Carolina Hurricanes Have Best Week of the Young Season
Every week, Cardiac Cane will make a complete wrap-up of the Carolina Hurricanes’ week for the 2015-2016 season.
Regular Season 10/26 – 11/3
Summary:
It was a week of streaks for the Carolina Hurricanes. The state fair road trip concluded with games in Detroit and Brooklyn and a homestand began with match-ups against the Avalanche and the Lightning. We saw the first winning streak of the season and games with consecutive powerplay goals. Let’s get into it.
First was a date with the Red Wings. Despite being historically terrible against the Wings, the 2015-2016 Hurricanes have had different fortune. The infamous Joe Louis Arena bounces truly went in the ‘Canes favor as Victor Rask was gifted a goal thanks to Petr Mrazek. Detroit equalized, but Ron Hainsey blasted a slap shot in the 3rd period to secure victory. Eric Staal added an empty net goal. It was great team effort throughout and the ‘Canes deserved the road victory.
The final game of the road trip meant the first visit to Brooklyn and Barclays Center. Disregarding the disgusting hockey layout in the arena, the entertainment on the ice was great. The Isles and ‘Canes traded goals in the 1st with Brock McGinn scoring for the good guys. Entering the 3rd period, the Hurricanes were down 2-1. Jordan Staal, still pointless at this time, showed up in a big way to close out the game. He and his brother assisted a Chris Terry tying goal. Jordan then assisted Hainsey for the overtime winner. Hainsey had 2 straight game winning goals and Carolina was feeling good.
Coming back to PNC Arena, the team was feeling good. The strong momentum continued on Friday. Colorado was in town having just faced the ‘Canes a little over a week earlier. Thankfully, this time, it was a higher scoring affair. After a scoreless 1st, the 2nd period saw the ‘Canes go into the locker room up 2-1, thanks to a Rask goal and a now league leading 4th powerplay goal from Justin Faulk. Jeff Skinner showed a glimpse of his former self with a fantastic snipe to make it 3-1 early in the 3rd. The game ended 3-2. This was probably the best performance of the week for the Hurricanes. They were the better team for the majority of the play and looked as dynamic as any point all season.
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Eyes On Isles
Finally, on Sunday, the Hurricanes played the struggling Tampa Bay Lightning. Unfortunately for Carolina, Tampa showed why they were the Eastern Conference champs of last season. Goals from Steven Stamkos, Tyler Johnson, J.T. Brown, and Ryan Callahan proved to be enough to down the ‘Canes. Eric Staal performed quite well however. He scored a powerplay goal and played very quick, quicker than he has looked all season. Kris Versteeg scored on a breakaway thanks to a Victor Rask stretch pass. Jordan Staal scored his first of the year with a goal that would have made even Jussi Jokenin impressed (Staal scored with only 0.1 seconds left in regulation).
Despite the loss at the end of the week, this was a great week for the Carolina Hurricanes. They were defensively sound for the entire week, ignoring some lapses against Tampa Bay. More importantly, their offense clicked all week. Those are big pluses going forward for the squad.
This week also introduced Caniac Nation to Brett Pesce, the Hurricanes 3rd round pick from 2013. He has come into the line up and played with incredible confidence for a rookie d-man. He registered his first NHL point against the Avalanche. Expect him to stay up in Carolina for the foreseeable future.
It’s important to note that every game resulted in the ‘Canes scoring 3 goals. It is clear that this iteration of the Hurricanes isn’t going to win very many high scoring games. However, if the goaltending remains solid, which it was all week from both Cam Ward and Eddie Lack, and the defense holds up, the Hurricanes are going to be competitive in every contest.
Cane of the Week:
Victor Rask – 4GP, 2G, 2A, +5
At the beginning of the season, the Hurricanes’ two Swedish forwards, Victor Rask and Elias Lindholm, were seen as two very similar pieces of the team. Many people even believed that Lindholm was the more promising of the two. One month into the season, it’s incredibly hard to argue against Rask. The 22 year old centerman played the definition of a two way game this week. With a couple goals this past week, he is now tied for the team lead in goal scoring. On the other end of the ice, Rask has showed real strong positioning defensively. When he has made a play in his own end, he almost always moves the puck out the zone effectively, whether that was for a line change or an offensive transition.
While other young ‘Canes forwards have faltered in this young season, Rask has stayed consistent so far. He has played 1st line minutes just about every night. The line of Versteeg, Eric Staal, and Rask has been probably the most effective group of forwards at 5 on 5, especially this past week. Rask and Versteeg have been excellent compliments to center Staal. There is a good case that Versteeg deserves ‘Cane of the Week’ as well, but I give the nod to Rask since he is outperforming his fellow young Hurricanes (Lindholm and Skinner).
Honorable Mentions: Kris Versteeg, Ryan Murphy, Ron Hainsey
The Forecast:
Friday 7:00 pm @ PNC Arena against the Dallas Stars
Saturday 7:00 pm @ PNC Arena against the Ottawa Senators
To finish out the five game home stand, Carolina faces the Stars on Friday and the Sens on Saturday. As of Monday, November 2, no team is hotter than the Dallas Stars. Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin are scoring for fun and the team defense is much improved from last year. We will see if their moment carries into Friday, as they face the Maple Leafs and Bruins before they face off against a well-rested ‘Canes team. The following night, the Hurricanes battle the Senators. Defenseman Erik Karlsson is a point per game defenseman and is looking like an early Norris trophy favorite. Hopefully the Hurricanes can collect some wins off nearly a week of rest.