Thoughts From My Couch

With clinching a playoff spot out of the window following Montreal's win in Sunrise this afternoon, the Canes could focus on getting two points against another team desperate for wins. As their magic number continues to shrink, the home team tries to make it two in a row before a big showdown with the Capitals on Tuesday night. New York lost yesterday afternoon in Tampa and could ill-afford to drop another as their search for a Wild Card spot continued in Raleigh.  Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (4:41)- Mark Jankowski (11) (Eric Robinson (18) & Tyson Jost (3)) CAR (4:54)- Logan Stankoven (11) (Jordan Martinook (21)) NYI (6:10)- Pierre Engvall (7) (Adam Pelech (19)) NYI (11:27)- Kyle Palmieri (23) PP (Noah Dobson (27) & Bo Horvat (26)) 2nd Period NYI (1:37)- Pierre Engvall (8) (unassisted) CAR (8:35)- Sebastian Aho (28) PP (Shayne Gostisbehere (34) & Taylor Hall (21)) CAR (17:29)- Seth Jarvis (28) SH (Sebastian Aho (40) & Jaccob Slavin (18)) 3rd Period NYI (4:05)- An...

The Carolina Hurricanes played another strong game on Friday night, beating the Montreal Canadiens, 4-1. The teams traded goals in the opening minute. Josh Anderson was left alone to bury a one-timer after a defensive breakdown, giving Montreal the lead 23 seconds in. It took 18 seconds for the Canes to respond, getting help from Kaiden Guhle as he accidentally put Jackson Blake's redirection past Samuel Montembeault. The rest of the first period was very volatile as the sides got very chippy. The Canes' top line continued its dominance in the second period. After Sebastian Aho's pressure created a power play, Blake set up Taylor Hall, who played his 900th game, between the dots for his fifth goal in three games. Just over two minutes later, Seth Jarvis put a perfect saucer pass on Aho's stick for a one-timer in transition to extend the lead to two. Frederik Andersen was tested in the third period but refused to let Montreal back into the game. Andrei Svechnikov, who re...

It's Friday night in Raleighwood, which usually means Hurricanes hockey for the masses. For this week's installment, the Canes welcomed the Montreal Canadiens for their only visit of the season. After losing at home on Tuesday, the group needed to regroup to face a desperate Canadiens team trying to hold onto their final Wild Card spot. The Canadiens have lost four straight but have managed at least a point in seven of their last ten. This would be no small task, especially after Montreal shut out Carolina when they visited in February. Scoring Summary 1st Period MTL (0:23)- Josh Anderson (13) (Brendan Gallagher (15) & Christian Dvorak (18)) CAR (0:41)- Jackson Blake (12) (unassisted) 2nd Period CAR (13:46)- Taylor Hall (17) PP (Jackson Blake (15) & Seth Jarvis (28)) CAR (16:10)- Sebastian Aho (27) (Seth Jarvis (29) & Jackson Blake (16)) 3rd Period CAR (19:00)- Andrei Svechnikov (19) EN (Jordan Martinook (20)) My Thoughts It's crazy to think that Jackson Blake h...

The Carolina Hurricanes suffered a rare regulation loss at home to the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night, falling 3-1. Old friend Michael Bunting was the first to break through, scoring with five seconds left on the power play after Pyotr Kochetkov wasn't able to find a loose puck. Luke Evangelista doubled the lead early in the second, scoring on a breakaway. Evangelista made Kochetkov look silly, freezing him by faking to his backhand before skating around him and scoring into the empty net on his forehand. Taylor Hall quickly responded, scoring his fourth goal in two games by burning the defense and beating Juuse Saros on the power play. The Canes were outplaying the Predators but weren't getting anything past Saros. Evangelista redirected a shot to score his second of the night, providing the insurance marker as the Predators held the Canes in check in the third. Saros finished with 34 stops to earn the victory. The Opponent: Montreal Canadiens (33-29-9, 74 Points- 5th in...

The group is back in Raleigh to begin the final homestand of the season against the Nashville Predators. However you want to look at it, the Canes are on a roll. They've won nine of their last ten and ten of 12 since late February to open up a nice lead over the Devils. On the other side, the Predators are third from the bottom in the league during what can only be described as a miserable season. Nothing has gone right for them as they try to sweep the season series with Carolina in the Canes' barn. Scoring Summary 1st Period NSH (5:14)- Michael Bunting (16) (Kieffer Bellows (1) & Brady Skjei (17)) 2nd Period NSH (4:01)- Luke Evangelista (8) (Filip Forsberg (38) & Michael Del Gaizo (6)) CAR (6:02)- Taylor Hall (16) PP (Seth Jarvis (27) & Shayne Gostisbehere (33)) 3rd Period NSH (12:48)- Luke Evangelista (9) (Michael Del Gaizo (7) & Ryan O'Reilly (27)) My Thoughts I was fully prepared to talk about how Juuse Saros is a dominant force in Raleigh that is stron...

The Carolina Hurricanes completed their three-game California trip with a victory in Anaheim on Sunday night. After Frederik Andersen and Lukas Dostal battled to a scoreless tie after 20 minutes, Mark Jankowski scored his sixth goal in seven games as a Hurricane, redirecting Tyson Jost's pass for the opening marker. Alex Killorn tied it for the Ducks late in the period, beating Andersen five-hole, but Jordan Martinook quickly responded by knocking Shayne Gostisbehere's wide offering home on the rebound, giving the Canes a 2-1 advantage after two periods. Taylor Hall became his massive third period by scoring on the power play early. Trevor Zegras brought the Ducks within a goal late, but Hall scored twice more in less than a minute apart to complete the hat trick and lead the Canes to a 5-2 victory. Andersen was spectacular, making 35 stops to earn his eighth win in ten road appearances.  The Opponent: Nashville Predators (26-36-8, 60 Points- 7th in the Central Division) Last M...

With one last stop on their California trip, the Canes tried to start a new winning streak after the Kings snapped their eight-game streak on Saturday. Returning to their regular lineup after injuries and illness forced them to change things up, the group was working with a full deck against the Ducks. Frederik Andersen returned to his old stomping grounds hoping for a better effort from the group after an abysmal showing in Los Angeles.  Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (7:59)- Mark Jankowski (10) (Tyson Jost (2) & Brent Burns (20)) ANA (13:04)- Alex Killorn (17) (Jackson LaCombe (25)) CAR (14:37)- Jordan Martinook (13) (Shayne Gostisbehere (32) & Logan Stankoven (23)) 3rd Period CAR (2:32)- Taylor Hall (13) PP (Jackson Blake (14) & Seth Jarvis (26)) ANA (16:37)- Trevor Zegras (9) (Jacob Trouba (13) & Olen Zellweger (10)) CAR (17:13)- Taylor Hall (14) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (20) & Jack Roslovic (13)) CAR (18:02)- Taylor Hall (15) EN (Jack Roslovic (1...

The Carolina Hurricanes had their eight-game win streak pulverized on Saturday afternoon by the Los Angeles Kings. Adrian Kempe scored on the Kings' first shot just over three minutes into the game to break the ice. Anze Kopitar got a friendly bounce off Jordan Martinook's skate to help the Kings capitalize on the power play. With 3.7 seconds left, Andrei Kuzmenko added a dagger to a rough period to extend the lead to 3-0 before the intermission. The Kings really broke the game open with three goals in the second period to put the game out of reach early. Trevor Moore snapped a shot bar down to make it 4-0. Tanner Jeannot received a pass from Alex Turcotte after the Canes couldn't find the bouncing puck, ripping one past an unsuspecting Pyotr Kochetkov less than a minute later. Quinton Byfield did almost the exact same thing to make it three goals in 2:43 and give the Kings a 6-0 lead. Dmitry Orlov made sure there wouldn't be a shutout, getting a bounce to beat David Ri...

The Canes start their weekend back-to-back with their toughest game on their California trip against the Kings on Saturday afternoon. Riding a season-long eight-game win streak after their victory over San Jose, the Canes hoped to be one of the few teams in the league to beat the Kings in their barn this season. With Seth Jarvis and Taylor Hall looking to extend point streaks, the visitors tried to ensure a winning trip in a battle between playoff-bound teams. Scoring Summary 1st Period LAK (3:03)- Adrian Kempe (29) (Samuel Helenius (3) & Tanner Jeannot (5)) LAK (14:39)- Anze Kopitar (17) PP (Andrei Kuzmenko (15) & Drew Doughty (8)) LAK (19:56)- Andrei Kuzmenko (7) (Anze Kopitar (38)) 2nd Period LAK (5:58)- Trevor Moore (15) (Philip Danault (29) & Warren Foegele (19)) LAK (6:49)- Tanner Jeannot (6) (Alex Turcotte (15) & Drew Doughty (9) LAK (8:41)- Quinton Byfield (18) (Kevin Fiala (21)) CAR (14:17)- Dmitry Orlov (5) (Jalen Chatfield (11) & Logan Stankoven (22)) 3rd...

The Carolina Hurricanes began their California trip by knocking off the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. The Canes conceded a weird short-handed goal late in the first period. Brent Burns tripped William Eklund on a 2-on-1, sending him into Frederik Andersen while the puck crossed the goal line without Andersen being able to do anything. They would get it back in the second period after excellent pressure from the top line kept the puck in the zone and forced the Sharks to turn it over. Seth Jarvis was on the spot to roof a shot from the slot past Georgi Romanov to tie the game. The top line struck again early in the third period to give the Canes their first lead. Jackson Blake's work below the goal line allowed him to find Sebastian Aho alone above the dots for a one-time bomb. Late in the game, Sean Walker provided the insurance goal, scoring after more great work from Taylor Hall. The cherry on top was a great late-game penalty kill as the Canes held on for a 3-1 victory. And...

The pause has come to an end as the Hurricanes kick off their three-game California adventure with the San Jose Sharks. Neither team has played since Saturday, cutting off the Canes in the middle of a seven-game win streak. After a big shutout victory in their outing against the Flyers, everything seems to be rolling in the right direction for the team as they begin their penultimate long trip of the campaign. San Jose remains one of the bottom feeders of the league, but their flashy young core has shown glimpses of something special during another hard season. Scoring Summary 1st Period SJ (13:00)- William Eklund (15) SH (Ty Dellandrea (6)) 2nd Period CAR (10:31)- Seth Jarvis (27) (unassisted) 3rd Period CAR (4:58)- Sebastian Aho (26) (Jackson Blake (13) & Brent Burns (19)) CAR (14:18)- Sean Walker (4) (Taylor Hall (20) & Shayne Gostisbehere (31)) My Thoughts Remember when we all thought the Canes wouldn't win another road game ever again? I guess we were overreacting a li...

The Carolina Hurricanes extended their winning streak to seven games on Saturday night by shutting out the Philadelphia Flyers during the first of four straight road games. Sebastian Aho got it started, finishing a chance that Jackson Blake created to break the ice. Late in the first period, Mark Jankowski buried a pass from Eric Robinson to pick up his third goal since being traded. Taylor Hall scored 19 seconds into the second period on the power play, finishing a third chance after Shayne Gostisbehere and Aho had been denied. Jankowski was the benefactor of another great Robinson pass late in the middle frame, snapping a shot of the short-side post past Ersson for his second multi-goal game in a week. The icing on the cake was Scott Morrow scoring his first NHL goal in the final minute of the third period, potting a Logan Stankoven rebound in a 5-0 Hurricanes victory. Pyotr Kochetkov was phenomenal, stopping 26 shots to record his second shutout of the season and the 10th of his car...

After completing a perfect homestand, the Hurricanes head to Philadelphia to finish their back-to-back before earning some time off. The win last night against Detroit was tight but the offense showed up at an important time to ensure victory. Against a Flyers team that is starting to fall out of the playoff race, the Canes couldn't afford to take anything for granted. The Flyers always seem to give the Canes a good game, so it would be no small task to finish their weekend before a five-day hiatus. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (8:21)- Sebastian Aho (25) (Jackson Blake (12) & Seth Jarvis (25))  CAR (15:46)- Mark Jankowski (7) (Eric Robinson (15) & Tyson Jost (1))  2nd Period CAR (0:19)- Taylor Hall (12) PP (Sebastian Aho (39) & Shayne Gostisbehere (29)) CAR (13:15)- Mark Jankowski (8) (Eric Robinson (16) & Shayne Gostisbehere (30)) 3rd Period CAR (19:28)- Scott Morrow (1) (Logan Stankoven (21) & Taylor Hall (19)) My Thoughts To call a hockey game "perfect...

The Carolina Hurricanes finished their four-game homestand with a 4-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night. Despite dominating the period, the Canes conceded the first goal late in the first when Alex DeBrincat snapped a shot to the top corner on Frederik Andersen. The offense came to life early in the second period, getting two goals in the first six minutes from the Kotkaniemi line. Jesperi Kotkaniemi's shot was redirected by Taylor Hall 22 seconds into the frame to knot the game before Kotkaniemi set up Jack Roslovic for a tap-in a few minutes later. Jalen Chatfield extended the lead to two with a snipe midway through the period. Michael Rasmussen pulled Detroit within a goal early in the third with an excellent effort to pot a rebound. The Red Wings weren't able to find the tying goal as Eric Robinson put the game away with the empty-net goal. Kotkaniemi (2A) and Roslovic (G, A) had multi-point nights and Andersen made 24 stops as the Canes extended their win ...

To conclude their four-game homestand, the Canes welcomed the Red Wings to town, squaring off for the second time in ten days. Carolina was victorious in a tight defensive struggle in Detroit last Tuesday, but they strove for more offense amidst a five-game winning streak. Detroit also poured on the goals in their last outing, defeating the Sabres 7-3 at home on Wednesday to snap a six-game losing streak. With the Canes trying to make up ground in the division and the Red Wings fighting for the final Wild Card spot, these two points were valuable for both sides.  Scoring Summary 1st Period DET (18:07)- Alex DeBrincat (31) (Ben Chiarot (7)) 2nd Period CAR (0:22)- Taylor Hall (11) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (18) & Jack Roslovic (12)) CAR (5:44)- Jack Roslovic (21) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (19) & Scott Morrow (2)) CAR (12:18)- Jalen Chatfield (6) (Sean Walker (10) & Seth Jarvis (24)) 3rd Period DET (2:53)- Michael Rasmussen (10) (Tyler Motte (4)) CAR (18:49)- Eric Robinson (13) EN (Br...

The Carolina Hurricanes extended their win streak to five games on Tuesday night by shutting down the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Lenovo Center. Seth Jarvis got the crowd roaring early by burying a beautiful short-handed shot over Andrei Vasilevskiy's glove from a tough angle. The Canes' 1-0 lead withstood tremendous pressure from the Bolts and only remained in place after some incredible stops by Vasilevskiy. However, one soft goal changed the trajectory of the game. Seconds after robbing Jordan Staal, Jordan Martinook threw a backhand from near the goal line that rode up Vasilevskiy's stick and into the net to make it 2-0. In the final minute of the second period, Jack Roslovic hit a milestone by burying a 2-on-1 pass from Taylor Hall to record his 100th career goal. Gage Goncalves broke the shutout early in the third, but Sean Walker responded immediately to restore the three-goal lead and snap a 42-game goalless drought. Pyotr Kochetkov was spectacular, making 23 stops t...

The homestand continues as the Hurricanes welcome their third of four visitors to the Lenovo Center. On Tuesday night, in front of the Caniacs, the team met with the red-hot Tampa Bay Lightning. While the Bolts didn't do much at the deadline, they didn't really need to, considering how scorching their offense has been lately, outside of their shutout loss on Saturday to Boston. The Canes hoped for another encouraging game from their new guys after Mark Jankowski and Logan Stankoven combined for three of the team's four goals on Sunday.  Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (4:29)- Seth Jarvis (26) SH (Sebastian Aho (38)) 2nd Period CAR (12:56)- Jordan Martinook (12) (unassisted) CAR (19:15)- Jack Roslovic (20) (Taylor Hall (18) & Jalen Chatfield (10)) 3rd Period TBL (4:38)- Gage Goncalves (3) (Brandon Hagel (41) & Darren Raddysh (25)) CAR (6:26)- Sean Walker (3) (Jordan Staal (21)) My Thoughts Watching the Bolts' top power play work had me jealous because the way they...

The Carolina Hurricanes welcomed their newest additions to the lineup on Sunday night, battling the league-leading Winnipeg Jets at the Lenovo Center. Both made immediate impacts. Mark Jankowski opened the scoring late in the first period, snapping a beautiful shot past Connor Hellebuyck's glove. Then, he crashed the net and knocked home another early in the second to double the advantage. Logan Stankoven joined the party early in the third period, redirecting a shot from Shayne Gostisbehere on the power play to make it 3-0. Alex Iafallo broke the shutout with less than three minutes left, but Seth Jarvis scored into the empty net to put it away. Adam Lowry made it look closer than it was with a last-minute tally, but the Canes dominated on their way to a 4-2 win. Andersen made 20 stops in the victory, including some pretty ones to keep the Jets off the board in the second and third periods.  The Opponent: Tampa Bay Lightning (37-22-4, 78 Points- 3rd in the Atlantic Division) Last ...

Fresh meat entered the lineup for the Hurricanes as they welcomed the Winnipeg Jets for the first game after the trade deadline. With Mikko Rantanen shipped to Dallas, Logan Stankoven made his team debut after serving as the centerpiece in the return. The group also welcomed Mark Jankowski to the mix after sending a late-round pick to Nashville. The Jets weren't as active as their division counterparts, but they've established a decent lead over Dallas and Colorado in the Central. With their homestand rolling on, the Canes hoped the new guys would help them earn two valuable points. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (18:05)- Mark Jankowski (5) (Scott Morrow (1)) 2nd Period CAR (5:21)- Mark Jankowski (6) (Jack Roslovic (11) & Eric Robinson (14)) 3rd Period CAR (2:34)- Logan Stankoven (10) PP (Shayne Gostisbehere (28) & Sebastian Aho (37)) WPG (17:14)- Alex Iafallo (10) (unassisted) CAR (17:58)- Seth Jarvis (25) EN (Jordan Martinook (19) & Jordan Staal (20)) WPG (19:09)-...