2022-23 Regular Season, Game 30: Hurricanes (17-6-6) v. Dallas Stars

The momentum seems to be moving in the Canes' direction in December. They've been playing some phenomenal hockey. The Canes have points in their last nine games, have won seven of their last eight, and are on a three-game win streak with arguably their best player in the lineup. After picking up 11 of a possible 12 points on the road, the team returned to PNC Arena for their first home game in almost three weeks and while the scoreboard only read 3-2, the Canes truly dominated the Seattle Kraken for the majority of the game. Andrei Svechnikov's 16th goal and Derek Stepan's first of the season staked the Canes to a 2-0 lead after the first period, Stefan Noesen added a goal on a penalty shot early in the second, and the Canes looked to be cruising. Seattle broke through to break Pyotr Kochetkov's shutout streak at just over 150 minutes and would score a leaky goal in the third period, but it wouldn't be enough as the Canes held on. Kochetkov wrote himself into the franchise record books with his performance as the Canes started the homestand with a solid victory. They now welcome two very good opponents into PNC Arena this weekend, beginning tonight with the Dallas Stars. 

Projected Lines/Pairs

Andrei Svechnikov-Paul Stastny-Martin Necas

Teuvo Teravainen-Jesperi Kotkaniemi-Seth Jarvis

Jordan Martinook-Jordan Staal-Jesper Fast

Derek Stepan-Jack Drury-Stefan Noesen

Jaccob Slavin-Brent Burns

Brady Skjei-Brett Pesce

Calvin de Haan-Jalen Chatfield

Antti Raanta

Pyotr Kochetkov

Injuries/Scratches- Sebastian Aho (lower-body injury)

IR- Ondrej Kase (upper-body injury), Frederik Andersen (lower-body injury)

Rod Brind'Amour announced on Friday that Sebastian Aho would miss both games this weekend and I've read somewhere that he might not be back until January. The Canes are 3-0-0 without him in the lineup and are playing well, but he's a franchise player so hopefully, he'll be back sooner. Otherwise, the Canes are rolling with the same group of 18 skaters that they used in the win over Seattle. In the net, Antti Raanta will make his first appearance since December 1 when he was pulled after two periods against St. Louis. He allowed three goals on 15 shots before exiting during the second intermission.

Tonight's Opponent: Dallas Stars (18-8-5, 41 points, 1st in the Central Division)

There are fewer teams in the league more exciting to watch this season than the Stars. It's not just because they can put the puck in the net seemingly at will (112 goals, T2nd in the league), but they play a solid defensive game too (T7th in goals allowed). They feature one of the most exciting lines in the league and are easily one of the most productive. Everything seems to run through Jason Robertson. The league's first star of November is third in the league with 23 goals and fifth with 43 points. He scored 21 goals and 34 points during an 18-game point streak that was snapped earlier this month, though he has just two assists in his last seven games. Roope Hintz leads the team with 22 assists and looked well on his way to setting a new career-high in points as he has 35 in 30 games this season. Joe Pavelski doesn't seem to be slowing down as he rounds out the line with 20 assists and 30 points at 38 years old. That's not to mention the three other players with 20+ points this season, Jamie Been, Miro Heiskanen, and Tyler Seguin. Jake Oettinger has settled in nicely to the top spot in the net after a stellar performance in the first round of the playoffs last season. He could be in early contention for the Vezina. Much like the Canes, Dallas has been playing some good hockey. They've won four of their last five, knocking off Washington 2-1 in D.C. on Thursday night. Two goals in the third period and a magnificent performance from Oettinger earned Dallas the win. This is their fourth stop on a five-game road trip against the Eastern Conference of which they are 2-1-0 thus far. 

Last Season v. Carolina- Fewer teams frustrated the Canes than the Stars did last season as they won both meetings. In two games, the Canes outshot the Stars by a combined 87-31, yet Dallas outscored the Canes 8-4. In the first meeting of the season in Dallas, the Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski line provided all of the goals as Hintz scored a hat trick, Pavelski added a goal and two assists, while Robertson finished with two assists also in a 4-1 win. Braden Holtby stopped 39 of 40 shots with Jesperi Kotkaniemi scoring the Canes' only goal. When Dallas came to Raleigh, the Stars never allowed the Canes to enjoy a lead. Both times the Canes scored in the third period, the Stars would respond within a minute. Hintz scored two more times, Benn scored the other goal, and Pavelski and Roberton had two more assists each as they battled to a tie after 60 minutes and overtime. In the shootout, Seguin scored the only goal to give Dallas the 4-3 shootout victory. Scott Wedgewood stopped 44 shots during regulation and all three shots he faced in the shootout. 

Dallas' Starting Goalie: Scott Wedgewood (6-4-2, 2.85 GAA, .914 SV%)- Though he's been used sparingly over Oettinger, Wedgewood has done well in his backup role. He was spectacular against the Devils when he faced them on Tuesday night, stopping 25 shots in their 4-1 victory. He's 2-0-1 in his last three starts, allowing just one goal in each of those starts. In his career against the Canes, he's 1-1-0 and he was very good against them last season, stopping 44 shots in their 4-3 shootout victory in Raleigh. 

Dallas Player to Watch: Mason Marchment- I have a feeling that the magical line for the Stars will do some damage tonight but outside of them, I'm keeping my eye on Marchment. During free agency this offseason, it looked like he was going to be a Hurricane before ultimately signing with the stars. He was phenomenal last season with the Panthers and has started his campaign with Dallas well with nine goals and 19 points in 31 games. 

Scoring Summary

1st Period

(CAR) 6:20- Stefan Noesen (5) PP (assisted by Teuvo Teravainen (9) & Brent Burns (17))

(CAR) 17:03- Andrei Svechnikov (17) (assisted by Jalen Chatfield (1) & Calvin de Haan (3))

(DAL) 18:38- Joe Pavelski (11) PP (assisted by Jason Robertson (21) & Miro Heiskanen (19))

2nd Period

(DAL) 5:38- Jamie Benn (13) PP (assisted by Mri Heiskanen (20) & Jason Robertson (22))

(CAR) 13:54- Teuvo Teravainen (1) PP (assisted by Martin Necas (17) & Brent Burns (18))

3rd Period

(CAR) 2:44- Seth Jarvis (6) (assisted by Brady Skjei (7))

(DAL) 9:05- Tyler Seguin (6) (assisted by Colin Miller (7))

(DAL) 10:47- Jani Hakanpaa (4) (assisted by Jason Robertson (23))

Overtime

(CAR) 2:19- Martin Necas (13) (assisted by Andrei Svechnikov (12))

Let's Talk About the Game

Someone, please inject a best-of-seven series between these two teams into my veins. The atmosphere inside of PNC Arena last night was electric and the hockey that followed was just as good. It's very clear that these are two of the best teams in the league and could make decent runs in the postseason with the right amount of momentum. Special teams were a major factor in this game with each side scoring twice on the power play. I liked the game the Canes played for most of the first two periods and even the beginning of the third. They ran out of the gates in the first period with the power-play goal from Stefan Noesen just four seconds into the advantage and the wicked shot from Andrei Svechnikov after he took a penalty. The goal from Joe Pavelski at the end of the period was a bit of a buzzkill, but there's nothing Antti Raanta could've done about that. Dallas carried the momentum into the second period with another goal on the power play from their captain, but Teuvo Teravainen getting his first of the season really lightened the spirits of the crowd as they capitalized on a 5-on-3. Seth Jarvis got the third period off to a strong start to regain the two-goal advantage to keep his hot streak moving. This was around the time when it felt like the Stars gained control. Tyler Seguin redirect the team's third shot past Raanta and Jani Hakanpaa squeaked one through Raanta just 1:42 apart to tie the game. No one else decided to score in regulation, forcing the Canes into their 11th overtime game of the season. The trio of Jordan Staal, Brent Burns, and Jaccob Slavin were on the ice for almost two minutes as Dallas held on to the puck and if not for a save and cover from Raanta, they might have been out there a lot longer. Shortly after they changed, Martin Necas began and ended the play that would eventually lead to the game-winner. He carried the puck the length of the ice and passed it to Svechnikov and while his shot was stopped, Svechnikov stuck with it to find Necas with a wide-open net after Scott Wedgewood over-committed. It was a hard-working play that would secure the Canes the second point. 

This game had a little bit of everything in it. I didn't love how this game was officiated at all. There were 13 minor penalties called in the first two periods before none were called in the third despite some obvious offenses. Even some of the penalties that were called felt very questionable. One call, the high-sticking penalty on Jordan Martinook that felt like it was a follow-through, even led to a goal. I thought Raanta played well in his first game in 16 days. I can't fault him for the three goals on redirections because Dallas might be the best in the league in that aspect. The game-tying goal from Hakanpaa is likely one that he'll want back. He was very good and he made some crucial saves at important times in the game. I love that the offense found its stride tonight and that five different guys scored. It's always good when the team gets contributions from all up and down the lineup. This is a recipe for success for teams that want to make it far. I could watch these two teams play way more than twice in a season. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Teuvo Teravainen (Goal, Assist)

Add Teravainen to the list of guys that have gotten the monkey off of their backs with his first goal of the season tonight. He placed a perfect shot over the shoulder of Wedgewood during the 5-on-3 to finally get the job done. He added an assist on the opening goal of the game that was redirected in by Noesen. It's always nice to see someone as stoic as Teravainen crack a smile. 

Second Star- Andrei Svechnikov (Goal, Assist)

Without Aho in the lineup, Svechnikov has stepped up and found some success to add to the great start he was already having. I'm willing to bet that Wedgewood stops the shot he scored on more often than not but he wired it. He was also impressive on the winning goal as he stuck with the play and found Necas to finish the game. 

First Star- Martin Necas (Goal, Assist)

Necas is the first guy to crack 30 points for the team with another multi-point performance tonight. He only gets credit for contributing to the two goals but he was essential in the first goal too, winning the face-off that led to the score. He assisted on the Teravainen goal for his second power-play point of the night before putting an end to the game in overtime on a play that started with him.  

What's Next

The homestand continues tomorrow night with the first of four straight games against division opponents. The second half of the back-to-back will feature the first of two games this week with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Pittsburgh has won seven in a row after their victory on Thursday night over the Florida Panthers. The Penguins scored three goals on special teams in their 4-2 win. While they'll play tomorrow night in Raleigh, they'll meet again in Pittsburgh on Thursday night for their third game of the season series. It's the third game of the homestand for the Canes before they welcome in the division-leading New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night.