The Carolina Hurricanes are finally back home after a shaky road trip. They come home to face a familiar foe in the Toronto Maple Leafs. Can they defeat the NHL leaders in points again, or will injuries cost them once more?
The Carolina Hurricanes are finally back home on the east coast after a rough stint on the west coast that saw them score only five goals in three games. Luckily, they managed to secure two points before returning home to face the Toronto Maple leafs. However even that flight was met with uncertainty as the team’s plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Tulsa after a passenger smelled burning plastic.
The Carolina Hurricanes come into this game a little banged up as they suffered injuries to Micheal Ferland, Jordan Staal, and Curtis McElhinney before and during the road trip. This resulted in several call-ups from Charlotte including Saku Maenalanen, Alex Nedeljkovic, and most recently estranged goaltender Scott Darling. Since then Ferland has managed to come off the IR and rejoin the team, however there are still some concerns about his injury. The injury to McElhinney is a shame, as his game against his former team was one of the best this season. Darling will most likely back up Petr Mrazek.
The Toronto Maple Leafs on the other hand have gotten healthier and stronger on offense. The William Nylander drama is finally over after the forward agreed to sign a 6 year, $6.9 million deal to remain a Toronto Maple Leaf. Auston Matthews, who missed the last game against the Carolina Hurricanes last month, is back and healthy again and it feels like he hasn’t skipped a step. Their offense will be firing on all cylinders tonight, so expect Mrazek to be tested early and often.
The only solace for the Carolina Hurricanes is that the Maple Leafs’ defense remains awful. Both the Red Wings and the Bruins have sent Toronto packing after hammering them for at least five goals each. To win tonight’s game Carolina will have to take advantage of that defense and score first, while Carolina’s excellent defense attempts to slow down the Matthews line and that high powered offense.
Once again the Canes’ special teams will come to be the focus of the conversation. After displaying incredible penalty killing yet horrific power plays, the Carolina Hurricanes continue to show that their defense is potent, while their offense needs serious help. Tonight’s game will feature a player that could have worn red today don blue. That shouldn’t discourage this team to prove that they can hang with even the best teams in the league and come away with two points. The question is who will break first, Carolina’s excellent defense against Toronto’s excellent offense, or Toronto’s sub-par defense against Carolina’s sub-par offense?
Prediction: Hurricanes 2-4 Maple Leafs
Question for CC Readers:
Now that William Nylander is no longer an option, who should the Carolina Hurricanes trade for to shape out their top 6 forwards?