Regular Season, Game 44: Hurricanes at Ottawa Senators

24 hours removed from a tough overtime loss to Toronto, the Hurricanes are back at it in their second game back from the break. They remain north of the border for tonight's contest against an Ottawa team that has given them fits this season. Last night's loss for the Canes broke a four-game win streak, but they were able to secure a point. The game was very back and forth for the Canes. They led after the first, trailed after two, then led midway through the third before allowing the tying goal late in the period and the overtime winner to Mitch Marner. No word on the status of Teuvo Teravainen yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if he's out again tonight with Jesperi Kotkaniemi also out with COVID. If Turbo is still out, I'd imagine the Canes will roll with the same forward group as last night, though nothing has been confirmed. The only real changes are Antti Raanta getting the start with Andersen playing last night and Ethan Bear drawing in for Ian Cole. This will be the third and final meeting between these two teams this season. This is the second visit to Ottawa in just under two weeks. The Canes avenged their loss from earlier in the season by forcing overtime with a late goal in the third period, then winning their first shootout of the season back on January 27. 

The Senators sputtered into the All-Star Break by losing three of their final four games. They also played last night, beating New Jersey at home 4-1. Matt Murray stopped 32 shots and the Senators scored four unanswered goals, including two from Nick Holden and Adam Gaudette just nine seconds apart in the second period, to win last night. With Murray playing last night, Anton Forsberg has been confirmed for tonight's game. He was the starter when Ottawa visited Raleigh in early December, stopping 47 shots in the Senators' 3-2 win. Drake Batherson and Josh Norris both remain out of the lineup for Ottawa, but they still have some feisty players to lean on. With both teams playing last night, I'm not quite sure what to expect with this one. It'll likely be a close one like the other two games were, but the Canes might also be a little angry after not finishing the job in Toronto. The Canes require a nice bounce-back game before they return to the United States. 

1st Period

Scoring

(OTT) 1:11- Brady Tkachuk (13) (assisted by Tim Stutzle (14) & Nick Holden (4))

(OTT) 8:27- Alex Formenton (10) (assisted by Connor Brown (16) & Nick Paul (5))

Thoughts

I would love someone to explain to me why the Ottawa Senators are such a hard team for the Canes to play. They scored on their first shot after the puck deflects in off Sebastian Aho, then scored a little later on a great feed from behind the net. There was nothing Antti Raanta could do about either of those goals. It could've been 3-0 had he not stretched his pad out and robbed Adam Gaudette shortly after the first goal. It falls on the defense bending to the point of breaking. The Canes didn't feel like they generated too many high danger chances until late in the period. They took two penalties after the Sens went up 2-0 and got lucky pucks kept hitting the posts. Austin Watson has drawn two very soft calls and I wouldn't be surprised if someone steps up to him at some point. It looked like Sebastian Aho had made it 2-1 as time expired, but the puck didn't cross before the clock hit all zeros, so it's still 2-0 and Ottawa is in complete control of this game. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(OTT) 0:40- Brady Tkachuk (14) (assisted by Tim Stutzle (15) & Nick Holden (5))

(OTT) 2:54- Chris Tierney (6) (unassisted)

Thoughts

The Canes started the period just as bad as they played in the first period. Ottawa scored two quick goals in the first three minutes, highlighted by a bad turnover from Andrei Svechnikov to set up the fourth goal. From that point, things settled down a little. The Canes had a full power play that almost converted. Svechnikov had a shot blocked with a wide-open net, then missed a shot wide not too long after. We had a shot hit the post from Brady Skjei. The chances were there for the Canes throughout the period, but Anton Forsberg has stood tall for another period. I don't know what the problem is other than the fact they aren't scoring. There are only 20 minutes left and it'll take a minor miracle to come back and even force overtime, but I hope the team can build off the good things that happened in the period to make this a respectable game. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 2:07- Andrei Svechnikov (17) (assisted by Jaccob Slavin (22))

(CAR) 13:54- Brendan Smith (3) (assisted by Nino Niederreiter (9) & Jordan Staal (10))

(CAR) 18:48- Vincent Trocheck (12) (assisted by Tony DeAngelo (28))

Thoughts

This is the kind of period the Canes had been looking for all night, but it was just too little too late. They absolutely made a game of it though. Andrei Svechnikov atoned for his mistakes by finally cracking Forsberg just over two minutes into the period. The Canes killed their fifth penalty of the night and then failed to convert on their fourth power play. Brendan Smith blasted a puck home from the point on his birthday to make it a two-goal game. Vincent Trocheck brought the team within one by sniping a shot home through traffic. The momentum had swung way back into the Canes' favor, but they dug themselves into too big a hole early to make the comeback possible. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Jaccob Slavin (Assist, 25:23 TOI)

We gush over Slavin's defensive abilities every night, but I thought he played a strong all-around game tonight. He's a workhorse on both ends and tonight was no exception. He led the team in TOI like always and led the defense in shots. He picked up the only assist on the Svechnikov goal after putting the puck on Forsberg to be cleaned up and stuffed into the net. 

Second Star- Nino Niederreiter (Assist)

This most recent stretch for Nino Niederreiter has been some of his best hockey of the season. After scoring last night, he sets up a goal tonight. While the pass was likely intended for Jesper Fast, it found Smith for a blast from the point instead. He's working hard for that contract and I'd be jumping all over trying to re-sign him if I were the front office. 

First Star- Jordan Staal (Assist, 6 hits)

I saw a comment tonight that Staal needs to be benched because he isn't scoring. While he's on a bit of a goal drought, there are other things he does with his game that are major for this team outside of being the captain. He provided the net front for Smith's goal and picked up an assist in the process. He also laid six hits and won 73% of his faceoffs. He's going to score eventually, but I'll take a game like this from him any night.

Final Thoughts

The good news for the Canes is that they won't have to face the Senators anymore this season. They fell behind way too early and couldn't generate enough until the third period, but by then it was too late. They almost did enough to force overtime, but Anton Forsberg just has their number. In two starts against the Canes, Forsberg has faced almost 100 shots and only allowed four goals. I don't put this loss on Antti Raanta at all. There wasn't much he could do on any of the goals, though he'd probably tell you he should've had at least one of them. The penalty kill was perfect, while the power play was shut out. The Skjei-Pesce pair had a rough night, both finishing with a (-3) for the night. Hopefully, the Canes can build on this third period as they head to Boston for another game against a very tough Atlantic opponent. They lost tonight as well, so you know they'll be hungry for a win. The Bruins are never a fun team to face, though the Canes have seen some success against them in two meetings this season. The Canes really need a win to salvage a road trip that has gotten off to a bad start. Thursday night in Boston is a great time to do that.