Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Noah Hanifin started the season slow, but has come on very strong of late.
Going into the last five minutes of last night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets down a goal, the Hurricanes had little hope. A savior would rise however. Soon after forcing overtime, the Canes won the extra point thanks to the first ever overtime winner from Noah Hanifin. Caniac Nation rejoiced.
It took a while for Hanifin to experience a high like last night though. For the first two thirds of the year, Hanifin didn’t look a top five NHL draft pick. His play was sporadic, inconsistent, and wildly underwhelming. The 20 year old was stuck in sophomore slump purgatory.
There was no way all of Carolina’s stud young defensemen were all going to avoid slumping in their second year. Both Brett Pesce and Jaccob Slavin have shined on the Canes blue line this year. Hanifin hasn’t. Subjected to third pairing duty for much of the year, the former Boston College Eagle slowly slipped into obscurity this season.
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Players that were once considered in the same breath as Hanifin bypassed him. Guys like Zach Werenski, Ivan Provorov, Seth Jones, and others all slide past him in the pecking order. By the trade deadline, frustration had set in and some even thought Hanifin might be shipped out in favor of a elite forward.
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However, Hanifin’s fortunes changed when Ron Hainsey was shipped to Pittsburgh. With the move, the young blueliner was given more responsibility and ice time with Justin Faulk. After a few bumpy games transitioning to his new role, Hanifin has reemerged as a big part of Carolina’s blue line.
Since Carolina’s 13 game point streak began, Noah Hanifin has been a real big factor. He is +7 over the streak, racking up 6 assists. His play in his own end has improved drastically as well. Before he was frequently out of position, but this past month, he has been noticeably sturdier.
All this led up to last night’s game against Columbus. In a game that featured players that have overshadowed Hanifin this season (Werenski and Jones), the Canes d-man stepped up big time. He outplayed his rivals and just for kicks, scored the overtime winner.
With partner Justin Faulk, Hanifin has helped create a very formidable young blue line behind the pairing of Slavin and Pesce. It is incredibly exciting to see. All four players are the bedrock of Carolina’s late season run and they all are 25 or younger. It’s enough to make any Canes fan’s mouth water.
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Individually, its great to see Hanifin be rewarded for sticking with it. He surely felt the criticism and worked through it. People forget that he is still a 20 year old defenseman with already over 150 games of NHL experience. Growing pains happen, but its what you do after that’s the difference. Right now, Hanifin’s play is making a big difference for the Hurricanes.