plenty as well. With Buffalo and Tampa Bay refusing to allow them in the Top 2 of the Atlantic Division, the Habs needed to complete their season sweep of the Canes to continue their momentum into their clash on Tuesday with the Lightning. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (8:37-PP)- Andrei Svechnikov (26) (Seth Jarvis (32) & Sebastian Aho (49)) 2nd Period MTL (6:18)- Nick Suzuki (25) (Cole Caufield (33) & Lane Hutson (61)) MTL (17:32)- Cole Caufield (46) (...

Last Game : The Carolina Hurricanes got back into the win column on Saturday night, completing their season sweep of the New Jersey Devils. The Devils got on the board first, with Timo Meier finishing a 2-on-1 late in the first period to break the ice. It was pretty much all Carolina from there. Just past the halfway point in the contest, Nikolaj Ehlers scored on the power play on a wicked shot to the top corner, tying things up at one. Shortly after, Jackson Blake showed patience with the puck, waiting for a defender to slide out of the way before sliding his shot past Jacob Markstrom. Just under 90 seconds later, Jordan Staal tipped a shot under Markstrom's arm, pushing the lead to two. In his return, Shayne Gostisbehere got the dagger, intercepting a pass in the neutral zone and calling his own number with a snipe past Markstrom's glove. Seth Jarvis put the Devils away for good, scoring his 30th goal of the season while short-handed into the empty net. Evgenii Dadonov scored...

The Hurricanes' magic number continues to shrink with each passing day, but there's no more reliable team than your own this time of the year. The group begins a big weekend with a division battle, the final meeting of the season between the Canes and the New Jersey Devils. The team gets a big weapon back into the lineup as Shayne Gostisbehere plays for the first time since the beginning of the month in Edmonton. He returns to a red-hot power play and a defensive partner who has been a big part of it. The Devils don't have a ton to play for this late in the season, but they wouldn't mind playing the spoiler for the Canes in their bid for the division crown. This has the chance to be a tone-setting contest ahead of tomorrow's battle against the Canadiens, but there's no bigger game than the one right in front of them.  Scoring Summary 1st Period NJD (17:06)- Timo Meier (22) (Dawson Mercer (20) & Nico Hischier (30)) 2nd Period CAR (10:10-PP)- Nikolaj Ehlers (2...

Last Game : The Carolina Hurricanes ended their three-game road trip on a sour note, falling to the Montreal Canadiens. The Canes got off to a quick start, scoring on the power play for the fourth straight game. Nikolaj Ehlers' attempted pass to Seth Jarvis redirected off a Montreal stick and into the net, getting the group off to a quick start. Then, Jordan Staal found himself alone in the slot with the puck. He snapped it over Jakub Dobes' shoulder to double the lead. This is where the fun times ended. Oliver Kapanen tipped a shot from the point to cut into the Canes' lead before the end of the opening period. Cole Caufield was in the right spot to pop home a rebound to tie the game before his tipped chance deflected off Juraj Slafkovsky to give Montreal the lead. Ivan Demidov capitalized on a misplay by K'Andre Miller, skating the puck the other way and scoring on a breakaway to put the game away for good late in the third. Jake Evans added the empty-net goal to secu...

The Hurricanes and the Canadiens don't like each other very much. If anything, the fans probably don't like each other more than the players do, but that's beside the point. On Tuesday, they met for the first time in almost three months, and a lot has changed since then. While points are valuable for both sides, the Canadiens are far more desperate than the Canes right now, especially with a playoff berth far from secure, as of now. However, the Hurricanes still have plenty to fight for. They have a good lead in the division, but that could disappear. They are locked into a battle for the #1 seed in the East with Buffalo, trying to secure home ice. The Presidents' Trophy isn't completely out of the picture yet, either, though it feels like it's Colorado's to lose. With two very dangerous offenses clashing, the Canes needed to be sharp at Centre Bell. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (2:36-PP)- Nikolaj Ehlers (22) (Andrei Svechnikov (36) & Seth Jarvis (31))...