2022-23 Regular Season, Game 5: Hurricanes at Calgary Flames

For the first time this season, the Hurricanes will be looking to bounce back from a loss. After a 3-0-0 start, the Canes dropped their first to the Edmonton Oilers in a 6-4 game that was very tight to the very end. While the Oilers were clearly the faster team for 60 minutes, there were plenty of positives for the Canes. Andrei Svechnikov notched his first career hat trick in the regular season. Sebastian Aho had his second straight three-point game with three assists. Martin Necas stayed hot with a goal and an assist. Brent Burns had two assists. There were plenty of good performances, but the Oilers were just better on this night. Tonight, the penultimate stop on the road trip takes them to the Scotiabank Saddledome. While Edmonton is one of the league's best offenses, the Canes will now face a defense that was almost as tough as theirs was last season. This is going to be a tough test coming off a loss as they look to avoid their first losing streak of the season.

Projected Lines/Pairs

Teuvo Teravainen-Sebastian Aho-Seth Jarvis

Andrei Svechnikov-Jesperi Kotkaniemi-Martin Necas

Jordan Martinook-Jordan Staal-Jesper Fast

Stefan Noesen-Paul Stastny-Derek Stepan

Jaccob Slavin-Brent Burns

Brady Skjei-Brett Pesce

Calvin de Haan-Jalen Chatfield

Antti Raanta

Frederik Andersen

Extras- Ondrej Kase (concussion protocol), Dylan Coghlan (healthy), Ethan Bear (healthy)

For the first time this season, we've seen some movement amongst the forward lines. We saw this alignment for part of the game against Edmonton as Jordan Martinook jumps to the third line and Paul Stastny will center the fourth line. While not known for being the scoring dynamo, I'm hoping that Martinook can help to spark two guys that haven't gotten much going offensively. The defense will remain the same for tonight. The other big change is Antti Raanta taking the net tonight. I'm a little surprised by this decision with the Flames being the opponents tonight, but I have all the faith in the world with Raanta between the pipes. 

Tonight's Opponent: Calgary Flames (3-1-0, 6 points, 2nd in Pacific)

The Flames are in the same boat as the Hurricanes right now. They also started their season with three straight wins before losing on Thursday night after allowing six goals. They faced off with the Buffalo Sabres and after scoring the first goal of the game early, they would allow four straight goals, trailing 4-1 early in the second period. While the Flames would get to within one goal just over a minute into the third period, Alex Tuch would score two goals to finish his hat trick and hand the Flames a 6-3 loss at home. Jacob Markstrom, a finalist for the Vezina last season, was pulled after allowing three goals on 12 shots, and despite Dan Vladar playing well in relief, he'd take the loss. This is a new-look team in Calgary. Gone are Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk and in are an older trio of Jonathan Huberdeau, Nazem Kadri, and MacKenzie Weegar. Through four games, they've fit in very nicely. Kadri leads the team with five points (G, 4 A), Huberdeau is right behind him with four (4 A), and Weegar has three (3A). Before their loss to Buffalo, they'd played three tight games against three very good teams, with wins over the defending champions, their neighbors in Alberta on the road, and Vegas. I expect them to be just as hungry tonight.

Last Season v. Carolina- The Canes won both meetings last season in different ways. The first meeting in Calgary in December was a tight game. Sebastian Aho scored early for the Canes and after being denied on a penalty shot in the first period, Noah Hanifin returned the favor and tied it in the second period. The game would remain tied through three periods with Jaccob Slavin making a huge play to prevent a puck from crossing the goalline and would head to overtime. Aho would score the game-winner to continue what was an excellent month of December. Just about a month later, Calgary made their way to Raleigh, and the Canes dominated. 13 different Hurricanes recorded a point, led by three points from Brady Skjei and two goals from Andrei Svechnikov in a 6-3 victory. 

Calgary's Starting Goalie: Jacob Markstrom- After looking amazing last season, Markstrom is still waiting to find that spark again. He was good in their first two wins of the season but got the early hook in the team's loss to Buffalo. He was in the net for the 2-1 overtime loss for the Flames when the Canes visited last season. In 11 career appearances against the Canes, Markstrom is 6-4-1 with a 2.42 goals-against average, a .924 save percentage, and two shutouts.  

Calgary Player to Watch: Rasmus Andersson- There are so many players to pick from and while I almost selected former Hurricane Elias Lindholm, I've placed my focus on the young Swedish defenseman. He's coming off a career season in 2021-22 (4-46-50 in 82 games) and is used in all situations. Andersson is often paired with another former Hurricane, Noah Hanifin, and they're one of the best pairs in the league. Andersson has four points to start the season, tied for second on the team, picking up points in three of their four contests. He's one assist away from 100 for his career and he'll be on the ice a lot tonight.

Scoring Summary

1st Period

(CAR) 1:44- Sebastian Aho (3) (assisted by Teuvo Teravainen (2))

(CAR) 10:28- Calvin de Haan (1) (assisted by Paul Stastny (2) & Stefan Noesen (4))

(CGY) 13:31- Nazem Kadri (2) PP (assisted by Tyler Toffoli (2) & Rasmus Andersson (4))

2nd Period

(CGY) 2:31- Brett Ritchie (2) (unassisted)

3rd Period

None

Overtime

(CGY) 4:29- Tyler Toffoli (3) (assisted by Rasmus Andersson (5))

Let's Talk About the Game

Based on how this game started, the Canes only getting one point feels like a slight disappointment. Sebastian Aho waited no time continuing his hot streak as he made a move around Noah Hanifin and beat Jacob Markstrom between his pads. Calvin de Haan added to the lead with a shot from the point that Markstrom must not have seen because it was a relatively soft shot from far out. The Canes were the dominant team for the first half of the period. The complexion of it all changed with the penalty call on Jordan Staal. I have no problems with Nazem Kadri as a player and I've never had much of a reason to dislike him. There is zero doubt in my mind that he felt the stick of Staal behind his skate. He made an absolute spectacle of it all because he fell backward as if he were shot in the chest. The referees bought it and about 30 seconds later, Kadri jumped on a bouncing puck and beat Antti Raanta to make it 2-1. You could argue the Canes shouldn't have been on the kill there, but they were and they couldn't stop the Flames. 

The second period was dominated by the Flames according to the shot chart. They were buzzing and peppering Raanta with shots. However, it wasn't any of the good chances that beat him. It was the one shot that he was caught napping on that squeezed through him and allowed the Flames to tie it. Brett Ritchie had some help coming toward the front of the net, but he instead opted to through it on the net. This would prove to be wise as it hit Raanta and went in to tie the game early in the second period. The Canes withstood the pressure from Calgary for almost 20 minutes and there was a split second where it looked like the Canes had regained the lead. After completing a partial line change, Aho fed Derek Stepan and he beat Markstrom over his glove with under ten seconds left in the period. However, the Flames would challenge that the initial entry was offside and this challenge would come back successful, keeping the game tied through two periods. 

The third period was full of missed opportunities for the Canes. It started with a mad scramble in the crease after the puck jumped a mile in the air and hit Markstrom in the back. It wanted to get over the goal line, but Markstrom and the Flames' defense kept it out. Hanifin would then take a penalty and though they'd move the puck well, the Canes couldn't capitalize. Toward the end of the period, Blake Coleman was assessed a double-minor for hick-sticking Brent Burns, giving the Canes four minutes on the power play with just over six minutes to play. What transpired was a real turd of a power play. The Canes couldn't get anything set up, only mustering one good chance in four minutes. The Flames survived and got the game to overtime, ensuring each side would get a point. Much like the rest of the night, the Canes had their chances. In the end, they'd fall short as Tyler Toffoli ripped a shot past a stretching Raanta to secure the second point for the Flames. 

There really isn't too much to diagnose here. I'm not going to put the blame on an individual or the power play because there were plenty of chances to win this game in regulation. Raanta has allowed a soft goal in each of his starts and while it didn't hurt him against San Jose, it turned out to be an issue in Calgary. The lack of execution on the power play tonight doesn't mean we need to overreact. The same units just scored four times in the last two games, so it might be more about how prepared the Flames were to counter it. Sure, they have a knack for not getting the job done in clutch moments, but I don't think it's time to overreact five games into the season. It was a brutal way for the game to end, but a point is a point at the end of the day. 

Canes' Three Stars

Third Star- Teuvo Teravainen (Assist)

I've voiced my concerns about Teravainen's play to start the season after his extremely slow start. This was the first time I felt like he had a real fire under him and he played well from the drop of the puck tonight. He helped set up Aho for the first goal and looked really engaged all night. It's only a matter of time before the puck finds the back of the net. 

Second Star- Stefan Noesen (Assist)

During the first period, the Canes' fourth line might have been their best. Noesen was especially noticeable in the early stages, getting some chances on Markstrom. He picked up his fourth assist of the season with a secondary assist on de Haan's goal, tying him for second on the team with Martin Necas and just one behind Aho. He has points in three of his four games since coming in for Ondrej Kase.

First Star- Sebastian Aho (Goal)

There is something about Aho playing in Alberta that makes him play at a different level because he has been on fire the last two years when visiting the province. He added a goal tonight to extend his point streak to four games after not scoring on Opening Night. He almost had an assist on the goal that was called back, though he'd put himself offsides. 

What's Next

The road trip will finally come to an end on Monday night when the Canes head to Vancouver. The Canucks ended play tonight as the only team in the league without a win, losing twice in overtime. They lost tonight as well, dropping a 5-1 decision to Buffalo. Vancouver has been on the bad side of history to start the season, blowing multi-goal leads in their first four games, and a lead of any kind in their first five losses before only managing one goal against the Sabres tonight. They've had plenty of individual success with their top stars starting their seasons well, they just haven't been able to finish games. Thatcher Demko has struggled in all five of his starts, allowing 21 goals. Add that Quinn Hughes is considered day-to-day right now and it casts some doubt as to whether he'll be ready for Monday night. Despite their record, the Canes can't overlook this opponent as they try to finish the trip strong.