2023-24 Regular Season, Game 8: Hurricanes vs. Seattle Kraken (Postgame)

Returning home on a three-game losing streak, the Hurricanes played their first home game at PNC Arena in 15 days. They were met by the Seattle Kraken, who'd beaten the break off them during their west coast road trip. Eyeing some revenge, the Canes looked to turn the tides in front of a raucous crowd in Raleigh on Thursday night. 

Scoring Summary

1st Period

SEA (11:24)- Oliver Bjorkstrand (2) (assisted by Jade Schwartz (1) & Jamie Oleksiak (1))

SEA (14:52)- Devin Shore (1) (assisted by Oliver Bjorkstrand (5))

CAR (18:22)- Martin Necas (3) (assisted by Michael Bunting (4) & Jesperi Kotkaniemi (5))

2nd Period

None

3rd Period

CAR (15:36)- Jesperi Kotkaniemi (4) (assisted by Martin Necas (5) & Brady Skjei (6))

Overtime

CAR (4:50)- Martin Necas (4) (assisted by Tony DeAngelo (4) & Sebastian Aho (3))

My Thoughts

With each overtime, Martin Necas continues to write himself into the lore of Carolina Hurricanes history. It's like he turns into a new player every time the 3-on-3 session begins. Since the start of the 2022-23 season, the Hurricanes have won ten games in overtime, excluding the shootout. Necas is responsible for exactly half of those victories. Tonight's winner was the bookend to an excellent night for Necas. His line with Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Michael Bunting was excellent. They provided all the offense on the scoresheet but were far from the only contributors to this win. 

The beginning of the game was all too familiar. Seattle jumped out to a 2-0 lead, capitalizing on lousy line changes and lackadaisical defense from the Canes. Oliver Bjorkstrand scored the opening goal by making one small move to the inside to get Brett Burns off balance, snapping one bar in past Frederik Andersen. A few minutes later, Bjorkstrand made an excellent aerial pass to Devin Shore, who knocked it out of mid-air and beat Andersen between his pads. This play was either dangerously close to being offside, or it was offside. We never got a great angle to confirm or deny whether it was clean, so we're left to speculate. Regardless, this was not an ideal place for the Hurricanes to be in the first period. 

This is where tonight's game differed from all of the team's other games. The team pressed to end the period, finally getting some luck to score. Brian Dumoulin fell as he received the puck from Joey Daccord, allowing the Kotkaniemi line to swarm. Jesperi Kotkaniemi tossed it to Michael Bunting, who passed it to Martin Necas at the front of the net. While Dumoulin almost recovered to deny the chance, Necas batted the puck home in the final two minutes to get the Canes a little momentum going into the second period.

The second period adopted the "close, but no cigar" mindset. Both teams had their chances to score. The Kraken nearly scored three times at the beginning of the period, with Matty Beniers coming the closest by ringing the puck off the post. Sometimes, you need a little help from the iron to stay in the game. Sebastian Aho had the Canes' best chance of the period. On a short-handed breakaway, Joey Daccord did just enough to thwart his chance, sending Aho's shot wide. When the horn sounded for intermission, the Canes were in the same spot they started the period in. It was refreshing to see a scoreless period, especially since it was the first time it'd happened this season in the Canes game. 

I didn't like the team's start to the third period, but they eventually woke up and started fighting to tie the game. The Kraken spent the early portion of the period in the offensive zone, but Frederik Andersen and the defense weren't breaking. There were many excellent defensive plays in the third. Brady Skjei arguably made the most important one of the night. Skjei left his skates to take a puck away from Seattle, leading a breakout. He passed it over to Martin Necas on his backhand. Necas, in no position to shoot the puck, spun and found Jesperi Kotkaniemi trailing the play. With Joey Daccord out of position, Kotkaniemi snapped one into the top of the net with 4:24 left in regulation to finally get the Hurricanes back even, ensuring at least one point in the process. 

Seattle controlled the puck for most of the 3-on-3. Frederik Andersen had to make three saves, his biggest coming with 30 seconds left against Adam Larsson, using his glove to ensure the puck didn't squeak through. The Hurricanes transitioned the puck up the ice. Tony DeAngelo made a strong backhand pass to Martin Necas at the top of the dots. That's all she wrote. Joey Daccord stood no chance against the most lethal 3-on-3 player in the league. 

There is little not to love about the Canes' game tonight. The defense made some huge plays, especially on odd-man rushes. Frederik Andersen was outstanding in his return. Despite allowing two goals, we will remember his final 45 minutes in all their grandeur. Special teams didn't play a factor. Both teams had one power play all night, and neither team scored. While the Kotkaniemi line did all the scoring, the trio of Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, and Seth Jarvis also looked great. They combined 12 shots, though their efforts weren't rewarded.

My Three Stars of the Game

3rd Star- Frederik Andersen- 24 saves

This is the Andersen we've been waiting to see this season. While he won his first two starts, he'd yet to put together a complete game. Neither goal tonight was his fault, yet he flushed them and closed this one perfectly. Hopefully, this will snowball into a string of great starts. 

2nd Star- Jesperi Kotkaniemi- 1 goal, 1 assist

While his efforts on the scoresheet will get all the glory, his best play on the night game on defense. With Seattle transitioning in the third period, Kotkaniemi made a great play on the backcheck to legally lift a stick and steal the puck. If Seattle scores there, his game-tying goal likely never happens.

1st Star- Martin Necas- 2 goals, 1 assist

With the Canes' shutout loss to Tampa on Tuesday, Necas had a point streak snapped at four games. Clearly, he was not happy about it. He responded by having a hand in all three goals tonight. He's turned into the team's not-so-secret weapon in overtime. If he has the puck on his stick, there's a good chance it's going in the back of the net. 

Up Next- The Hurricanes will be back in action on Friday night against San Jose. The Canes defeated the Sharks during their road trip, scoring four goals in the third period to win 6-3. Seth Jarvis scored twice in the win. Afterward, the Hurricanes are back on the road for a trio of games in the Northeast. They'll start by facing the Flyers before meeting the Rangers and Islanders in New York.