2022-23 Regular Season, Game 69: Hurricanes (45-15-8) at New York Rangers

The road for the Canes doesn't get much harder than this. Over the next eight days, the Hurricanes will play five games against four of the eight best teams in the league. While they'll get to do most of it at home, they have to begin on the road tonight in one of the toughest barns in the NHL for road teams. The Cardiac Canes found a way to earn two points on Saturday night in a game that they looked like they were going to win in regulation for 40 minutes, then looked like they were going to lose in regulation before the Canes found their magic in the final seven seconds. Sebastian Aho and Brady Skjei got the Canes on the board in the first period and after the Flyers finally broke through, Aho scored his second of the game just past the midway point of the game to give the Canes a 3-1 lead. Philadelphia would score three unanswered goals, including two goals in 1:27 in the third period, to take their first lead of the game. Philadelphia looked likely they were about to pull off the upset. With 0:07 left, the Canes drew their first power play of the night and after Shayne Gostisbehere was stopped after the Canes won the draw, the puck managed to get back to the front of the net where Martin Necas slid it into the net with 0.3 seconds left to force overtime. Aho wasted no time in overtime, completing his third hat trick of the season in 28 seconds by dangling through Tony DeAngelo to secure a 5-4 victory for the Canes. Tonight's game will be the first half of a home-and-home with the Rangers as the two teams will meet in Raleigh on Thursday night. 

Projected Lines/Pairs

Seth Jarvis-Sebastian Aho-Martin Necas

Jordan Martinook-Jesperi Kotkaniemi-Teuvo Teravainen

Stefan Noesen-Jordan Staal-Jesper Fast

Jesse Puljujarvi-Derek Stepan-Jack Drury

Jaccob Slavin-Brent Burns

Brady Skjei-Brett Pesce

Shayne Gostisbehere-Jalen Chatfield

Frederik Andersen

Pyotr Kochetkov

Injuries/Scratches- Paul Stastny (healthy), Calvin de Haan (healthy), Dylan Coghlan (healthy),

Antti Raanta (lower-body injury; day-to-day)

IR- Andrei Svechnikov (Torn ACL), Max Pacioretty (Achilles), Ondrej Kase (concussion)

There are going to be a few changes to the forward lines tonight with Seth Jarvis jumping up to the first line, Jordan Martinook and Teuvo Teravainen joining the second line, Jesper Fast being reunited with Jordan Staal along with Stefan Noesen on the third line, and Jesse Puljujarvi joining the fourth line. The defense will remain the same and Frederik Andersen will start again tonight for the Canes. 

Tonight's Opponent: New York Rangers (41-19-10, 92 Points, 3rd in the Metropolitan Division)

There isn't a hotter team in the league right now than the Rangers. They've picked up points in their last seven games (6-0-1) and have scored 15 unanswered goals over their last three games. They've shut out their last two opponents 6-0 and 7-0, the latter of which came on Sunday night against the Nashville Predators. By the 9:09 mark, the Rangers had scored four goals on five shots and chased Kevin Lankinen from the game. By 13:36, they had made it 6-0 and before the halfway point in the game, it was 7-0, where it would sit. K'Andre Miller finished with four points in the first period, setting a Rangers record for points in a period by a defenseman. Artemi Panarin added to his team lead in points with another three-point performance. Vincent Trocheck, Jacob Trouba, and Mika Zibanejad also finished with multi-point games and Jaroslav Halak stopped all 22 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season. Zibanehad was just named the NHL's First Star of the Week after leading the league with five goals and tying for the lead with nine points. He has multi-point games in his last four outings and in seven of his last 12. This team has only gotten more dangerous since the deadline and they are slowly climbing their way back into the hunt for the division. 

Last Meeting v. Carolina- Through two periods in their last game in Raleigh, things were pretty even. Zibanejad scored on the power play in the first period before Teuvo Teravainen and Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored less than three minutes apart in the second period and looked to be in control going into the intermission. Then, Artemi Panarin took over. He'd score before the end of the period to tie the game and absolutely tortured the Canes in the third. The Rangers would outscore the Canes 4-0 in the final period with Panarin scoring three of the four, finishing the night with four goals and an assist as the Rangers won 6-2. 

New York's Starting Goalie: Igor Shesterkin (32-11-7, 2.57 GAA, .921 SV%)- For a game of this magnitude, the Rangers will be going with their reigning Vezina winner. Shesterkin is unbeaten in his last five starts, allowing just nine goals over that span. He's coming off a 33-save shutout against Pittsburgh on Saturday. He was in the net for the Rangers' 5-3 victory over the Canes at Madison Square Garden in January. He's 2-2-0 against the Canes in the regular season with a 3.07 GAA in four starts in the regular season. 

New York Player to Watch: Patrick Kane- The Canes have already seen one of New York's big deadline acquisitions. Now, they get to face the other one. It'll be very weird seeing Kane in a blue sweater after all of his years in Chicago. He's fit in nicely with the Rangers, scoring seven points in nine games, including four points in his last four. He's been especially effective on the power play, scoring two of his three goals with the man advantage since the move. Kane has traditionally been productive against the Canes in his career, with 22 points in 27 games, though his -16 v. Carolina is also something to watch. 

Scoring Summary

1st Period

(NYR) 17:00- Tyler Motte (6) (assisted by Barclay Goodrow (16) & Jimmy Vesey (14))

2nd Period

None

3rd Period

(CAR) 9:49- Jalen Chatfield (6) (assisted by Derek Stepan (6) & Jack Drury (3))

(NYR) 10:20- Kaapo Kakko (13) (assisted by Ryan Lindgren (17) & Adam Fox (54))

(CAR) 10:38- Stefan Noesen (11) (assisted by Jesper Fast (15) & Jordan Staal (14))

(CAR) 17:27- Teuvo Teravainen (11) (assisted by Brent Burns (41) & Jesperi Kotkaniemi (21))

Let's Talk About the Game

It doesn't matter whether you look at this game as the Canes having stolen two points from the Rangers or not. The Canes were the better team for 60 minutes and they earned every bit of those two points. Getting the job done in regulation makes it even sweeter. Despite being the better team, the Hurricanes played most of the night from behind. Both Igor Shesterkin and Frederik Andersen came to work tonight and did everything they could to win this game. They traded saves in the first period as both offenses threw the puck at the net from all angles. It wasn't until late in the period that the ice was broken. After neither team could win the draw cleanly, Jimmy Vesey stepped in and won it forward to Barclay Goodrow. This created a mini 2-on-1 for the Rangers as Goodrow set up Tyler Motte for a tap-in to get the Rangers ahead. It was a bit of a gut punch for the Canes after a very strong first period only to find themselves down 1-0 after one. The Canes came out moving in the second period but the momentum would grind to a halt after Jordan Martinook was called for a penalty. The kill never let the Rangers' power play get anything going as they killed it. Carolina was right back on the Rangers after the successful kill. Their best chance came on a shot from Brett Pesce that hit something on its way to the net and rang the post. The power play would come up empty and right as it was about to expire, Jesperi Kotkaniemi would take a penalty. The Canes would kill the first 1:10 of the infraction before the horn sounded for the intermission with things exactly where they were to begin the period. 

To this point, the Hurricanes had played an excellent road game with nothing to show for it. The Rangers hadn't allowed a goal since the third period on Thursday night of their 4-2 victory over Pittsburgh. The Canes would kill the remainder of the Kotkaniemi penalty and pick up right where they left off. Still, nothing was getting past Shesterkin. To make matters worse, the Canes would find themselves short-handed again after Jesper Fast was called for tripping Shesterkin. It was a bit of an infuriating penalty on two fronts. The Canes had only drawn one call to this point in the game and this felt like a very weak call as Fast was just trying to turn up the ice and he went skate-to-skate with Shesterkin. It also would've been infuriating if this was the difference in the game. Instead, the kill dug in and got the job done for the third time tonight. This would help to spark the Canes as they broke the Rangers' shutout streak. The fourth line was finally rewarded for their work. Derek Stepan would hit Jalen Chatfield as he sped up the ice. Chatfield would fire a dart over the blocker of Shesterkin and off the post to knot the game and give the Canes some life. As soon as that life was breathed into the Canes, it was knocked right back out of them. 31 seconds after the Canes tied it, Ryan Lindgren threw a shot at the net that would never make it as it was blocked. The puck would bounce into the slot for Kaapo Kakko and he would make no mistakes as he fired one past Andersen to put the Rangers right back ahead. The crowd hadn't settled down before the Canes tied it right back. Jordan Staal turned into a madman in the offensive zone, fighting off to Rangers to get the puck over to Jesper Fast. No sooner was the puck on Fast's stick that he fired it to the top of the crease for Stefan Noesen and the newest member of the third line fired it into the back of the net. What was once a goalie duel had turned into a bloodbath with three goals in 49 seconds. On this night, the Canes would get the last laugh. With under three minutes left in regulation, Kotkaniemi won a battle along the boards to keep the puck in the offensive zone. He slid the puck to the point for Brent Burns and he quickly looked to the front of the net. He sold the shot while he found the stick of Teuvo Teravainen. With Shesterkin on his stomach, Teravainen elevated his redirection to put the Canes ahead for the first time with 2:33 left. The Canes did an excellent job of making Shesterkin wait to vacate his net for the extra attacker and with the Rangers pressing, Andersen stood tall until the final horn as the Canes earned a huge win to net two points and reach 100 for the season. 

Tonight, the Canes won three key battles that they'd lost in both meetings with the Rangers before tonight. First, they won the special teams battle. While the Canes didn't score on the power play, neither did the Rangers. The Canes' killers were 3-for-3 tonight after killing just two of six chances in the first two games. Second, they held the Rangers' stars in check. Outside of an assist from Adam Fox, they kept Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Vladimir Tarasenko, Patrick Kane, and Chris Kreider off the board tonight. They did finish with 15 shots between the five of them but no points. Lastly, the Canes won the third period. The Rangers held a 7-0 advantage in the third period in the first two games. Tonight, the Canes won the third period 3-1. Once they broke through Shesterkin, the goals flooded in and it got them the win. It was a great team victory with all 18 skaters contributing in some way and Andersen playing well all night. He didn't have to be a superstar but Andersen outdueled Shesterkin down the stretch. Just like the Rangers had done to the Canes twice this season, Carolina found a way to be the streak-breakers as they halted the Rangers' seven-game point streak. This was a genuinely great game from both teams, which means Thursday night is going to be a bloodbath. 

Canes' Three Stars of the Game

Third Star- Jordan Staal (Assist)

It was extremely hard to pick three stars from tonight's game but I'm starting with the captain. He will only get a secondary assist on the Noesen goal despite winning a battle for the puck and getting it over the stick of the defender to find Fast. From there, Fast and Noesen did the rest. He didn't record a shot but the captain finished with the assist, two hits, and two blocks to round out a solid night. 

Second Star- Jalen Chatfield (Goal)

As has been the case all season, the defensemen are a crucial part of the Canes' offense. Tonight, it was Chatfield that got the Canes going. It was going to take a perfect shot to beat Shesterkin for the first one. That's exactly what Chatfield's shot was as he rang the iron and got one into the net as part of the three-goal third period. He and Gostisbehere were solid tonight. 

First Star- Brent Burns (Assist)

It was tempting to put Teravainen in this spot for the game-winner and while Kotkaniemi deserves a ton of credit for the goal, the pass from Burns was the real star. Burns waited for the lane to open up and he put the puck perfectly on Teravainen's stick. Burns also put in some excellent work on the kill as part of their perfect effort tonight. He's only adding to his record after breaking the team's record for points by a defenseman in a single season on Saturday night. 

What's Next for the Canes

The "Homestand from Hell" as I'm choosing to call it will begin on Thursday night with a rematch with the Rangers. This will be the final meeting of the season between the two teams with the Canes looking to even the series. After that, the Canes will host a weekend back-to-back with the top two teams in the Atlantic. It'll begin with the third and final meeting of the season with the Maple Leafs on Saturday night, the first half of a back-to-back for both sides. They'll then welcome the Boston Bruins to town for the final meeting of their season series on Sunday night. The Bruins will also be in action on Saturday, hosting Tampa Bay that afternoon. The homestand ends with the Lightning coming to Raleigh next Tuesday night. 

What's Next for the Teams in the Playoff Hunt

New Jersey (98 Points, 2 Points behind Carolina, the Canes have 2 games in hand)- The Devils dropped a 2-1 decision in overtime, picking up a point but falling back by one tonight. They're off until Friday when they play a back-to-back on Friday (in Buffalo) and Saturday (hosting Ottawa). 

New York (R) (92 Points, will likely play whoever doesn't win the Metro)- After tonight's loss, they'll travel to Raleigh for Thursday night's game with the Canes. They'll remain on the road after Thursday, traveling to play the Panthers on Saturday before returning home to play Columbus on Tuesday. 

New York (I) (82 Points, currently the first Wild Card and the Canes' current first-round opponent)- The Islanders dismantled the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight, beating them 7-2 on Long Island. They're off until Friday when they will play a back-to-back on Friday (in Columbus) and Saturday (hosting Buffalo). 

Florida (79 Points, currently the second Wild Card and 3 Points back of New York)- The Panthers dropped a 6-3 decision to the Philadelphia Flyers on the road tonight. They'll be at home for their next two games, hosting Toronto on Thursday and the Rangers on Saturday. 

Pittsburgh (78 Points, 1 Point out of a Wild Card spot)- The Penguins lost last night 2-1 to the Ottawa Senators. They have a mid-week back-to-back kicking off tomorrow night in Colorado before visiting the Dallas Stars on Thursday night. They'll return home to host Washington on Saturday.