Regular Season, Game 12: Hurricanes v. Philadelphia Flyers

The health of the Canes seems to be at the forefront heading into this one. Both Jesper Fast and Martin Necas have missed practice this week due to a non-COVID illness. Fast was on the ice and is expected to play tonight, but Necas appears to be out for the game. It's a shame for Necas because he was playing really good hockey, so hopefully missing tonight and possibly tomorrow night doesn't hurt his momentum. In his place steps Josh Leivo to make his Canes' debut on the fourth line. With the line shuffling also comes the first look at top-line Seth Jarvis, playing with Svechnikov and Aho. On a more positive note, the team is on fire and coming home after winning two of three games on the road. Tonight's game with Philadelphia is the first game in a back-to-back that will conclude with St. Louis before the team heads out for a west coast swing. The Flyers lost 3-0 to Toronto on Wednesday night and Carter Hart is expected to make the start tonight opposite Frederik Andersen. Kevin Hayes and Ryan Ellis will both be out of the lineup tonight, but that doesn't mean this team doesn't have some serious firepower. This is the first division game the team has played in a few weeks. These are important points against a team that is a little desperate to score. 

1st Period

Scoring

None

Thoughts

The Canes were by far the better team in the period, which is why the referees getting involved in the game felt like a major problem. Each team did their part in earning a power play, only to take a penalty to negate the advantage they'd earned. The period changed at the very end when Vincent Trocheck was called for tripping while it was 4-on-4 after Travis Sanehim goes down, but it isn't upon looking at the replay that you realize that Sanheim's skate made contact with the boards and he went down as a result of that. They tacked on an extra two minutes either on Trocheck or Rod Brind'Amour, both of whom objected to the call and rightfully so. The Canes spent most of the period in the offensive zone, with the Aho line taking center stage. They make moving the puck look effortless and they had quite a few chances. Josh Leivo also looked good in his limited time on the ice in the period. There weren't too many negatives to take away from the period. The Hurricanes just need to put the puck in the net. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 11:14- Steven Lorentz (2) (assisted by Jesper Fast (2) & Jordan Staal (4))

Thoughts

The ice has finally been broken as Steven Lorentz steps up to the plate and knocks one home to finally solve Carter Hart. Everything about it was legal and the Canes looked to be in the driver's seat. They looked to be in an even better spot when Seth Jarvis scoots a puck past Hart, but it's determined the play was offsides, denying him his second goal in his career. There were a lot of odd-man rushes, especially for the Flyers, in the second period, but neither goalie gave an inch. The Canes killed the extended penalty to open the period, and the Flyers are 13 seconds away from killing consecutive penalties late in the period. I thought Philadelphia looked much better in the period, but it still felt like the Canes were the more dangerous team for most of the period. Things have gotten physical between the two teams, so the third period should be a real slugfest. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(PHI) 4:06- Joel Farabee (4) (assisted by Scott Laughton (1) & Rasmus Risolainen (2))

(PHI) 10:20- Zack MacEwen (1) (assisted by Justin Braun (7) & Patrick Brown (1))

Thoughts

This one stings because the Canes were the better team for two periods, but the Flyers came out on fire in the third. They were the benefactors of the lively boards as Joel Farabee sneaks a shot past Andersen, then Zack McEwen deflects a puck past Andersen to give the Flyers the lead just over halfway through the period. The Canes had their chances to score, but Carter Hart took over in the third period and kept the Canes out of the net. They had a couple good chances short-handed, though Martinook and Stepan aren't exactly the two best options for a 2-on-1 down by a goal. They pushed late to try and get the tying goal, but they couldn't score, losing on home ice for the first time this season.

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Jaccob Slavin (22:52 TOI, 5:07 SH TOI, 3 Blocks)

Slavin is "Mr. Reliable" on the back end for the Canes and I thought he was especially noticeable tonight. He's always a staple on the penalty kill and he helped to lead a perfect penalty kill tonight. He also put his body on the line, tying with Skjei for the most blocks for the Canes tonight with three. Along with Ethan Bear, they shut down their opposition all night long.

Second Star- Jesper Fast (Assist)

Though it's early in the season, Fast is easily one of the biggest surprise performers to start the season. He picked up the primary assist on the team's only goal tonight, soft-tossing the puck to Lorentz to be batted into the net. He seems to provide a spark whenever he's on the ice and tonight was no different. His game has been very big at key moments and he was big tonight on the goal. 

First Star- Steven Lorentz (Scored Canes' Only Goal)

Playing Lorentz with Staal and Fast seemed to do something for his confidence because he was all over the place tonight. He showed amazing hand-eye coordination by batting the puck past Carter Hart to beat Hart for the only time tonight. Though it missed the net, he also had a head-hunter that just missed Hart's head in the third period. Lorentz was on a mission and I like what I saw tonight. 

Final Thoughts

Make no mistakes about it, Carter Hart stole his game for the Flyers to get them the two points tonight and hand the Canes their second loss of the season. This was not a bad game from the Canes by any means, they just came out a little flat to start the third and the Flyers took advantage of it. I thought Frederik Andersen played well, though he probably wants the Farabee goal back. I also really liked Seth Jarvis playing with Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho. The ease they move the puck with is mesmerizing. There wasn't too much to dislike from tonight's performance. The power play seems to be in the midst of a cold spell, going 0-for-5 tonight, but the penalty kill was perfect, killing all five Flyers' opportunities. It comes down to putting the puck in the net and the Canes just didn't do it enough tonight. Again, all credit to Carter Hart for the way he played tonight because he was spectacular. There isn't much time to rest as the team turns around tomorrow night and plays the St. Louis Blues. It'll be interesting to see if Necas is good to go tomorrow night and who might be in the net. The Canes are setting out on a long road trip out west, so it wouldn't be crazy to think that Alex Lyon could make his Canes' debut tomorrow night against a Western Conference opponent. Regardless, it'll be about having a short memory after tonight's loss and getting the job done tomorrow night.