"PK, the PK, and Christmas Cheer in the Big Apple": 2024-25 Regular Season, Game 33: Hurricanes at New York Rangers

It was a Sunday matinee for the Hurricanes as they traveled to New York for their second meeting with the Rangers. The Canes had their two-game winning streak ended on Friday night but looked to recover against a Rangers team struggling to string wins together. With tensions mounting and players already being moved, New York was looking to find some stability against a division opponent. With both teams playing the first half of a back-to-back, they sent their top goalies into battle in a clash at Madison Square Garden.

Scoring Summary

1st Period

NYR (0:17)- Jimmy Vesey (3) (Chad Ruhwedel (1) & Adam Edstrom (2))

2nd Period

CAR (9:14)- William Carrier (4) (Jaccob Slavin (9) & Jordan Staal (10))

CAR (14:32)- Jack Roslovic (14) PP (Dmitry Orlov (13) & Pyotr Kochetkov (2))

3rd Period

CAR (18:18)- Sebastian Aho (10) EN (Andrei Svechnikov (14) & Pyotr Kochetkov (3))

My Thoughts

The Hurricanes didn't inspire much confidence with how they started, allowing a goal 17 seconds into the game to Jimmy Vesey. I was convinced we were about to see the demons of Madison Square Garden come out to haunt the Canes for another long game in New York. Instead, they only seemed to haunt the Rangers, who lost at home once again. A good part of that lies in the goalie battle and the special teams battle, both of which were won by the Hurricanes on Sunday afternoon. Still, I couldn't help but be concerned about New York coming right out of the gates with a goal on the first shot. Maybe I should've had a little more trust that things were going to be alright.

Each period of this victory had a signature moment or sequence from Pyotr Kochetkov. In the first period, he withstood an insane amount of pressure from the Rangers early, getting everything thrown at him after they took the lead. In the second period, it was the short-handed pad stop on Chris Kreider after he missed the poke check to keep it 1-0. In the third period, it was the stop he made before Brent Burns took a penalty paired with the one-time stop on Reilly Smith during the ensuing power play. Kochetkov was insane today. Not only did he play an outstanding game in the net, Kochetkov provided a pair of assists as the only player on the ice with multiple. He quite literally did it all for the Hurricanes. He outplayed Igor Shesterkin, but Shesterkin was excellent in his own right. He made big stops in big moments to give his team a chance. It was an excellent goaltending battle which was won by the Canes today.

The other big win came on special teams. While the Canes only scored once on the power play, their first goal might as well have been one. It came nine seconds after a power play had ended as the reliable trio of Martinook, Staal, and Carrier, the eventual goal-scorer, helped knot the game. The one power-play goal they had was very important, too. It came after Jack Roslovic drew a double-minor from Alexis Lafreniere for high sticking. Naturally, Roslovic would be the one to score the goal with four seconds remaining in the advantage. As for the penalty kill, they were perfect, going 4-for-4 and preventing the Rangers from getting anything substantial. Given how important special teams were during the second round, the Canes have held the decisive edge, going 3-for-9 on the power play and 6-for-6 on the kill in two meetings this season.

All of this begs the question, what's really wrong with New York? The Rangers are 4-12-0 in their last 16 games and sit at .500 at the end of the day. Goaltending isn't the issue, so it's clearly something with the offense. This is the second time the Canes have made Artemi Panarin a non-factor. Vincent Trocheck and Chris Kreider had one shot each, though Kreider's was a big one. Their most dangerous group was the one on the ice for the goal at the beginning of the game. They're in the Bottom 10 in the league in goals scored, which isn't something you'd expect from a team with their skill. There is still time for them to figure it out, but the race in the Eastern Conference is a treacherous one. 

When We Meet Again- The Canes will be back in New York at the end of January for the third meeting of the season. With their win this afternoon, the Canes have ensured no worse than a split with the Rangers this season.

#RaiseUp First Star of the Game- Pyotr Kochetkov

When you make history for recording points as a goalie, that's a surefire way to be the game's first star, his performance in the net notwithstanding. This won't go down as a game that Pyotr Kochetkov needed to steal, but he might've done it anyway. He made a ton of important stops on high-danger chances to keep the game at 1-0 and 2-1. Add two assists to the mix and you've got one of the most memorable performances of his career.

The Road Ahead- The Hurricanes will be in Nashville tomorrow night for their final game before the holidays. Nashville is another team that has underperformed this season, but they should be ready to go before Christmas. After the break, they'll start on Friday in New Jersey for a home-and-home that brings them back to Raleigh on Saturday. Their last game of 2024 will be in Columbus on New Year's Eve.