First Round, Game 1: Hurricanes v. Boston Bruins

The time has come for the most exciting, yet stressful, part of the season. No longer are the days of watching the standings to see who gets in. It's time for the real fun to start. The Hurricanes, champions of the Metropolitan Division, finished with the second-most points in the Eastern Conference this season. Their first round opponent is a very familiar team. Carolina and Boston have a lot of history, especially in recent years. They've met in the playoffs four times before this season, including in back-to-back years in 2019 and 2020. The Bruins won both of those series in short order, but things have changed in just two years. Boston held home-ice for those two meetings. Things are starting in Raleigh this time around. The Canes own the home-ice advantage for this one, the first time that's happened in almost 25 years. The big story coming into this one is how lopsided the season series between these two was. Carolina swept the Bruins in three games, outscoring them 16-1 in the process. Boston failed to record a five-on-five goal in three meetings, two of which happened in Boston. The Canes roll into the playoffs as the winners of six straight games and rookie Seth Jarvis has points in his last seven. With Frederik Andersen still not healthy enough to play, Antti Raanta will be making his first career postseason start, his sixth postseason appearance overall. Outside of the Andersen injury, the Canes will put together a healthy team. Jesperi Kotkaniemi returned to the lineup in a big way in the season finale against Boston on Thursday, recording three points in the first period. The lines will look similar to how they have all season with Derek Stepan, Steven Lorentz, and Ethan Bear serving as the healthy scratches tonight. 

The Bruins had a chance to jump into the third spot in the Atlantic Division on Friday night in a game against Toronto. They opted to rest a majority of their starters instead and lost the game 5-2 to finish in the top Wild Card spot, eliminating any chance of moving up. It would eventually be null and void when the Lightning won their game, but that's beside the point. They boast one of the best lines in all of the NHL with Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and Jake Debrusk. Their second line featuring Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak isn't bad either. Charlie McAvoy is one of the best defenders in the entire league as well. Like the Hurricanes, they'll be starting a goalie making his first postseason start with Linus Ullmark between the pipes. Ullmark was the starter for the Canes' 6-0 win in their final meeting but played well in relief of Tuukka Rask in another meeting earlier this season. This is going to be a grueling series to watch. There were some words exchanged before the first meeting in Boston that is likely to come up again a few times during this run. These two teams are guaranteed four games, so it's important to get a jump start on the series tonight and Wednesday before things shift to Boston. I'm nervous about the Canes' goalie situation, but Raanta has been clutch in some tough spots this season. I'm hoping tonight is the first of many good games for him.

1st Period

Scoring

None

Thoughts

The Boston Bruins quickly asserted that the regular season wasn't going to be a factor in this playoff series. They controlled play through the first commercial break, putting ten shots on Raanta early. There was a scare or two but the puck stayed out of the net. The same cannot be said for the Boston net behind Linus Ullmark. The Canes pushed a puck through the goalie during a mad scramble, but the referees felt otherwise and the game remained scoreless. I think it's a toss-up whether it should've counted or not, but I won't lose sleep over it. The Canes killed an early penalty from Skjei, then had power plays of their own. The first unit didn't do much, but the second unit had some quality chances on Ullmark. Both goalies stole the show through 20 minutes. Raanta withstood some early pressure from the Bruins, while Ullmark looked unbothered by the push from the Canes at the end of the period. The fun is just beginning and the bodies are already flying. 

2nd Period

Scoring

(CAR) 16:28- Seth Jarvis (1) (assisted by Jaccob Slavin (1) & Ian Cole (1))

(CAR) 18:38- Nino Niederreiter (1) (assisted by Tony DeAngelo (1) & Martin Necas (1))

Thoughts

The second period started much like the first period. Boston controlled play for most of the early stretch and Antti Raanta was ready for it again. The push didn't last very long as the Canes took the reins and they ran with it. They killed a penalty that I didn't think was much of anything with relative ease. The two goalies traded saves until Seth Jarvis perfectly deflects a shot from the point by Jaccob Slavin through Ullmark to break to scoreless tie late in the period. The Canes weren't satisfied by just one goal. Nino Niederreiter snapped one from high in the slot, and Ullmark didn't see it through the screen. Making it 2-0 before the end of the period was huge. It allows them to go into the third period, easily their best in the regular season, with a multi-goal lead, and play the type of defensive hockey they like to. The bodies continued to fly the entire period and Charlie McAvoy seemed to be in the middle of it all. I don't think there was anyone better to get that first goal than a guy as red-hot as Jarvis. It's symbolic of the team's season and its wealth of youth. Boston isn't going to just crumble and go away. As physical as things have been through two periods, this could get ugly in the third. 

3rd Period

Scoring

(BOS) 2:53- Taylor Hall (1) (assisted by Erik Haula (1) & Charlie McAvoy (1))

(CAR) 7:02- Teuvo Teravainen (1) (assisted by Vincent Trocheck (1))

(CAR) 16:59- Vincent Trocheck (1) (assisted by Max Domi (1) & Brett Pesce (1))

(CAR) 17:59- Andrei Svechnikov (1) EN (assisted by Sebastian Aho (1) & Seth Jarvis (1))

Thoughts

Things looked shaky to start the third period. It almost felt like deja vu after watching the first two periods. The Bruins started the period on time and got a goal back to cut into the Canes' lead, courtesy of Taylor Hall. Things went a little quiet for a few minutes after that until Vincent Trocheck got in on a 2-on-1 with Teuvo Teravainen. Trocheck put a perfect pass on Teravainen's stick and he roofed it over Ullmark to regain the two-goal lead. From there, it was all Carolina. The defense shut things down, the Canes added two late goals, and they brought things home to open the series with a huge 5-1 win. Trent Frederic tried to start something with a late hit on Brendan Smith, but the Canes' didn't bite. They responded well to the early goal from Hall and played a stout game to earn the early advantage in the series. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Seth Jarvis (Goal, Assist)

The key to winning a series seems to be acknowledging that it's the playoffs, but playing no differently than if it were a regular season game. That is exactly how I think Jarvis played tonight. In his first playoff game, he scored the team's first goal, then helped to set up the empty-net goal at the end. The rookie wasn't phased by the situation and continued his hot play to start the series. 

Second Star- Vincent Trocheck (Goal, Assist)

For as much talk as Trocheck created during the regular season when these two met, he's backed it up by playing very well against Boston. He single-handily iced this game for the Canes. He set up the dagger goal from Teravainen, then banked one off the helmet of Ullmark from an unreal angle to deflate the Bruins officially. The Prius set the tone for the series with his two points tonight. 

First Star- Antti Raanta (35 Saves on 36 Shots)

I would like to formally apologize to Raanta for ever doubting his abilities to start in the NHL Playoffs. He was on his game from the very beginning of the game, facing ten shots in the first seven minutes. The only shot he didn't stop was a shot he didn't see. He answered whether he was ready to lead this team with Andersen hurt. He was the only player ready when each period started.

Final Thoughts

The Canes made a statement with their win tonight in several different ways. They showed that they aren't the same team that Boston walked over in consecutive seasons by putting up five goals, which in some series was almost as many goals as they scored. They silenced the likes of Bergeron, Marchand, and Pastrnak for 60 minutes, something they haven't been able to do in the previous series. Antti Raanta handled the pressure of the situation a lot better than Linus Ullmark in the first playoff starts for each goalie. The Canes also matched the Bruins' physicality while not being suckered into any dumb plays, like at the end of the third period. They took three penalties tonight and none of them were bad retaliatory penalties. Tonight's win was great, but this isn't like the regular season where a new opponent will be waiting. Wednesday night it's going to be the same Boston Bruins team. They're going to have 48 hours to think about this game and rectify the beating they were handed when the puck drops for Game 2. For the Canes, it's going to be about finding a way to replicate this game on Wednesday night and heading to Boston with a 2-0 series lead. One win is great, but it takes four to win a series.