2023-24 Regular Season, Game 17: Hurricanes vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (Pregame)

The Carolina Hurricanes returned to PNC Arena after splitting their trip in Florida to face the Philadelphia Flyers. Playing their first nationally televised game of the season, the Canes didn't look sharp. Owen Tippett opened the scoring just 1:50 into the game on the Flyer's first shot. Tippett's shot came off his stick quickly, eluding Pyotr Kochetkov under his arm. The Canes made a strong push after the goal, but Carter Hart made fantastic saves on Jordan Martinook, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, and Jack Drury to keep it a 1-0 game. The Flyers took back control, getting a late goal from Travis Konecny to double their lead before the intermission. Ryan Poehling made it 3-0 just 29 seconds into the second period after Dmitry Orlov made a terrible turnover to gift the Flyers another goal. While Hart was good, he wasn't perfect. The fourth line got one great look, carving up the defense to get Stefan Noesen a goal. Orlov began the play behind Kochetkov, moving the puck to Noesen, who bumped it to Drury. He found Tony DeAngelo jumping into the play, and the defenseman fed Noesen for a one-timer to finish the play, making it 3-1. The Canes were unable to get closer, and their only good chance of the third period would result in Michael Bunting throwing a backhander off the post as the Flyers held on for a 3-1 win. The loss was Carolina's first at PNC Arena this season. 

The Opponent: Pittsburgh Penguins (8-7-0, 16 Points- 6th in the Metropolitan Division)

After barely missing the playoffs last season, the Pittsburgh Penguins were aggressive in the offseason. They brought back Tristan Jarry for five years to be their starting goalie, then added former Hurricane Alex Nedeljkovic to sure things up. They gave multi-year contracts to Ryan Graves, Noel Acciari, Lars Eller, and Matt Nieto. They acquired Stanley Cup winner Reilly Smith from Vegas. However, their biggest move was trading for reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson from the San Jose Sharks, in a move that sent shockwaves through the league. For all the moves the Penguins made, their season didn't get off to a good start. Pittsburgh lost six of its first nine games, starting 3-6-0. A ten-goal performance in San Jose helped to turn things around as they went on a five-game win streak to bring their record back above .500. The usual suspects continue to carry the load for Pittsburgh. Sidney Crosby tops the team with ten goals and 20 points, while Jake Guentzel and Evgeni Malkin are close behind with 19 and 17, respectively. Jarry has also started his new contract strong, picking up three shutouts in his first 12 starts. The Penguins were tied 2-2 going into the third period in their last game against New Jersey on Thursday night, but three goals in the period by the Devils allowed them to run away with a 5-2 win to snap Pittsburgh's streak. 

Last Season's Meetings- The Hurricanes swept the four meetings between the two teams a year ago, winning all four games by one goal. The first meeting was in late November in Pittsburgh. The Canes led 2-1 after goals in the second period by Martin Necas and Andrei Svechnikov, but Jake Guentzel scored with less than a minute left in regulation to force overtime. Many would argue that Seth Jarvis got away with a boarding penalty in overtime. However, Svechnikov walked into the zone with Brett Pesce, and the defenseman ended the game to win it for Carolina. They met again in Raleigh a week before Christmas. Pittsburgh took a 2-1 lead early in the third period courtesy of former Hurricane Brock McGinn. Brady Skjei tied it a few minutes later before Jordan Staal gave the Canes the lead again as they held on for the win. It was a short turnaround as the third meeting happened four days later in Pittsburgh. They went back and forth for most of the game, but Staal was able to find the tying goal with less than 4:30 left. The Canes would again prevail in overtime as Jaccob Slavin finished the job 23 seconds into the extra session. The final meeting came a few weeks into 2023 in Raleigh. Skjei scored in the first period and Jalen Chatfield in the second, which was enough to take a 2-1 win to complete the sweep. 

Stories of the Night

1. Responding to a divisional home loss

Wednesday's effort against the Flyers was their worst since the western road trip at the beginning of the season. They were sloppy with the puck in all three zones. Defensive breakdowns led to goals against. They provided no help to Pyotr Kochetkov, offensively or defensively. With a few days between games, this gave the team enough time to throw out the Philly game to prepare for another division opponent. While the Flyers are a solid team, the Penguins are even better. Being at home is sure to help ease that preparation. It'll be a tough 60 minutes, but the Canes will be better prepared for Pittsburgh. 

2. Offense and Defense Becoming One

We've seen the offense show up while the defense sat at home. We've seen the defense play well with no goal support. Now, it's time to put them both together consistently. We've seen glimpses of it in shutout wins over San Jose and Tampa Bay. They haven't been able to do it for stretches of games. Part of it is consistency amongst the stars. While there have been plenty of strong individual performances, there has been a lack of cohesion at times. When one line is going, the other three haven't been pulling their weight. On Wednesday, the fourth line carried the play. The rest of the lines were invisible. It's not a sustainable model for success. The Canes have yet to go on a long win streak this season. It could begin tonight. 

3. Norris Winner on a New Team

Last season, as a member of the San Jose Sharks, Erik Karlsson scored 101 points en route to his third Norris Trophy win. He was the best player on an abysmal team, and he wanted a change of scenery. Negotiations came down to Pittsburgh and Carolina, but the Penguins were able to provide a much better package to get the job done. Karlsson's time with the Penguins didn't start well, scoring four points in his first eight games. However, things have taken a sharp turn in the right direction. He's on a seven-game point streak, scoring 12 points during his streak, with five multi-point contests. He's being relied upon to play big minutes for the team, and he's coming through. He, along with the established Penguins stars, is making them look like serious contenders in the division as long as they can stay hot.