The Carolina Hurricanes took on the Washington Capitals in the nation’s capital on Tuesday night. The Canes pulled out a big win against the Metropolitan Division rivals. A good second period helped the Carolina Hurricanes in the win.
Scoring Summary
Mr.Skinner got the ball rolling 10:20 into the first period. Eric Staal played well down low behind Washington’s net. He then fed Jeff Skinner out front who got it past Braden Holtby short-side. The goal made it 1-0. Eric Staal got the only assist.
Jeff Skinner scored number two of the evening 11:18 into the second period. Jay Harrison supplied a breakout pass to Skinner who came up the left-wing. He then sniped it top shelf on Holtby to make it 2-0. Jay Harrison and Justin Peters got the assists.
The Carolina Hurricanes cashed in on the power play 14:09 into the second period. Andrej Sekera put a slap shot from the point past Holtby to make it 3-0. Jeff Skinner and Eric Staal got the assists on Sekera’s sixth of the year.
Under a minute later, Jiri Tlusty picks up a rebound in front of Holtby and backhanded it past the Capitals’ goalie. Jiri Tlusty had gone eleven games without a goal, but he ended the drought to make it 4-0. Jay Harrison took the original shot from the point and got the primary assist. Radek Dvorak got the other assist.
Mike Green broke up Justin Peters’ shutout effort with a power play goal 6:39 into the third period. He put a wrist shot through traffic on Peters, who couldn’t detect it until it was too late. Alex Ovechkin and Jason Chimera got the assists on Green’s first of the year.
Game Recap
The Carolina Hurricanes went into a hostile environment and came out with a big 4-1 win against the Washington Capitals. Justin Peters really played a solid game against the high-flying Washington Capitals offense. After a fabulous first period, Peters continued to battle, and he had another great game. He stopped 26 of 27 shots from the Caps.
Jeff Skinner looked very good. He was playing responsibly in his own zone, and that led to a three-point night. He really shined on the left side of Eric Staal. They were both on their game against the Capitals, and that was a huge factor tonight for the Carolina Hurricanes.
The return of Andrej Sekera was a big lift for the Hurricanes. He stepped in and looked like he did prior to his injury. Sekera is tied for the team lead in goals with six on the year. Jeff Skinner, Eric Staal, and Nathan Gerbe all have six.
Brett Bellemore left with an upper-body injury in the second period. Alex Ovechkin hit him up high on the play. As of the time I’m writing this, there has not been any further update on that. It’s safe to assume that a concussion would be the injury, if there is one.
Tuomo Ruutu had five hits tonight and provided a solid physical presence. He didn’t show up on the scoreboard, but he was still a big contributor to the Carolina Hurricanes win against the Capitals.
This is an important win tonight. It was great, but the Canes cannot come out with a poor effort against the Nashville Predators on Thursday night in the Music City. The team can not come off a big win like this, and then follow it up with a slow start. The Hurricanes can not take the night off against Nashville. The Predators will capitalize on errors. They have big, physical players, playmakers, and they have the NHL rookie of the month in net, Marek Mazanec.
A great all around game tonight from the Carolina Hurricanes. They simply outplayed the Washington Capitals. They were solid in all areas, and they will have to continue this trend through the next twelve days. Today was game one of seven in a twelve day span for the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes were able to do everything they wanted to do tonight, and that led them to a big win over the division rival Capitals. It was a total team effort in the nation’s capital.