Carolina Hurricanes: Return to Previous Form, Outclassed by Leafs 4-1

The Carolina Hurricanes will head back to the drawing-board after a disheartening loss to the Toronto Maples Leafs on Tuesday night. We recap the action and look into the crystal ball with a hope for finding some answers for what’s next for the struggling team.

The Carolina Hurricanes hoped to get momentum rolling once again after a much-needed win came in Anaheim last Friday night. However the Atlantic Division’s (and Eastern Conference’s) second place team in the Toronto Maple Leafs had other plans. The Canes pushed out another one-goal performance, which therefore sees the Canes scoring two goals or less in five of the last seven games (Don Waddell, you there?) for the 13-12-4 hockey club. This time, the lone goal came from the captain Justin Williams off of a beautiful Sebastian Aho feed during a second period PP. That’s right, we scored a power play goal.

The success of this Toronto team is no secret, with the likes of Norris Candidate Morgan Rielly, Auston Mathews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares all go-to offensive options.  The Canes led almost every major stat category, with the only exception being shots blocked. The only issue with this is that they also led the giveaway category, with 21 compared to the Leafs 12. Carefree hockey along with more sub-par power play performances (1/5) puts the Canes back in the losing column for the fifth time in seven games.

So, lack of goal scoring strikes again, as one goal is not likely to win a lot of NHL hockey games. Petr Mrazek played well and gave the Canes hope early, but keeping Toronto out of the net is no easy task, as they are only second to Tampa in finding twine this season. Dougie Hamilton was notably bad, as he was on the ice for all four Leafs goals (-4). Number 19 had a giveaway leading to an eventual Tyler Ennis rebound goal, along with also beating Mrazek (yes, same team) five-hole, the eventual game winner. A positive outcome from the game came from Williams, as he scored his fifth goal in ten games – let’s hope the C-wearer can motivate his team moving forward.

Shockingly, we have not yet hit on the worst news of the night, that being Micheal Ferland left the game in his first period back from a four game absence, and did not return. Canes fans will hold their breaths on this one, but be hopeful for something minor, as Coach Rod Brind’Amour stated afterwards:

"“He [Ferland] just didn’t feel right.”"

With reports swirling that the Hurricanes are [obviously] still seeking a goal scorer after the Nylander fiasco, we can only hope for positive news, and soon. Janne Kuokannen has been called up to the roster, and will hopefully find himself inserted into the top six in Ferland’s absence. Now, it is onwards to Thursday night’s matchup with the Montreal Canadiens as the Habs will be looking to bounce back from a 7-1 trouncing at the hands of the Minnesota Wild.