Regular Season, Game 13: Hurricanes v. St. Louis Blues

Back-to-backs are always rough and tonight will likely prove to be no different with the St. Louis Blues in town after the Canes dropped a 2-1 decision to the Philadelphia Flyers. The Canes will hit the ice with the same lineup in front of free-agent signing Alex Lyon, making his team debut, Lyon was brought up to back up Frederik Andersen in light of the injury to Raanta against Florida. He'll get the starting duties tonight in the second half of the back-to-back with Andersen taking the loss last night. For the St. Louis Blues, a familiar face will be returning to Raleigh for the first time. Justin Faulk will play his first game in PNC Arena since the Boston series in 2019 after his return was delayed due to COVID. This will be the first game in a back-to-back for the Blues, so backup goalie Joel Hofer gets the nod tonight with Binnginton expected to start against the Oilers tomorrow night. St. Louis is currently pacing the Central Division with the Minnesota Wild at 8-2-2 and coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to Nashville on Thursday night. There are no expected lineup changes for the Canes, with Necas out again tonight with an illness and Nino, Pesce, and Raanta still on the shelf with their injuries. They didn't generate enough offense when they got the chance to last night so no matter who the goalie is tonight for the Blues, the offense needs to get it going quick.

1st Period

Scoring

(CAR) 1:15- Brady Skjei (1) (assisted by Sebastian Aho (8) & Andrei Svechnikov (9))

Thoughts

I believe the score should be 2-0 because I don't think St. Louis had possession of the puck before Seth Jarvis put the puck in the net. I understand why the whistle was blown since the puck was in the middle of a scramble, but I didn't think there was enough there. Regardless, Brady Skjei finally got on the board after his disallowed goal against Tampa Bay in overtime on Tuesday night. I thought the Canes were the better team for most of the period but got too sloppy with the puck around when Svechnikov took the high-sticking penalty. As much as the game could be 2-0, it also very well could be 2-2 or worse because of all the good chances the Blues got, but Alex Lyon looked really good in the first period. He made some huge saves towards the end of the period to keep the Blues off the board. I jokingly said before the game that the first to ten is going to win this game, but this might be more of a defensive battle than I anticipated. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 3:44- Sebastian Aho (6) PP (assisted by Tony DeAngelo (10) & Andrei Svechnikov (10))

(STL) 12:30- Pavel Buchnevich (4) PP (assisted by Jordan Kyrou (10) & Robert Thomas (10))

Thoughts

Way too many penalties from the Canes led to way too many chances for the Blues and they were eventually able to capitalize. It was a big special teams period for the Canes, as Sebastian Aho gave the Canes a 2-0 lead on a one-timer before Pavel Buchnevich buried a rebound on a St. Louis power play to cut it to one goal. The Canes had a few chances to make it 3-0, Teuvo Teravainen missing the net while short-handed being a big one, but the Canes will be happy, not satisfied, to take a one-goal lead into the intermission. Alex Lyon has been huge while the Canes have been a man down, making some crucial saves and getting the help from the post late in the period. The Canes really need to stay out of the box because St. Louis has been moving the puck well and getting some high-danger chances. I'll take a clean period and a goal or two for the Canes to ice this one away. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(STL) 0:48- Vladimir Tarasenko (6) (assisted by Ivan Barbashev (5) & Robert Thomas (11))

(CAR) 17:03- Brendan Smith (1) (assisted by Tony DeAngelo (11)) & Jordan Martinook (3))

Thoughts

The script looked as if it might repeat itself when Vladimir Tarasenko snuck home a rebound less than a minute into the period to tie the games. It didn't stop there though as the Blues continued to press in the early stages of the period. Alex Lyon kept them out of the net and the Canes helped him out by staying out of the box. They played a clean period and were eventually rewarded from the most unlikely of sources. Brendan Smith wired home a shot from the point with Jordan Martinook in front on Joel Hofer to give the Canes the lead late. St. Louis opted to pull the goalie early, but the defense stood tall and were able to hold down the fort to earn a hard-fought two points. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Tony DeAngelo (2 Primary Assists)

Major props to Brendan Smith for scoring the game-winner and it all happened thanks to DeAngelo's point-to-point pass that allowed Smith to fire it home. He also made a great pass to set up Sebastian Aho on the power play to give the Canes a two-goal lead early in the second period. He's now the team-leader in assists with 11 and his ability to create offense has been a major addition so far this season.

Second Star- Sebastian Aho (PP Goal, Assist)

Aho was the benefactor of DeAngelo's pass in the second period, as I mentioned, but he added an equally impressive pass in the first period to set up the first goal of the game from Brady Skjei. He seemed to be all over the ice tonight. He'll sport a nice scar after taking a puck up high in the second period, but he came out on fire after that and helped give the Canes a decent cushion early. 

First Star- Alex Lyon (27 Saves on 29 Shots in Canes' Debut)

It may not have been the flashiest of performances and it wasn't a shutout in his first start, but it was Lyon that kept the Blues out of the net during their push after tying the game that allowed the Canes to eventually get the win. No matter how it happens, a win is a win and tonight Lyon was strong. He stayed calm and was able to guide the Canes to the win before heading west. 

Final Thoughts

I was worried the same story as last night was about to manifest itself again tonight, but it was the Canes who came out on top tonight against a high-quality team. The Canes got two goals from the blueline tonight, both scoring their first goals of the season, and multi-point performances from DeAngelo, Ago, and Svechnikov. It's amazing what happens when you stay out of the box and play almost an entire period at even strength, It allowed the Canes to play their game and come out with two points. While tonight's win was great, it's the last home win they'll have for a while as they hit the road, The Canes will play their next six games on the road, playing on the west coast beginning Tuesday night and concluding their trip in Philadelphia before heading back to Raleigh. This is going to be a tough stretch of games, as every west coast trip is, so the hope is that some of the guys that have been hurt can get back into the lineup at some point during the trip. Lyon is third goalie to earn a win this season and all three are new to the team, I didn't think they played their best game tonight, but it was the contributions from the unlikeliest of sources in Brendan Smith and Alex Lyon that earned the Canes their 11th win tonight.