Regular Season, Game 49: Hurricanes at Pittsburgh Penguins

It feels like it has been forever since these two have squared off, but it's finally time to see Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite being division opponents, this is the first meeting of the season between these two teams and the first time during the COVID era that they'll be sharing the ice. You have to go all the way back to March 8, 2020, to find the last game between these two and it was a pretty memorable affair. It marked the debut of Morgan Geekie, who scored twice, in a 6-2 win for the Canes in Pittsburgh. The Canes were down 2-1 after the first period but scored five unanswered, including two third period goals from Justin Williams on Tristan Jarry. The Canes are riding high after a 5-3 win over Nashville on Friday night. Andrei Svechnikov scored twice and added an assist, while four others recorded two points. Frederik Andersen earned his 15th win in his last 19 decisions. Antti Raanta will get the start for this matinee. He's looking for his 100th NHL win after last playing in the 4-3 loss to Ottawa 12 days ago. Vincent Trocheck left Friday night's game with an upper-body injury, but he's going to be in the lineup today. Ethan Bear will also re-join the lineup in Ian Cole's place. 

Pittsburgh is tied atop the standings with the Canes after a strong start to January and a four-game win streak when they returned from the All-Star Break. That streak was broken Thursday night against Toronto in a 4-1 loss to the Maple Leafs. Evgeni Malkin scored the only goal for the Penguins and Tristan Jarry took the loss. They've fought through their fair share of injuries this season, but have gotten huge contributions from leading goal-scorer and points leader Jake Guentzel, Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, and Bryan Rust. All four are operating at just about a point-per-game or higher when they're in the lineup. Jarry has taken what was said about him during their postseason loss last season and used it to fuel an amazing season in the net for Pittsburgh. I would expect to see him in the net for the Penguins this afternoon since they'll be off for a few days before their next game. Today also marks the first time we'll be seeing Brock McGinn in an opposing sweater and I'm sure his Game 7 2OT goal against Washington will be mentioned a few times during the broadcast. This is the front-end of back-to-back afternoon games for the Hurricanes, which isn't something you see very often. They'll have to contend with a team that has been hot for the last month and a half. This is for the lead in the division in a race that is way too early to call. 

1st Period

Scoring

(CAR) 15:18- Jesperi Kotkaniemi (11) (assisted by Jordan Martinook (7) & Seth Jarvis (11))

Thoughts

This was a very good way to start the game for the Canes. Not only do you leave the period with a 1-0 lead, but the penalty kill has looked amazing twice and generated more chances than the Penguins' man advantage. Both Raanta and Jarry have played spectacularly in the early portion of the game. There have been some high-quality chances and some breakaways that haven't broken through either man. The goal came courtesy of the fourth line and some good passing that eventually landed on Kotkaniemi's stick for his second goal in as many games. The team will have to play the final 40 minutes without Brendan Smith after taking a puck up high on the kill. They overcame being a forward down on Friday, so I expect nothing to change much for the defense. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 0:09- Jordan Staal (4) (unassisted)

(PIT) 14:43- Bryan Rust (18) (assisted by Kris Letang (40) & Evgeni Malkin (10))

(PIT) 17:59- Sidney Crosby (15) (assisted by Jake Guentzel (27) & Bryan Rust (21))

Thoughts

The period started great with Jordan Staal getting his second goal in a few games just nine seconds into the period, but the Penguins quickly built a period from that point and managed to tie it up before the end of the 20 minutes. The turning point of the period was the save on Teravainen by Jarry on a 3-on-2 with a yawning net. If that shot goes in, it's 3-0 and the Penguins are left scratching to get something going. Instead, they get goals from Rust and Crosby and the game goes into the third period tied. The Canes led in shots 9-3 at one point in the period, but they finished 13-13. The period did stay 5-on-5 the entire time, which hasn't happened much lately. The Canes need to do something to curb this momentum from the Penguins to get things going and earn the two points this afternoon. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 0:09- Jesper Fast (10) (assisted by Nino Niederreiter (11) & Brady Skjei (14))

(CAR) 14:18- Sebastian Aho (22) PP (assisted by Teuvo Teravainen (27) & Tony DeAngelo (31))

(PIT) 18:48- Evan Rodrigues (16) PP (assisted by Evgeni Malkin (11) & Kris Letang (41))

Thoughts

There must be a new mandate on scoring nine seconds into the period because the Canes did it in consecutive periods. In his 700th game, Niederreiter found Fast on an odd-man rush and buries it to take the lead very early in the period. The Canes controlled play for most of the period, killed off their third penalty of the game, then scored a power play goal of their own to make it 4-2 with a little over five minutes left. The Penguins would score a late power play goal of their own with Jarry on the bench to make it a one-goal game, but the Canes withstood the pressure and were able to survive for another win. The win gets Raanta his 100th in the NHL and gives the Canes the lead in the division. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Brett Pesce (28:03 TOI)

While he isn't credited with an assist on the Staal goal to open the second period, it was his shot that deflected in off the captain. Outside of that, Pesce's defensive game was amazing all afternoon. He led all skaters in ice time since they only had five defensemen. He spent some time with his usual partner, but it was also cool to see him reunited with Slavin for a little bit. 

Second Star- Andrei Svechnikov (5 SOG, 7 Hits)

Another guy that didn't find the scoresheet, Svechnikov had five shots, all in the first period, and almost half of all the shots for the team in the opening period. He led all skaters with seven hits. He was passing the puck very well, almost finding Aho for a good chance in the second period, and almost had a highlight goal in the third period between his legs that squirted just wide. He was extremely dynamic in all three zones. 

First Star- Antti Raanta (31 Saves on 34 Shots)

This game could've gotten out of hand if not for the play of the goalies. Even with three goals allowed, Raanta was a brick wall for long stretches of the game. The two rapid-fire goals in the second period hurt the performance a little, but it doesn't negate all the work he did to keep the game scoreless in the first and second periods. He earned his 100th win in a start I was a little surprised to see him make given the circumstances. 

Final Thoughts

This was the type of game the Canes have grown accustomed to playing this season. They are getting scoring up-and-down the lineup and are staunch on their special teams. The Staal line accounted for two of the goals and the fourth line provided some firepower to open the scoring. The superstars got the job done on the power play and that was ultimately the difference in the game. I would love to know the last time a team scored less than ten seconds into two different periods. I can't recall the Canes ever doing it while I've been watching. The Smith injury looked bad and I hope he recovers quickly. He put his body on the line to make a play and I have nothing but respect for that. This is going to be a quick turnaround for the team as they head to Philadelphia for another meeting with the Flyers. It'll be another afternoon game with the 3 pm start. With Raanta playing today, the expectation would be for Frederik Andersen to get the start before they take a couple days off. The Canes have sole possession of the division with games in hand after a hard-fought win. This is going to be a fun fight to the finish between the Canes and Penguins.