Regular Season, Game 47: Hurricanes v. Florida Panthers

Returning home after a four-game road trip, the Hurricanes are looking for a reversal of fortune after a tough return from the break. They lost three of four games, earning just three of a possible eight points. Two of the losses were to playoff teams and all three losses were by one goal. They haven't played since falling 3-2 in Minnesota on Saturday night. The Canes fell down 3-0 just over 2:30 into the third period and were almost willed to a win by Andrei Svechnikov, who scored both goals for the Canes in a 3-2 loss. This is the third and final meeting between the Canes and Panthers this season and Florida has the advantage thus far. In the most recent encounter on January 8 in Raleigh, the Panthers jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the first 20:35 of the game, but the Canes fought hard and tied the game 3-3 in the third period to force overtime and earn a point. Anthony Duclair earned the second point for the Panthers by undressing Alex Lyon in overtime to win 4-3. The lineup looks to be about the same, with Steven Lorentz entering the lineup for Derek Stepan and Frederik Andersen getting the start in the net. Tonight also marks the 200th game as a Hurricane for Nino Niederreiter. 

The Panthers haven't played since February 1, tonight being their first game since the All-Star Break. Florida lost that night to the New York Rangers 5-2, with the Rangers getting to Spencer Knight in the second and third periods. They're the most prolific offense in the league, scoring 194 goals to lead the league in the first half. Jonathan Huberdeau leads the league with 47 assists and is third in the league in points (64). He's a career Canes killer, scoring 30 points in 33 games against Carolina. In the two meetings this season, Anthony Duclair has six points (3-3-6), including the aforementioned overtime winner. Sergei Bobrovsky is having a career resurgence, going 23-4-3 with a .920 save percentage. He'll be getting the start tonight for the Panthers. This game is on TNT, which brings about a completely different set of anxiety. The 6-0 loss to Columbus when they played on ESPN+ was embarrassing. This game is going to be interesting and not just because they're two of the best teams in the league. I'm hoping the Panthers aren't quite as sharp given the long layoff, but I don't expect things to come that easy. 

1st Period

Scoring

(CAR) 19:14- Teuvo Teravainen (12) (assisted by Sebastian Aho (28) & Jaccob Slavin (24))

Thoughts

I feel like I just watched two teams try to take each other's heads off. If Andrei Svechnikov isn't killed by the end of the night I'd consider it a win. He was in the middle of every big scrum of the period. He threw a questionable hit on Sam Bennett from behind, then ate one of the same variety from Patric Hornqvist. Both teams played well and it had a very playoff-like feel to it. There was a great pace to the period, even if it didn't stay 5-on-5 very much. It felt like the Canes built a good period and capitalized on a moving Sergei Bobrovsky when Teuvo Teravainen went for a spin and fired one past the Panthers' goalie. It wasn't the prettiest of goals, but it counts for one all the same. This is going to be a dog fight to the finish. I hope the goal from Turbo is enough to get things kick-started and help the Canes build a strong performance out of it. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(FLA) 13:09- Aleksander Barkov (22) (assisted Jonathan Huberdeau (48) & Aaron Ekblad (32))

Thoughts

The Panthers were the aggressors the entire period and it showed in the shot count. They scored the only goal of the period, a beautiful goal from Barkov, and laid the bigger hits. The Marchment hit on Trocheck was probably the highlight of the period. The Canes could've gone up 2-0, but Lucas Carlsson made a magnificent stick save on Kotkaniemi. Both teams took a lot of penalties in the period again, so there wasn't much time 5-on-5. This was not as inspired a period I'd expected from the Canes with a one-goal lead. We're at the point where I'd be happy with one point and everyone to be healthy going into the game on Friday night. This has been everything I'd expected it to be, but the Panthers have the momentum on their side right now with the game tied. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 3:13- Tony DeAngelo (9) (assisted by Jordan Staal (12) & Nino Niederreiter (10))

(FLA) 19:11- Sam Reinhart (17) (assisted by Patric Hornqvist (12) & MacKenzie Weegar (24))

Thoughts

It just took two bad bounces on each end of the ice for the Canes and the Panthers only need the one shot to send it to overtime. They were inches away from icing the game on the empty net, but it went just wide. On the other end, a puck from the point hits Hornqvist in the back and comes out to Reinhart with an open net to tie the game with less than a minute to go. The Canes on managed two shots on Bobrovsky, but Tony DeAngelo managed to get one in off the skate of Gustav Forsling and up high into the net. The Panthers have been the better team for two periods, which makes me worried about the Canes' ability to get the extra point, but they've managed one in a tough contest. 

Overtime

Scoring

(FLA) 0:16- Aaron Ekblad (11) (assisted by Jonathan Huberdeau (49) & Aleksander Barkov (20))

Thoughts

Not much to say about it. It only took 16 seconds for Huberdeau to put a perfect saucer pass on the stick of Aaron Ekblad to end it. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Jordan Staal (Assist)

Staal Bunyan was out in full force tonight. He laid the body, leading the team with five hits, and he added a huge assist on the go-ahead goal early in the third period. He's not getting the results in the form of goals, but he's playing the brand of game that we've grown accustomed to. He finished with a -1, but I don't look too much into that. He was a machine on the ice. 

Second Star- Jaccob Slavin (Assist)

He was a defensive machine tonight, breaking up some huge opportunities throughout the night for the Panthers. I feel you could just cut and paste that sentence for all of his games, but it was especially noticeable tonight. He made some big blocks and got the puck on the net tonight. He'll finish the night with an assist on the opening goal to add to his offensive production. 

First Star- Frederik Andersen (28 Saves on 31 Shots)

When the Canes were flat in the last two periods, Andersen was the lone constant for the Canes. He was calm and collected through the pressure from the Panthers. He gets the loss and will be credited with the two late goals allowed, but that doesn't take away from his performance tonight. It's a bummer he couldn't make that last save on Ekblad, but he didn't get much help. 

Final Thoughts

After this game, I read through social media a lot more than I usually do before writing my final thoughts. The immediate reaction from many, including on person on Instagram that wasn't happy I didn't agree that the sky was falling, is not good. Many don't feel this team is ready for the playoffs after blowing a late lead, losing their fourth game in the last five, and being swept in the season series by Florida while mounting little to no pressure in the third period. We're overreacting to a bad stretch of play during a tough stretch in the schedule. That's perfectly fine as long as we don't miss the bigger picture. The Canes are still firmly in the playoff picture and should still be considered among the front-runners in the Eastern Conference. Being swept by a team in the regular season means nothing when it comes to the playoffs, just ask Washington and New York. This was a sloppy game for the first two periods, with a lot of penalties and big hits, and the Panthers played like the better team in the final 40:16 of the game. The difference in the game was two bounces on either end of the ice. We're not having this discussion if the puck goes six inches the other way and into the empty net. It was a bad bounce off Hornqvist's back to Reinhart to tie the game late and a perfect pass from Huberdeau to Ekblad in overtime. These things happen and they will continue to happen because that's hockey. The Panthers are a great team and they earned the second point tonight. That's the bottom line. They'll be back on the ice Friday night against another very good team and another very good goalie when Juuse Saros and Nashville come to town. The road isn't becoming any friendlier. We all need to calm down, go to bed, get up tomorrow, and get ready for Friday night against the Predators. I'll be at the game and I'm excited. Good night, everyone.