2023 Postseason: Round 2, Game 1- Hurricanes v. New Jersey Devils
The second round of the playoffs is set to begin and this is going to be an absolute slugfest between the Hurricanes and the Devils. Both teams fended off New York teams in the first round with Carolina taking down the Islanders in six games and New Jersey vanquishing the Rangers in a fantastic seven-game set. Now, the two teams separated by one point in the division will fight to represent the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference Finals. There are some familiar faces on this Devils team with Dougie Hamilton leading the charge defensively and Erik Haula playing against the Canes for the third straight postseason. The story of the first round was goalie Akira Schmid, who took over in the net in Game 3 to help New Jersey win found of their next five games to win the series. For the Canes, they are trying to break a trend that dates back to the 2020 bubble. Since reaching the conference finals in 2019, the Hurricanes have failed to win more than one round in the postseason. Last year, they were one win away from advancing before losing in Game 7 in the second round to the Rangers. They've historically fared well against the Devils in the postseason, winning each of the last three series. This is not going to be easy but it's certainly going to be a spectacle. Tonight, the fun begins.
Canes Lineup
Stefan Noesen-Sebastian Aho-Seth Jarvis
Jordan Martinook-Jesperi Kotkaniemi-Jesper Fast
Jack Drury-Jordan Staal-Martin Necas
Paul Stastny-Derek Stepan-Jesse Puljujarvi
Jaccob Slavin-Brent Burns
Brady Skjei-Brett Pesce
Shayne Gostisbehere-Jalen Chatfield
Injuries/Scratches/Extras- Teuvo Teravainen (broken hand), Mackenzie MacEachern (healthy), Antti Raanta (healthy), Vasily Ponomarev (healthy), Calvin de Haan (healthy), Dylan Coghlan (healthy), Pyotr Kochetkov (healthy)
IR- Andrei Svechnikov (Torn ACL), Max Pacioretty (Achilles), Ondrej Kase (concussion)
Jack Drury will return to the lineup after leaving Game 4 early and missing the final two games of the series. He'll replace Mackenzie MacEachern, who was big in the Canes' win in Game 4. There has been some restructuring of the lines as Stefan Noesen will join Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis on the top line. Jesperi Kotkaniemi will have Jordan Martinook and Jesper Fast on his sides, while their usual center, Jordan Staal, will have Jack Drury and Martin Necas with him. The fourth line and defense will remain the same.
Starting Goalies
NJ- Akira Schmid (4-1, 1.38 GAA, .951 SV%, 2 shutouts in the 1st Round)
It's no surprise that the Devils will ride the hot hand of the 22-year-old rookie to begin the series. He allowed just seven goals in the final five games of the first round, five of them coming in one game. Two of his last three starts were shutouts as Schmid really did a number of the Rangers' offense. He's never faced the Canes in his career.
CAR- Frederik Andersen (1-0, 33 saves on 34 shots in Game 6 of the 1st Round)
The Canes have decided to go with Andersen after his brilliant performance to clinch the series in Game 6 last Friday night. It'll be his second start of the postseason. Andersen did not face the Devils at all this season. He holds a 7-2-0 record with a .934 SV% and a 2.11 GAA in nine career starts against New Jersey.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
(CAR) 9:41- Brett Pesce (1) (assisted by Jordan Staal (3))
(CAR) 14:43- Seth Jarvis (3) (unassisted)
2nd Period
(CAR) 1:55- Jesperi Kotkaniemi (1) (assisted by Jordan Martinook (1) & Jesper Fast (1))
(NJ) 5:02- Nathan Bastian (1) (assisted by Michael McLeod (2))
3rd Period
(CAR) 10:17- Brady Skjei (1) (assisted by Sebastian Aho (4) & Stefan Noesen (3))
(CAR) 16:44- Jesper Fast (3) EN (assisted by Jordan Martinook (2) & Jordan Staal (4)
Let's Talk About the Game
If you're the Canes, I'm not sure there is too much you don't like about this game. They completely dominated the New Jersey Devils for the better part of 60 minutes and came away with an emphatic Game 1 victory. The scoring depth showed up big time and the defense clamped down on New Jersey's stars all night. The first period was a lesson in how to kick off a game as the Canes ran roughshod on New Jersey. Brent Burns did take the game's first penalty but if we're being completely honest, there was no trip. It didn't matter though as Erik Haula was called for tripping about a minute later to negate the penalty and it almost ended with a goal. John Marino made an excellent block to deny Martin Necas a likely goal with Akira Schmid out of position as the Devils eventually killed the abbreviated chance. The Canes scored the first goal of the period and it formed almost out of nowhere. Jordan Staal won the draw back to Brett Pesce and he held on to the puck as the bodies moved in front of Schmid. Pesce released a quiet wrister and Schmid never saw it as it flew into the net just before the midway point of the period. The Canes kept their foot on the gas for the rest of the period and they would get another. While hockey is a team sport, Seth Jarvis turned it into a one-man show with a three-zone play. In the defensive zone, he broke up a pass out of mid-air from Ryan Graves. In the neutral zone, he flipped the puck past Graves to spring himself on a 2-on-1. In the offensive zone, he lifted the puck over Schmid's glove to add to the lead. It was a beautiful play from Jarvis to further distance the Canes from the Devils. The Canes drew a late penalty and looked very good with plenty of great chances. They didn't score before the end of the period but the damage had been done. The Canes led 2-0 while holding the Devils to one shot. It really wasn't even a shot because New Jersey just flipped the puck into the zone and it ended up on Frederik Andersen. No matter how it happened, the Canes controlled the period.
The good times kept rolling to start the second period. It started very early with Jesperi Kotkaniemi scoring his first of the postseason at the side of the net just 1:55 into the frame. This was enough to force Lindy Ruff to make a change in the net to boost his team. Schmid faced 11 shots in just under 22 minutes and allowed three goals, but his team didn't do much to help him. Vitek Vanecek came in try and change the momentum and it honestly worked. Just a few minutes after the change, New Jersey got on the board with just their second shot of the game. It was New Jersey's fourth line that got it done as Michael McLeod got Nathan Bastian into the zone alone and he softly wristed one past Andersen to make it 3-1. This tilted the ice to New Jersey's side for the first time in the game and it would last for most of the period. There were several scrambles in front of Andersen's net that managed to stay out of the net. The charge seemed to end with Nico Hischier going to the box for tossing the puck over the glass. While the Canes didn't score during this power play, both Aho and Jarvis rang the iron as they looked to regain their three-goal lead. The penalty kill would handcuff the Devils one last time before the end of the period as the Canes carried their two-goal lead into the third period.
At the beginning of the third period, it felt like New Jersey was going to be one shot away from getting back into the game and stealing the momentum back. The Canes did an excellent job of keeping the puck in the offensive zone but they couldn't beat Vanecek. As the Canes controlled the early part of the period, the Devils pushed back for a few minutes. Andersen was ready for the onslaught as his active blocker kept every rebound away from the net to limit rebounds. He also got some help from the iron on a chance by Dougie Hamilton. The proverbial dagger would come just a little bit after the halfway point of the period. The Aho line got the puck into the zone with some pace and the goal would come off of the stick of Brady Skjei as he labeled a shot past Vanecek to make it 4-1. New Jersey would call Vanecek to the bench with just under four minutes left as they trailed by three goals, trying to find some offense to spark a comeback. Instead, the Canes would find the empty net as Jesper Fast scored his third goal of the postseason to make it 5-1 and the game was done from there. The Canes surrounded Andersen and celebrated a victory as they took the first game at home.
This was such a big way to start this series. Everything you wanted to see the Canes do came to fruition in this one. Get the defense going on offense? Pesce and Skjei each scored a goal. Keep the New Jersey stars off the scoresheet? Jack Hughes had two shots and was a -3. Ondrej Palat was also a -3. Erik Haula, Dawson Mercer, Nico Hischier, and Dougie Hamilton were all -2. The only players to get on the board were the fourth line, which was easily New Jersey's best all night. Get Schmid off his game? He only lasted 21:55 and allowed three goals on 11 shots. Dominate special teams? The power play, while scoreless, looked great and the penalty kill was unbeatable. Match any physicality thrown your way? The Canes outhit the Devils 37-34 with all but two players recording a hit. Get solid goaltending? Andersen wasn't busy but he was good, stopping 17 of 18 shots. It was a great start but it's just the beginning. The Canes still have to win four games to advance. They have one. We can enjoy this victory for now. Come Friday, everything resets because New Jersey is not going to be happy.
Canes' Three Stars of the Game
Third Star- Brett Pesce (Goal)
The defense is going to play a huge part in this series on both ends of the ice, so for Pesce to get the first goal of the series could cause a massive ripple effect. I thought he and Skjei had a tough first round but each scored tonight. Pesce nearly had a second goal on a wrap chance that was denied. He joined a large group of Hurricanes that finished with three hits tonight to go along with his goal.
Second Star- Jordan Martinook (2 Assists)
Martinook ended the first round with a strong performance in Game 6 without being rewarded with a point. Getting points from him to start the series is a good sign. He set up the Kotkaniemi goal that would chase Schmid from the game in the second period and set up Fast for the empty-net goal to put this game to bed. Add three blocked shots for him tonight and it was an excellent Game 1 for Martinook.
First Star- Jordan Staal (2 Assists)
The captain was going at it with Palat tonight, especially in the third period. Palat tried to throw a hit at him at one point and he stared daggers into Palat's soul as he skated away. The captain had a very good night, setting up two goals, including Pesce's opening goal, while also finishing with three hits and three blocked shots. The captain sets the tone for this team and they followed his example tonight.
Around the League
Toronto/Florida (FLA 1-0)- The Panthers followed up their major upset victory in the first round by taking it to the Maple Leafs in Toronto to take a 1-0 series lead. Sergei Bobrovsky was spectacular as the Panthers stunned a Toronto team that didn't seem to push back much in the third period.
Dallas/Seattle (SEA 1-0)- Seattle scored four goals in the first period against Jake Oettinger to silence the crowd in Dallas. They were given plenty to cheer about as Joe Pavelski scored four goals in his return from the injury he sustained in Game 1 against Minnesota but Yanni Gourde would win it in overtime for Seattle.
Vegas/Edmonton (Begins tonight)- If the first period of Game 1 is any indication, this is going to be a fun series. Leon Draisaitl scored twice in the period but Vegas scored three goals in-between to hold a 3-2 lead after the first period.
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