Thoughts From My Couch

The Hurricanes finished up their March slate in Montreal on Saturday night against the Canadiens. Having already clinched a spot in the postseason, the Canes turned their eyes to some bigger prizes as they continued to chase down the Rangers in the division and the President's Trophy. It would be a battle between the team's hottest lines, as Sebastian Aho and Nick Suzuki led their respective groups in the final meeting between teams moving in opposite directions in the standings. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (9:33)- Jordan Staal (9) SH (assisted by Teuvo Teravainen (27)) 3rd Period CAR (3:42)- Sebastian Aho (33) PP (assisted by Seth Jarvis (33) & Jake Guentzel (43)) CAR (17:18)- Seth Jarvis (29) EN (assisted by Jake Guentzel (44) & Sebastian Aho (52)) My Thoughts The Hurricanes' shutout streak is now a little over 120 minutes as Pyotr Kochetkov got back into the swing of things with a big confidence-boosting win. It was tight for a while, but Carol...

Thursday night was a great night in Raleigh for the Carolina Hurricanes and all of their fans. For the sixth season in a row, the Hurricanes punched their ticket to the postseason, becoming the third team in the Eastern Conference to do so. After a tough loss to the Penguins on Tuesday, the Canes faced the Red Wings at PNC Arena. After a scoreless first period, the Canes' offense took over in the second. Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis scored 57 seconds apart, the latter of which was on the power play. Martin Necas joined the party just past the midway point in the period, burying a one-timer after a great pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov. Brady Skjei rounded out the scoring late in the period by picking up a rebound off the end boards and beating Jame Reimer to make it 4-0. Detroit tried to push back in the third period, but the Canes' defense kept them in check. Frederik Andersen made 12 stops in the third, accounting for half of his 24 saves for the game as he picked up the shutout ...

The Hurricanes looked to clinch a postseason spot on Thursday night after failing to do so on Tuesday night in Pittsburgh. Trying to get the job done with two points against the Red Wings, Detroit was looking to find a way to keep its own hopes alive in the playoff race, embattled in a tight Wild Card race with Washington and others in the Metropolitan Division. With a season sweep in mind, the Canes hoped for a better offensive output after being goalie'd on Tuesday night by a familiar face. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (4:42)- Sebastian Aho (32) (assisted by Jake Guentzel (41) & Seth Jarvis (31)) CAR (5:39)- Seth Jarvis (28) PP (assisted by Sebastian Aho (50) & Jake Guentzel (42)) CAR (10:46)- Martin Necas (23) (assisted by Evgeny Kuznetsov (15) & Jordan Martinook (15)) CAR (16:23)- Brady Skjei (13) (assisted by Sebastian Aho (51) & Seth Jarvis (32)) 3rd Period None My Thoughts Be honest with the group. The first 20 minutes made you a little anxi...

The Hurricanes traveled to Pittsburgh on Tuesday night for Jake Guentzel's return but came home with a sour taste in their mouth after being out-goalied by a familiar face. The Penguins struck first in the second period as former Hurricane Jesse Puljujarvi snapped one past Pyotr Kochetkov early in the middle frame. Dmitry Orlov responded with the Canes' lone tally of the night. The real turning point was late in the second period when Bryan Rust's shot hit off Brett Pesce's skate and deflected over Kochetkov's shoulder to give the Penguins a late lead. The Canes were the better team in the final 40 minutes, but they couldn't solve Alex Nedeljkovic. Despite the massive edge in shots, Nedeljkovic kept the Canes in check, making 38 stops. Drew O'Connor and Sidney Crosby scored into the empty net, giving Pittsburgh a 4-1 win, snapping the Canes' road point streak and overall point streak. The Opponent: Detroit Red Wings (36-29-7, 79 Points- 5th in the Atlant...

The Hurricanes celebrated a homecoming as Jake Guentzel made his first trip to Pittsburgh as a visitor on Tuesday night. Playing the Penguins for the first time since being traded to Carolina, the Canes hoped to help him get one over on his former teammates. The Canes rode into the game on a seven-game point streak after Sunday's tight victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Pittsburgh has fallen to the back of the pack in the playoff hunt, likely playing out the rest of their season before spending the postseason at home. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period PIT (2:41)- Jesse Puljujarvi (3) (assisted by Lars Eller (13) & Valtteri Puustinen (14)) CAR (11:17)- Dmitry Orlov (6) (assisted by Jack Drury (20)) PIT (18:09)- Bryan Rust (23) (assisted by Sidney Crosby (40)) 3rd Period PIT (18:04)- Drew O'Connor (11) EN (assisted by Sidney Crosby (41)) PIT (19:37)- Sidney Crosby (35) EN (unassisted) My Thoughts Did you know that, despite what conventional wisdom might have you a...

The Hurricanes recovered nicely from their weird 7-6 shootout loss on Friday night by handling business against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday night at PNC Arena. All of the Canes' scoring came in the first period. Brady Skjei snapped one past Joseph Woll 66 seconds into the contest, and Sebastian Aho got a friendly bounce off Jake McCabe's skate to extend the lead on the power play. From there, the game was in Frederik Andersen's hands. Against his former team, Andersen put up 32 saves, allowing just one goal in the third period of a 2-1 win for the Hurricanes. Sebastian Aho extended his point streak to six games, and Jake Guentzel added another assist, giving him ten since being acquired at the trade deadline. The Canes, whose win streak was snapped at five games in the Washington loss, extended their point streak to seven games as they earned the season sweep over Toronto. The Opponent: Pittsburgh Penguins (30-30-10 70 Points- 7th in the Metropolitan Division) Last Me...

Daily Headlines Monday 3/18 Alex Ovechkin reaches 20 goals for the 19th time in his career, scoring twice in a 5-2 win in Calgary.  Jeff Skinner records his seventh career hat trick to help the Sabres handle the Kraken 6-2 to keep their outside playoff hopes alive. Tuesday 3/19 David Pastrnak scores twice early and completes his hat trick later in the night in a 6-2 win for the Bruins over the Senators. Mark Scheifele lights up New York, recording a hat trick to help the Jets win on the road 4-2 at Madison Square Garden. Mikko Rantanen's third of the night proves to be the difference as the Avalanche escape St. Louis with a 4-3 win. The Predators score seven unanswered goals to defeat the Sharks 8-2 to tie their franchise's longest point streak at 15 games. Patrick Kane helps keep the Red Wings in a playoff spot by setting up Lucas Raymond for the tying goal late in regulation before winning it 4-3 in overtime over the Blue Jackets. Wednesday 3/20 Auston Matthews and Alex Ovech...

After a wild one in D.C. on Friday night, the hope was that things would get back to normal as the Hurricanes looked to extend their point streak to seven games. The Canes' top line of Sebastian Aho, Jake Guentzel, and Seth Jarvis have been tearing it up, but the rest of the lineup was looking to get into the fun as they welcomed the Toronto Maple Leafs to town for their only meeting of the season. Without Mitch Marner, Toronto has still been able to put up big numbers offensively, including six goals in a win last night against the Oilers. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (1:06)- Brady Skjei (12) (assisted by Jordan Staal (19) Jordan Martinook (14)) CAR (13:55)- Sebastian Aho (31) PP (assisted by Jake Guentzel (40) & Brent Burns (29)) 2nd Period None 3rd Period TOR (8:51)- Nicholas Robertson (10) (assisted by Auston Matthews (34)) My Thoughts Now, this was more like it. After the dumpster fire that was Friday's shootout loss to the Capitals, the Hurricanes returned to their ...

Friday night was a wild and wacky time in Washington, D.C., for the Carolina Hurricanes. It felt like neither the Canes nor the Capitals ever truly took control of the game, swapping the lead several times throughout the first 60 minutes. Whenever one team scored, another goal seemed to follow, especially during the final 28 minutes of the contest. Ultimately, the Hurricanes weren't able to pick up their sixth straight win, falling 7-6 in a five-round shootout to the Capitals. The top line continued to roll for the Hurricanes. Sebastian Aho scored his eighth career hat trick, giving him 30 goals for the season. Jake Guentzel recorded three primary assists, giving him 11 points in seven games as a Hurricane. Seth Jarvis scored on the power play in the third period, extending his goal streak to six games. Martin Necas added two assists, and Jaccob Slavin had a goal and an assist in the first period, while also making a game-saving stop in overtime. It was an ugly and rare poor defens...

The Hurricanes completed a back-to-back in Washington D.C., looking to extend its win streak to a season-high six games. After beating the Flyers 3-2 in overtime last night, they were looking for a much stronger and more consistent game after not looking as cohesive on Thursday. The Capitals remain in the hunt for a playoff spot, needing to make use of the two games they have in hand over the Flyers and Red Wings. With their season coming down to the wire, they needed to give it their all to ensure their efforts weren't in vain. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (6:53)- Sebastian Aho (28) (assisted by Jake Guentzel (37) & Jaccob Slavin (25)) WSH (12:45)- Sonny Milano (11) PP (assisted by Connor McMichael (14)) CAR (19:12)- Jaccob Slavin (5) (assisted by Jesperi Kotkaniemi (14) & Stefan Noesen (20)) 2nd Period WSH (13:59)- Alex Ovechkin (24) PP (assisted by Dylan Strome (32) & Ivan Miroshnichenko (3)) WSH (14:40)- Sonny Milano (12) (assisted by Dylan Storme (33)) CAR (15:23...

Riding a big overtime victory over the Flyers last night, the Hurricanes will complete their second back-to-back in less than a week on Friday night in the U.S. capital. It was a tough battle in Raleigh on Thursday night, with Philadelphia in town for a potential playoff preview. The scoring didn't start until the second period. Jordan Martinook ripped one bar down from the slot on a 3-on-2 to get the Canes ahead. Scott Laughton responded 25 seconds later on a breakaway to immediately take the momentum back. Jalen Chatfield clapped one from inside the blue line in transition to beat Samuel Ersson past the midway point in the period to restore the Canes' one-goal lead. The Flyers completely outworked the Hurricanes in the third period, getting the tying goal from Travis Konecny, sending the game to overtime. The Canes dominated overtime. Less than 90 seconds into the extra frame, Seth Jarvis buried a 2-on-1 with Brent Burns, giving him goals in five straight to help the Canes ta...

After an incredible road trip for the Hurricanes, they returned to PNC Arena on Thursday night for the first half of a back-to-back against the Philadelphia Flyers. While their stay at home will be short, it was nice to see them back in the friendly confines to battle the team they'd be playing in the first round of the playoffs if the season needed today. This was an important game for the Flyers, who are looking to maintain their spot in the division with several teams trying to make a run at what is currently theirs.  Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (3:56)- Jordan Martinook (13) (assisted by Martin Necas (27) & Brett Pesce (10)) PHI (4:21)- Scott Laughton (12) (assisted by Joel Farabee (28) & Bobby Brink (12)) CAR (10:43)- Jalen Chatfield (8) (assisted by Sebastian Aho (49) & Dmitry Orlov (20)) 3rd Period PHI (10:16)- Travis Konecny (28) (assisted by Morgan Frost (26) & Owen Tippett (21)) Overtime CAR (1:28)- Seth Jarvis (26) (assisted by Brent Bur...

The Carolina Hurricanes are back at PNC Arena after sweeping a three-game road trip. After back-to-back wins over the weekend over Toronto and Ottawa, the Canes battled the Islanders on Long Island. The game was decided in the first period. Seth Jarvis and Jake Guentzel connected twice, with Jarvis finishing two shots just 2:05 apart to put the Canes ahead. Martin Necas finished one on the power play with 1.3 seconds left in the period to put Carolina up 3-0 after the first period. Neither found the back of the net in the second period, but New York would get on the board when Kyle Palmieri popped home a rebound to break Pyotr Kochetkov's shutout. This wouldn't give the Islanders any momentum as Jake Guentzel would add the empty-net goal to complete his three-point night and a 4-1 win to finish the trip.  The Opponent: Philadelphia Flyers (35-26-8, 78 Points- 3rd in the Metropolitan Division) Last Meeting- While they met three times in just under a month earlier in the season, ...

The Hurricanes made their final stop on a three-game road trip, meeting the New York Islanders on Long Island for their fourth and final meeting of the regular season. With the road team coming out on top in the previous three meetings, the Canes hoped to keep that trend going to even up the season series. With the Islanders hoping to stick around in the playoff hunt, they needed these two points more than anything. They've proven to be a tough opponent for the Canes this season, so this would be a good test for both teams moving in opposite directions. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (12:48)- Seth Jarvis (24) (assisted by Brady Skjei (28) & Jake Guentzel (35)) CAR (14:53)- Seth Jarvis (25) (assisted by Jake Guentzel (36) & Jaccob Slavin (24)) CAR (19:58)- Martin Necas (22) PP (assisted by Evgeny Kuznetsov (14) & Brady Skjei (29)) 2nd Period None 3rd Period NYI (4:30)- Kyle Palmieri (22) (assisted by Brock Nelson (30) & Bo Horvat (33)) CAR (16:22)- Jake Guentzel (24)...

The Carolina Hurricanes completed a Canadian back-to-back over the weekend, picking up wins in Toronto and Ottawa. Their win in Ottawa on Sunday was very close until it wasn't. Dmitry Orlov opened the scoring after the Canes completed an early penalty kill, but Thomas Chabot got it back at the end of the period. Evgeny Kuznetsov scored his second as a Hurricane on the power play, giving the Canes the lead until Tim Stutzle responded less than three minutes later. The turning point in the game came in the final seconds of the second period. As he did in Toronto on Saturday, Seth Jarvis scored with less than 30 seconds left in the middle frame to put the Canes back out front going into the third period. The offense took it from there. Jalen Chatfield joined his defensive partner in the goal column. Orlov scored his second of the night from the point with a clapper off the left post. Jake Guentzel scored his first as a Hurricane on a beautiful pass from Sebastian Aho. Brendan Lemieux ...

Daily Headlines Monday 3/11 Kasperi Kapanen's three-point night and Joel Hofer's 36 stops help the Blues dominate the Bruins in Boston in a 5-1 win.  Tuesday 3/12 Rangers forward Matt Rempe is suspended for four games after being ejected on Monday night for elbowing Devils' defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler. Igor Shesterkin stops 28 shots to post his second straight shutout as the Rangers win a huge divisional matchup 1-0 over the Hurricanes. Connor Bedard (1G, 4A), Nick Foligno (4A), and Philipp Kurashev (2G, 2A) control the game from the jump as the Blackhawks beat the Ducks 7-2 in a one-sided tilt. Zach Benson's first career three-point game and Bowen Byram's two goals pace an offensive explosion as the Sabres win 7-3 to hand Detroit their sixth straight loss. The Panthers overcome a 3-0 deficit, scoring four unanswered, including three on the power play, to stun the Stars in Dallas 4-3. Colorado scores five goals in the third period, and Mikko Rantanen goes for four...