Carolina Hurricanes: 5 takeaways from loss to Blue Jackets

If the Carolina Hurricanes could have taken advantage of a few key power play chances, they could have defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 10.

The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Minnesota Wild in a shootout in their season opener at PNC Arena. However, their luck did not hold up as well against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 10. Carolina’s first game against both an Eastern Conference and Metropolitan Division opponent ended in a 2-1 overtime loss.

Head coach Bill Peters is making some clearly visible progress in Raleigh, NC. The Canes have give two very good teams from last season a run for their money and came away with three points. Considering the Canes are not accustomed to getting off to great starts in recent years, this is a very encouraging sign.

Yet, they still fell short to a Blue Jackets team spearheaded by a red hot goalie in former Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky. Scott Darling did play well between the pipes for Carolina. The goaltending battle came to the forefront in a game headlined by two teams with a ton of young talent.

Carolina’s young core of players like Jeff Skinner, Jaccob Slavin, and Victor Rask gave a solid effort despite the loss. Skinner did net the only goal scored by the Canes. That goal came in the final two minutes of the contest and nearly saved the game for Carolina.

Next up for the Canes is the first road game of the season as they take on the Winnipeg Jets. They’re next home game comes in two weeks against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The schedule does lighten up from here for the next few games which gives the Canes a chance to generate some real momentum.

Now, let’s take a look at 5 takeaways from the Carolina Hurricanes loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

5. Canes need to figure out the power play

Carolina’s power play cost them a chance at another would be win. Artemi Panarin took a penalty in overtime that allowed the Canes to go on a 4-3 power play which they were not able to convert on. They were also squash away two other man-up opportunities.

Through eight power plays this season, the Canes have only converted on one of them. However, that does not say how inconsistent the pressure and sense of urgency that they’ve been during man-up opportunities.

The Canes are not getting enough shots and not finding many backdoor chances to bury. Sergei Bobrovsky was not going to allow any easy goals, he’s just too good of a goalie. They were also never able to take advantage of possible momentum swings when possible.

One of the biggest challenges for Bill Peters moving forward is going to be figuring out the power play. Peters did tool with the lines quite a bit last season and it might be time to start doing that again, at least as far as the power play units are concerned.

4. Scott Darling can be a No. 1 goalie in the NHL

It took a breakaway goal from Sonny Milano in overtime to get more than one goal past him on nearly 30 shots on goal from the Blue Jackets. He had a much better season statistically than he did against the Wild.

Darling gave the Canes every chance to win, holding the Jackets off the scoreboard until around the 10-minute mark of the third period. The one goal that did get past him was a somewhat lucky shot on Milano’s first goal of the contest.

After giving up four goals on less than 30 shots in the season opener, Darling almost has his save percentage above .900. The reason that Carolina acquired him was to be a guy that can post around a .915-.920 save percentage in the starting role.

It was interesting that Bill Peters had the confidence in Darling to go with him again after the Wild game. Cam Ward might get the start against the Winnipeg Jets, though. For now, we can appreciate the fact that Darling played well on Oct. 10.

3. Jeff Skinner still comes through in the clutch

The only Canes goal came from the heart and soul of this team in Jeff Skinner. He’s the only playing still wearing the “A” on his jersey after Jordan Staal and Justin Faulk were named co-captains.

Skinner’s goal came with less than two minutes to go in the third period, and it was unassisted. He found a hole in Bobrovsky to send the game into overtime. It was the second straight time that the Canes scored a goal late in the third period, ultimately sending the game into overtime.

You can see the added versatility that Skinner brings to the Carolina attack with his puck handling ability that the opposition has to respect. One of the keys to the power play working better for the Canes is getting Skinner going on the man-advantage.

In order for Skinner to reach the 40-goal mark this season, he’ll have to continue his hot streak that emerged at the end of the 2016-17 season. He was held off the scoreboard in the first game but came through against the Blue Jackets.

1. Columbus will be a tough out in the Metro

The Blue Jackets had their best season in franchise history last season. They finished in the top three in the division and top five in the league in points among the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins. That even eclipsed the New York Rangers.

As long as Bobrovsky is ready between the pipes and the Blue Jackets young stars contribute, this is going to be a tough team for anyone to compete with. Head coach John Tortorella has done a great job with Columbus.

Yet, the Canes showed that they can hang step for step with the division’s best. As far as depth goes, Carolina can hang with even the league’s best. They just have to convert on opportunities at home like this.

Next: Ranking every season in history of Carolina Hurricanes

Another season featuring more than a dozen overtime losses is not a formula for success. The Canes finished with 15 last season, and converting on a few more of those opportunities could have resulted in an appearance in the NHL Playoffs.