2023-24 Regular Season, Game 43: Hurricanes vs. Los Angeles Kings (Postgame)

Today was a big day in organizational history as the Hurricanes inducted Justin Williams into the Hurricanes Hall of Fame. They did so with the Los Angeles Kings, the team Williams won his other two Stanley Cups with, in town. Following the ceremony before the game, the two sides faced off as the Canes looked to stay hot while the Kings tried to find the win column for the first time in eight games. With it being an emotional day, the Canes looked to temper their emotion to pick up two more points. 

Scoring Summary

1st Period

LAK (6:24)- Trevor Moore (19) (assisted by Phillip Danault (17) & Vladislav Gavrikov (8))

2nd Period

CAR (5:38)- Jordan Martinook (5) (assisted by Seth Jarvis (18) & Brent Burns (17))

3rd Period

LAK (1:01)- Phillip Danault (9) (assisted by Matt Roy (10) & Vladislav Gavrikov (9))

LAK (2:21)- Alex Laferriere (6) (assisted by Mikey Anderson (12) & Pierre-Luc Dubois (10))

LAK (5:20)- Pierre-Luc Dubois (9) (assisted by Jaret Anderson-Dolan (3) & Mikey Anderson (13))

CAR (8:58)- Jack Drury (8) (assisted by Stefan Noesen (15) & Jalen Chatfield (8))

LAK (18:44)- Trevor Moore (20) EN-SH (assisted by Phillip Danault (18) & Matt Roy (11))

My Thoughts

Well, that certainly didn't go how I'd hoped it would. On a day that was supposed to be a joyous celebration of a Hurricanes Hall of Famer, the ending was a bit sad. The ceremony itself was phenomenal. I loved the video package the organization put together for him. I thought his speech was great. It was clear how much this honor meant to him, his entire family, and the entire organization. I also appreciated the Kings being on the bench for it, similar to how Montreal sat through Cam Ward's induction last season. It's always heart-warming when you see moments like that in a sport remembered most for its brutal hits and fights. It was a world-class moment for a world-class individual. 

That makes what happened in the third period that much worse. Through 40 minutes, this was a tight, well-played game from both teams. Antti Raanta and David Rittich went toe-to-toe and only had one blemish on their ledger going into the third period. Boy, how quickly things can change. The Kings scored three times in the first 5:20 of the period to deflate PNC Arena. It was like they were waiting until the last second to make us all feel bad. Raanta did his best, but it wasn't enough. I'm not placing any blame on him for the three goals. The first goal was a bad bounce off the boards. The next two came because no one was anywhere near the eventual goal scorer. You probably had an argument that Carl Grundstrom should've been called for a penalty before the fourth goal, but it doesn't matter now. To top it off, the power play, which had been practically winning games by itself, failed to convert twice in the third when the team could've gotten back into the game. The top unit had nothing going for it. 

I've been known to be a "silver linings"-type of person, so there were a few things I did like about the game. The bottom six did all the scoring for the Canes, with a few of their hottest players finding the scoresheet. Seth Jarvis has points in three straight with his helper on Jordan Martinook's goal, which is his third in as many games. Stefan Noesen made another highlight-reel pass to Jack Drury for a goal. Noesen seems destined to best his career-high in points, while Drury is on his way to a double-digit goal season after scoring his 8th today. Dmitry Orlov and Jalen Chatfield had a solid game. I liked Raanta's game for 40 minutes. The penalty kill went 4-for-4. It wasn't all bad for the Canes. It was just that five-minute stretch that decided the game. 

To cap off the day, we got to see the NHL debut of Yaniv Perets, who relieved Raanta after the Kings went up 4-1. I liked that he got to see a lot of time in the third period. He wasn't particularly busy, only facing one shot. The good news is that he stopped it, denying Pierre-Luc Dubois with his blocker with the Canes down 4-2. I'm not going to draw too much from this appearance since it was in relief, but it was nice to see it didn't turn out like when Jack LaFontaine made his debut a few years ago and didn't look good. I still need to see more from him before proclaiming he will make a great partner with Pyotr Kochetkov in the future, but this was a positive step in the right direction. Maybe he'll get a chance to start a game if Kochetkov remains out. 

My Three Stars of the Game

3rd Star- Jack Drury- 1 goal

Every time Drury does something good, I think back to how we all wanted him gone at the beginning of the season. His performance is likely why we haven't seen Suzuki or Rees get called up yet. After recording one point in his first 15 games, Drury has been on a tear, picking up his third point in four games. His goal was a big one at the time, getting the Canes a step closer before ultimately failing to come back. 

2nd Star- Brent Burns- 1 assist

The Hurricanes finished the afternoon with 32 shots. Nine of them came off the stick of Burns. Drury was the closest to him, with five. While none of them landed in the back of the net, Burns did manage a secondary assist on the Martinook goal to tie the game in the second period. Burns is another guy who has turned it up lately, playing at a point-per-game pace over his last 11 contests. 

1st Star- Jordan Martinook- 1 goal

For all the guys who are playing well for the Canes right now, none are doing it quite like Martinook in January. After starting 2024 with one goal, Martinook has four goals in six games this month, including goals in the last three games. He, along with Jarvis and Staal, have been one of the team's most reliable lines lately, getting it done on both ends of the ice. 

Up Next- Another long break awaits the Canes as they remain off until returning to the ice on Friday night against the Detroit Red Wings. That will be the team's penultimate game of the homestand before finishing things up against Minnesota on Sunday. For the final week before the All-Star Break, the Canes will play back-to-back in Boston and at home against New Jersey before finishing up with Arizona.