Regular Season, Game 46: Hurricanes at Minnesota Wild

The end of a four-game road trip is upon us as the Hurricanes travel to the "State of Hockey" for a showdown with the Minnesota Wild. This is the first meeting between these two teams in over two years. The last meeting was on December 7, 2019, in Raleigh, a 6-2 win for the Canes headlined by a three-goal, five-point performance from Sebastian Aho and three assists from Teuvo Teravainen. The last time the team visited Minnesota was a month before their game in Raleigh, a 4-3 win in overtime for the Canes, a game I remember much clearer than I thought I did, with Andrei Svechnikov getting the game-winner in extra time. Carolina is coming off a strong bounce-back game against the Boston Bruins. Aho scored twice and Teravainen and Svechnikov recorded three points each in a 6-0 shutout win for Frederik Andersen and the Canes. The good news is that Jesperi Kotkaniemi has exited COVID protocol and has joined the team in Minnesota. He's expected to start tonight in place of Steven Lorentz, who'll be the healthy scratch for the forward group. Andersen will start again for the Canes after his perfect performance in Boston. The win over Boston salvaged what had been a tough return since the All-Star break, with back-to-back losses in Toronto and Ottawa. They've earned three of six points to this point with two more hanging in the balance tonight. 

The Wild are currently third in the Central Division, just one point behind Nashville for second place. They played their first game after the break on Tuesday night, a 2-0 loss to Winnipeg on the road. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak, but they've been on fire since losing in the Winter Classic to Minnesota on New Year's Day. They've gone 9-1-1 in their last 11 games after suffering through a five-game losing streak in December. Tuesday's loss didn't come without its controversy. Marcus Foligno will be a notable omission from the lineup tonight after being suspended for two games for kneeing Adam Lowry during their second fight of the night in the third period. Even without Foligno, this team has some serious star power and no star shines brighter than the reigning Calder Trophy winner, Kirill Kaprizov. He leads the team in goals (19), assists (34), and points (53) and was one of two All-Star representatives in his second season. Their other All-Star, Cam Talbot, will get the start opposite Andersen tonight. The Canes need to finish this road trip strong, especially since they'll be off until Wednesday when the Florida Panthers come to town for a nationally televised game. Earning the win tonight will give them a lot of momentum heading home for two tough games and would be well deserved after being on the road for a week. 

1st Period

Scoring

None

Thoughts

This was a very boring period of hockey and I'm not quite sure which team that benefits the most. The Wild held the puck in their offensive zone the most throughout the period and controlled most of the play. The Canes had some pressure at the beginning of the period and at the end, but not a whole lot in between. Both goalies were good when contested. The penalty kill looked good for the only penalty of the period and the power play hasn't seen any chances yet. I expect business to pick up here in the second period. Kaprizov is the real deal and he is buzzing, so this isn't going to stay scoreless for long. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(MIN) 10:14- Kevin Fiala (14) (assisted by Frederik Gaudreau (12) & Jon Merrill (11))

Thoughts

The Canes had some great chances, but it was Kevin Fiala and the Wild that broke the ice first. Fiala outwaited the entire defense and put the puck top shelf on Andersen. It was a perfect shot and Fiala deserves all the credit for it. The Canes had some great chances after the goal, but they either missed the net or Talbot made it look way too easy. The Canes had two power plays that moved the puck well, but they couldn't generate enough with traffic in front of Talbot to make a difference. The Canes have put a lot of shots on Talbot, but they're all easy saves for the All-Star. The Trocheck line was moving the puck well, so I wouldn't be surprised if they connect for some magic in the third period. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(MIN) 1:16- Kirill Kaprizov (20) (assisted by Mats Zuccarello (29))

(MIN) 3:34- Frederik Gaudreau (5) (assisted by Kevin Fiala (22))

(CAR) 5:02- Andrei Svechnikov (19) (assisted by Jaccob Slavin (23) Tony DeAngelo (29))

(CAR) 6:23- Andrei Svechnikov (20) PP (assisted by Teuvo Teravainen (25) & Tony DeAngelo (30))

Thoughts

The first 3:34 of this period were an absolute dumpster fire for the Canes. Both of Minnesota's goals came on careless plays with the puck and then Andersen was left out to dry to stop some excellent chances from the Wild. A bad pass in Teravainen's skates from Slavin leads to the Kaprizov goal and then an errant pass from Aho to Bear at the point leads to the transition for Gaudreau's goal. They dug this hole themselves and Andrei Svechnikov almost single-handidly brought them back to the surface. He scored twice soon after to bring the Canes within one goal and could've finished the night with at least four goals, but he missed wide twice in the last few minutes, including in the final 20 seconds. It was ultimately not enough as the team dropped their third game of the road trip. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Tony DeAngelo (2 Assists)

It always seems like DeAngelo is there when you need to get some goals. He recorded two more assists tonight, factoring in on both of Svechnikov's goals to reach 30 assists for the season. His second assist came on the power play as he continues to be an excellent quarterback on the first unit. He was really jumping into the play when he needed to late and almost helped the team tie things up late. 

Second Star- Frederik Andersen (24 Saves on 27 Shots)

For the season he's having, allowing three goals in a game feels like a bigger deal than it is. Tonight, the defense left him out to dry for stretches and he was the last line of defense on some high quality chances. While he'll be credited with the loss, he kept this game close in the third period and did all he could to prevent it from being worse than 1-0 in the second period. He played well despite the result. 

First Star- Andrei Svechnikov (2 Goals)

As I mentioned earlier, he could've finished with four goals if he'd hit the net on two great chances late in the third period. Regardless, Svechnikov hits 20 goals again with two missiles past Talbot. He gave the team life after going down 3-0 and was the reason they even had a chance at the end. He's been the best player on the ice for the Canes the last few nights and tonight he almost did it by himself. 

Final Thoughts

The structure of this game was eerily similar to the Ottawa game a few nights ago. The Canes dug themselves into a big deficit with sloppy play and their comeback fell just one goal short despite a frenzied push in the final minutes. It was a less than ideal way to end the road trip, going just 1-2-1 in their return to the ice after the break. These were four tough games and all three losses were by one goal. Svechnikov was the star for the Canes, reaching 20 goals for the third time in four seasons. DeAngelo hit 30 assists for the second time in his career. Teravainen picked up his fourth assist since returning from injury. It just wasn't enough to earn the win tonight. The Canes will be off for a few days, but they'll be heading home for the next two against Florida and Nashville. They'll have a couple days to practice and get things ready for the Panthers on TNT Wednesday night, then I'll be going to the game against the Predators on Friday night. The road doesn't get any easier from here with two more quality opponents next week. There are still plenty of games left for the Canes and this is just a minor hiccup in what has been a great season.