Thoughts From My Couch

Thursday night was nuts, but it's in the past now. The Carolina Hurricanes start a back-to-back on Saturday against a division opponent, so all of the celebrating subsides. They're rolling into this one, earning points in their last six games after the miraculous comeback win, and they sit atop the division. The Capitals are trying to get it figured out, and the timing of some injuries has made it even tougher. Along with Pierre-Luc Dubois' long-term ailment, both of their goalies are out, two of their key defensemen aren't playing, and Connor McMichael, who scored in the last matchup, is week-to-week. Still, the Capitals have known Canes' killer Alex Ovechkin, general nuisance Tom Wilson, and two of the highest-scoring defensemen in the league, John Carlson and Jakub Chychrun. The Capitals are desperate. It'll be up to the Canes to match it. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (13:27)- Mark Jankowski (5) (William Carrier (6) & Jesperi Kotkaniemi (7)) CAR (17:51)...

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes played their first game in four days on Thursday night, battling the Utah Mammoth on Whalers Night. Andrei Svechnikov got the Canes off to a fast start, potting a rebound past Karel Vejmelka. The Canes maintained their lead after 20 minutes, but Utah tied it early in the second, capitalizing on a blown tire. Shayne Gostisbehere, playing in his first game in over two weeks, fell in the neutral zone, allowing the Mammoth to turn it the other way and score when Kailer Yamamoto went post-and-in on Brandon Bussi. Yamamoto potted his second a few minutes later after getting away with a slash. The Mammoth's fourth line was denied on a 2-on-1 before Yamamoto cleaned up the trash. Gostisbehere got is back late in the period by hammering home a shot on the power play, but another turnover led to another Utah goal 19 seconds later. Jalen Chatfield's dump-in attempt was blocked by Barrett Hayton. He turned it up the ice and found JJ Peterka for a one-time...

I'd almost forgotten what gameday felt like. That's how long it has been since the Carolina Hurricanes played. We only have one more week of games before the Olympics break, so let's enjoy it while we can. Tonight, it's actually the Hartford Whalers on the ice, playing in their green, blue, and white for the final time this season against the Utah Mammoth. The group is getting positive results, recording points in their last five games, even if their effort isn't always the best. Their lead in the Metropolitan Division is okay, but it would certainly be better with two more points tonight. The team is welcoming Shayne Gostisbehere back into the lineup, which hopefully bodes well for a power play that has struggled in its last two outings. Facing Karel Vejmelka, you're either scoring five times or not at all. We'll see which side the Hurricanes land on tonight. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (3:04)- Andrei Svechnikov (19) (unassisted) 2nd Period UTH (4:10)- K...

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes extended their point streak to five games with a win in Ottawa that they earned, but it certainly wasn't their best effort. They jumped out to an early lead on a pair of goals in the first 5:36. Mark Jankowski and William Carrier took advantage of a bad line change, getting into the zone uncontested before Carrier finished the play to open the scoring. Less than two minutes later, Alexander Nikishin made a disgusting saucer pass to Seth Jarvis, who went bar-down on James Reimer to extend the lead. The Senators controlled play for most of the first period, but they couldn't get anything past Brandon Bussi. The Canes added another late in the frame. Taylor Hall used Thomas Chabot as a screen, sneaking it five-hole to triple the advantage. Andrei Svechnikov quadrupled it in the second. During a 5-on-3, Svechnikov threw the puck at the front of the net from below the goal line and got a bounce. The rubber hit Tyler Kleven's skates and trickled...

There's a storm outside, but the Carolina Hurricanes hoped to create a storm of their own when they took the ice in Ottawa for the first of two pre-Olympic meetings with the Senators. Tonight's contest took place in what was expected to be one of the coldest provinces on the continent, as Winter Storm Fern makes her presence felt. Inside the barn, the Canes tried to get back on the winning side, entering the night with points in four straight contests (3-0-1). Brandon Bussi was looking to build off another excellent start against the Sabres, while the offense needed to find a way to play from in front against a team struggling to stay in the hunt in the Atlantic Division. Scoring Summary 1st Period CAR (3:53)- William Carrier (6) (Mark Jankowski (7) & Jalen Chatfield (10)) CAR (5:36)- Seth Jarvis (23) (Alexander Nikishin (15) & Andrei Svechnikov (26)) CAR (18:43)- Taylor Hall (12) (Jackson Blake (15) & Jalen Chatfield (11)) 2nd Period CAR (9:29-PP)- Andrei Svechniko...

Last Game: The Carolina Hurricanes extended their point streak on Thursday night, but they couldn't find the second point in a shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. The Canes fell behind three times in the game, but they responded with a goal to get the game to overtime. Ilya Mikheyev scored short-handed in the first period after intercepting a telegraphed pass and popping home a rebound after Frederik Andersen stopped the initial chance. Joel Nystrom tied it by scoring his first NHL goal with a quick snapshot from inside the dots. In the second period, Nick Lardis broke through by squeezing a shot under his arm. Jordan Staal got it back for the Canes, burying a 2-on-1 over Spencer Knight's shoulder. In the third, Connor Murphy slid a shot around Andersen's pad, but Jackson Blake scored 42 seconds later to tie it a third time. Both goalies made big stops in overtime before the Blackhawks won it in the shootout. Andrei Svechnikov and Connor Bedard each scored in the secon...

For the third time in five games, the Carolina Hurricanes are on national television. It's their second time on ESPN+ during that stretch, and the first time around didn't go very well for the Canes. Fortunately, they're on home ice this time, so that could be a positive sign. Their opponent is the Chicago Blackhawks, which means it'll be a steady diet of Connor Bedard talk for the better part of 2.5 hours. It doesn't matter, though. The Canes are riding a three-game winning streak that includes a fun win over the Sabres on Monday. With only a change in the net coming, the home team needs another sound defensive effort against one of the league's top stars.  Scoring Summary 1st Period CHI (11:12-SH)- Ilya Mikheyev (9) (unassisted) CAR (12:50)- Joel Nystrom (1) (Jesperi Kotkaniemi (6)) 2nd Period CHI (4:35)- Nick Lardis (5) (Ryan Donato (10) & Oliver Moore (10)) CAR (9:16)- Jordan Staal (11) (Jordan Martinook (9) & Jaccob Slavin (2)) 3rd Period CHI (13:38...