Thoughts From My Couch

For, potentially, the final time this season, the Carolina Hurricanes skated out to "Rock You Like a Hurricane" with hopes of sending the series back to Sunrise for a sixth game. The Canes finally snapped their long losing streak on Monday night, behind a 20-save performance by Frederik Andersen. Alexander Nikishin got to experience a home game for the first time after playing his first three games on the road. With Florida's lineup returning to full strength, they went in for the kill in Raleigh. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (4:39)- Sebastian Aho (6) (unassisted) CAR (18:54)- Sebastian Aho (7) (Seth Jarvis (10)) 2nd Period FLA (7:23)- Matthew Tkachuk (5) PP (Aaron Ekblad (8) & Seth Jones (4)) FLA (7:53)- Evan Rodrigues (1) (Sam Bennett (6) & Matthew Tkachuk (11)) FLA (11:59)- Anton Lundell (5) (Brad Marchand (10)) 3rd Period CAR (8:30)- Seth Jarvis (6) (Andrei Svechnikov (4) & Shayne Gostisbehere (6)) FLA (12:21)- Carter Verhaeghe (6) (Aleksander Barkov (10...

The Hurricanes needed to show some heart with their season on the line. They played two-thirds of a solid game on Saturday night, but a third-period collapse ended in a 6-2 defeat, pushing the Panthers to a 3-0 series lead. With the same lineup going, except for the goalie, it was time to put together 60 minutes of hard work to fight another day. Meanwhile, the Panthers were looking for their third straight Prince of Wales Trophy and another trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (10:45)- Logan Stankoven (5) (Alexander Nikishin (1)) 3rd Period CAR (17:49)- Sebastian Aho (5) EN (Andrei Svechnikov (3) & Seth Jarvis (9)) CAR (18:15)- Jordan Staal (2) EN (Brent Burns (4)) My Thoughts June 1, 2006, was 6,934 days ago. That's the last time we saw the Hurricanes win a game in the conference finals. It started to feel like we might never see this again. With the Canes falling behind 3-0 in the series, THIS was MY Stanley Cup. All I wanted was one ...

The Hurricanes are flirting with a fate like their last three trips to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Panthers won both games in Raleigh to open the series, outscoring the Canes 10-2, including a 5-0 shutout victory on Thursday night. Florida's stars are running circles around Carolina's, and now they're hitting the road down 2-0 with a sweep looking more and more likely. Unless something remarkable happens, the Canes' season will likely end in the next few days. For now, we just need to appreciate the time we have left. Scoring Summary 1st Period FLA (12:07)- Niko Mikkola (2) (Evan Rodrigues (9) & Aleksander Barkov (9)) 2nd Period CAR (14:51)- Logan Stankoven (4) PP (Brent Burns (3) & Jesperi Kotkaniemi (4)) 3rd Period FLA (1:29)- Jesper Boqvist (2) (Evan Rodrigues (10) & Aaron Ekblad (7)) FLA (6:26)- Niko Mikkola (3) (Sam Bennett (5) & Matthew Tkachuk (9)) FLA (6:55)- Aleksander Barkov (5) (Matthew Tkachuk (10)) FLA (9:31)- Aleksander Barkov (6) (J...

The Hurricanes were completely outworked by the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night, beginning the Eastern Conference Finals with a 5-2 loss in Game 1. With the Panthers leaving the Hurricanes licking their wounds, they turned to a few lineup changes to turn the tide in this series before traveling to Sunrise. Mark Jankowski returned to the lineup in Jesperi Kotkaniemi's place, taking his place on the fourth line. Jalen Chatfield remained out, missing his third straight game. Scoring Summary 1st Period FLA (1:17)- Gustav Forsling (1) (Matthew Tkachuk (8)) FLA (11:41)- Matthew Tkachuk (4) (Carter Verhaeghe (6) & Niko Mikkola (2)) FLA (15:50)- Sam Bennett (8) PP (Carter Verhaeghe (7) & Evan Rodrigues (7)) 2nd Period FLA (19:21)- Sam Bennett (9) (Carter Verhaeghe (8) & Aaron Ekblad (5)) 3rd Period FLA (13:49)- Aleksander Barkov (4) PP (Aaron Ekblad (6) & Evan Rodrigues (8)) My Thoughts I'm not sure I've ever seen Andrei Svechnikov have a period worse than his fir...

It's time for the Hurricanes to exercise their conference final demons, trying to avoid being swept in the Eastern Conference Finals for the fourth straight trip. This season, they're facing a familiar foe. Two years ago, the Florida Panthers won a tight four-game series against the Hurricanes before falling to Vegas in the Stanley Cup Finals. Last season, the Panthers reached the top of the mountain. Now, they're trying to do it again. With a deeper team, they'll be an incredible test for the Hurricanes, who seek their first finals appearance since winning it all in 2006. Scoring Summary 1st Period FLA (8:30)- Carter Verhaeghe (5) PP (Aleksander Barkov (8) & Matthew Tkachuk (7)) FLA (12:29)- Aaron Ekblad (3) (Evan Rodrigues (5)) CAR (19:45)- Sebastian Aho (4) (Seth Jarvis (7) & Andrei Svechnikov (2)) 2nd Period FLA (3:33)- AJ Greer (2) (Niko Mikkola (1) & Tomas Nosek (2)) 3rd Period FLA (6:08)- Sam Bennett (7) PP (Evan Rodrigues (6) & Carter Verhaeghe (...

Florida's Postseason Path The Panthers emerged as the sole survivor from the Atlantic Division after beating the Maple Leafs in seven games in the 2nd round. Florida began its Cup defense with another Sunshine State Showdown against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Despite the Bolts holding home ice for the series, the Panthers won both games against their in-state rivals. After splitting in Sunrise, the Panthers finished the job in Tampa, winning 6-3 in Game 5 to win all three games on the road and advance in five games. Against the Maple Leafs in the second round, Florida fell behind 2-0 after a pair of high-scoring one-goal losses. The Panthers rattled off three straight victories to take a 3-2 lead, dropped Game 6 at home, and won Game 7, 6-1, to a chorus of boos from the Toronto faithful.  Season Series November 29th (in Raleigh): Beginning a post-Thanksgiving home-and-home, the Panthers used a three-goal third period to break a 3-3 tie and prevail 6-3 on the road.  November 30th...

Florida defeats Toronto, 4-3 Series Recap: The yearly tradition of watching the Maple Leafs fail in the playoffs came in the second round this season, and it was marvelous. For a minute, it looked like they might be in control of the series, even after Anthony Stolarz went down in Game 1. Toronto led the series 2-0 heading to Sunrise, but things unraveled from there. Florida won both games on home ice, earning an overtime win in Game 3 before Sergei Bobrovsky shut out the Leafs in Game 4. With the series even heading back to Toronto, the Panthers mopped the floor with Toronto, winning 6-1 to take a 3-2 lead. The Maple Leafs showed some heart in Game 6, backed by a Joseph Woll shutout to send the series back to Toronto for another Game 7. The Maple Leafs bent like crazy in the first period, coming out of it unscathed. In the second, Florida took over. The Panthers won Game 7, 6-1, earning their third straight trip to the conference finals while potentially ending the Core 4 era in Toron...

Series Recap Game 1: Despite dominating play, the Hurricanes trailed 1-0 until Logan Stankoven tied the game midway through the third period. Forcing overtime, the Canes took the series opener on Jaccob Slavin's first postseason overtime goal, stunning the Capitals, 2-1. Game 2: Logan Thompson continued to give the Hurricanes fits, carrying a shutout into the third period for the second straight game. Tom Wilson scored a goal and added an assist as the Capitals evened the series with a 3-1 victory. Game 3: Frederik Andersen withstood an early peppering by the Capitals before his offense started to help him out. The Hurricanes rattled off four unanswered goals in the second and third periods to help Andersen record his first postseason shutout with the Canes in a 4-0 win to take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4: The Hurricanes pushed the Capitals to the brink with another outstanding effort on home ice. Taylor Hall and Sean Walker had a goal and an assist each as 12 Canes found the scoresh...

With their season in the balance, the Washington Capitals tried to stave off elimination on Thursday night in the nation's capital. After splitting in D.C. to begin the series, the Hurricanes won both games in Raleigh to take a commanding 3-1 lead over the conference's top team. The Canes sought to end the series in Washington's barn to avoid a return trip for Game 6 in Raleigh. With everything going right in the series for Carolina, they needed a similar performance in Game 5 while keeping Washington's stars in check. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (9:38)- Jordan Staal (1) (Jordan Martinook (5)) WSH (13:41)- Anthony Beauvillier (2) (unassisted) 2nd Period None 3rd Period CAR (18:01)- Andrei Svechnikov (8) (Sean Walker (2) & Seth Jarvis (6)) CAR (19:33)- Seth Jarvis (4) EN (unassisted) My Thoughts The Capitals threw everything they could at the Hurricanes. Despite just nine shots through 40 minutes, Washington played like the better team. The Canes had spurts of sus...

With a chance to put the series in a stranglehold, the Hurricanes hit the ice on Monday night with one goal in mind. Defending home ice would give them a 3-1 series lead, sending the Capitals back to D.C. with their season on the line. After being shut out on Saturday, Washington had to be upset. They dominated the early portion of the game, but Frederik Andersen wouldn't be beaten. Needing a bounce-back effort from Logan Thompson, the Capitals hoped for their offense to come alive in front of an electric Raleigh crowd. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (10:24)- Shayne Gostisbehere (3) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (3) & Eric Robinson (2)) 2nd Period CAR (1:04)- Seth Jarvis (3) (Sebastian Aho (7) & Dmitry Orlov (4)) 3rd Period WSH (5:18)- Jakub Chychrun (3) (Matt Roy (2) & Pierre-Luc Dubois (3)) CAR (8:24)- Taylor Hall (2) (Jack Roslovic (3) & Sean Walker (1)) WSH (12:14)- Alex Ovechkin (5) PP (Dylan Strome (9) & Jakub Chychrun (2)) CAR (16:45)- Sean Walker (1) (Taylor Hall ...

The series has shifted to Raleigh for the next three days, beginning tonight with Game 3 at the Lenovo Center. The Hurricanes split the first two contests in D.C. to open the series in a 1-1 tie. Both goaltenders have been excellent in the series, but Logan Thompson has been nearly unbeatable through two games. Getting to him early in Game 3 would be the most important key to getting ahead in the series for the second time.  Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period CAR (12:34)- Andrei Svechnikov (6) (unassisted) CAR (18:57)- Jack Roslovic (1) PP (Brent Burns (2) & Taylor Hall (3)) 3rd Period CAR (3:13)- Eric Robinson (1) (Logan Stankoven (2) & Jack Roslovic (2)) CAR (16:44)- Jackson Blake (2) PP (Shayne Gostisbehere (4) & Seth Jarvis (5)) My Thoughts The Washington Capitals had an excellent road period to start the game. Their first three chances were a Tom Wilson breakaway, Nic Dowd's spinning chance, and Taylor Raddysh after a turnover behind the Canes' net. All...

Game 1 will go down as a performance the Canes should've gotten more from, but will be satisfied with the victory. Despite an incredible edge in shots, it took overtime for the visitors to take the first game after Jaccob Slavin's shot navigated through traffic to beat Logan Thompson. With the Capitals nice and pissed off, the expectation was for a much better effort in the second game. The Capitals managed just 14 shots, including three in the final 23 minutes. There was no chance we'd see the same game a second time. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period WSH (2:16)- Connor McMichael (4) (unassisted) 3rd Period WSH (1:54)- John Carlson (1) PP (Tom Wilson (4) & Dylan Strome (8)) CAR (9:26)- Shayne Gostisbehere (2) PP (Seth Jarvis (4) & Sebastian Aho (6)) WSH (19:00)- Tom Wilson EN (3) (Aliaksei Protas (1)) My Thoughts Having written after every Hurricanes game since the 2021 playoffs, I occasionally find myself being repetitive with some of the things I say. On...

It's time to start again! The Hurricanes began the second round on the road Tuesday night, heading to the nation's capital to face the Washington Capitals. After vanquishing the Devils in five games a week ago, the Canes had plenty of time to heal and return to full strength before facing the division champs. The Capitals also got the job done in five games against the Canadiens, last playing on Wednesday night. With both teams chomping at the bit to get back on the ice, fireworks were expected in Game 1. Scoring Summary 1st Period None 2nd Period WSH (3:53)- Aliaksei Protas (1) (Brandon Duhaime (1) & John Carlson (2)) 3rd Period CAR (9:42)- Logan Stankoven (3) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (2)) Overtime CAR (3:06)- Jaccob Slavin (2) (Jordan Martinook (3) & Dmitry Orlov (3)) My Thoughts I don't want to hear about the Hurricanes' inability to win a road game ever again. Even if they never win another one, we'll always remember this as being a one-sided masterclass in p...

Washington's 1st Round vs. Montreal Like the Hurricanes, the Washington Capitals made quick work of their first-round opponent, knocking out the Montreal Canadiens in five games. Alex Ovechkin scored twice in the series opener, including the game-winner in overtime to win Game 1, 3-2. The Capitals held serve in Game 2, sweeping both games in D.C. with a 3-1 win. Montreal's offense came to life in Game 3, scoring three times in the third period to pull away and cut Washington's series lead in half with a 6-3 victory. Washington rebounded in Game 4, getting a late go-ahead goal from Andrew Mangiapane as part of a four-goal third period to push Montreal to the brink of elimination. The finished the job in the nation's capital, getting two goals in the first period to pace a 3-1 series-clinching victory. Dylan Strome led the way with nine points (2-7-9), while Ovechkin scored four times (4-1-5). Season Series November 3 (in Raleigh): Former Capital Dmitry Orlov scored twice...

1st Round Review Toronto defeats Ottawa, 4-2 Series Recap: The Maple Leafs nearly did the most Maple Leaf-thing ever and almost blew this series despite taking a 3-0 lead. A dominant effort in Game 1 and two overtime victories in the next two games had Toronto on the verge of an easy advancement in the Battle of Ontario. Instead, Ottawa fought back and won Game 4 in overtime. Then, Linus Ullmark, who was otherwise disappointing, shut them out in Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena to send the series back to Ottawa. In Game 6, Toronto took a 2-0 lead, but Brady Tkachuk and David Perron tied things up, pushing Game 6 toward a third overtime affair. Instead, Max Pacioretty broke the deadlock less than two minutes later to restore Toronto's lead for good. The Leafs survived, making them the only team in the Eastern Conference to require six games to advance. The Core 4 were solid, combining for nine goals and 29 points.  One Stat: Pacioretty's last postseason goal: June 22, 2021 (1,409 days...