Last night the Carolina Hurricanes spurned a golden opportunity in their battle for a playoff spot, going down to a disappointing 2-1 loss at home to the New York Rangers.
There’s plenty that can be said about last night’s game. The Carolina Hurricanes had enough chances to win, but Henrik Lundqvist was a rock. Yes, Justin Faulk didn’t do himself any favors. Rod’s tie was awful. But let’s try and take some positives away from a rare low-scoring defeat.
1. Jordan Martinook scored, and we love that guy
The recent addition of Swiss forward Nino Niederreiter has stolen a lot of the headlines, but last summer’s acquisition of Jordan Martinook has also been a big success. His 2-year, $2m AAV extension was just rewards for his career goal-scoring year with the Carolina Hurricanes; last night saw Marty pot his 13th goal of the season, and gave the Canes the lead mid-way through the second period.
In losses like this, it’s easy to look at the team’s star forwards and criticize them for their lack of contribution. But I’d prefer to give credit to some of the team’s hardest workers – like Jordan Martinook – who is a guy who leaves it all out on the ice, every single game.
2. Dougie Hamilton did all he could
The first half of the season wasn’t a particularly good one for Dougie Hamilton. After joining the Carolina Hurricanes in the blockbuster trade of summer 2018, he struggled for fitness and form before exploding into 2019 with goals in three successive games. Last night, his passing was exceptional – setting up Jordan Martinook for that opening goal, and putting a beautiful pass through to Justin Williams, whose shot was stopped by a combination of Marc Staal‘s stick and Lundqvist’s GQ-good looks.
With the Canes needing every win possible in this dog-eat-dog fight for wildcard spots, Coach Rod Brind’Amour needs his key players to step up and put in top performances. Dougie Hamilton did his part last night, but it wasn’t to be.
3. It was a loss to a team below us
For all the woe about losing a game, and not vaulting back into a playoff spot, it’s key to note that this loss could have been far more damaging. If the Carolina Hurricanes are going to lose games down the stretch – and lose games, they will – it’s 100% better to lose those games to teams below them in the standings, than to lose to their playoff rivals.
The team’s March schedule will be crucial – the team faces playoff teams in 13 of its 16 scheduled games – so if we’re going to lose a few, let’s get them down against teams we’re not fighting for a wildcard spot.
The Carolina Hurricanes have a two-game road trip with the Daddy Canes up next. Four points from road games against the Panthers and Stars would make this latest blip a thing of the past. Keep the faith, keep rocking your new t-shirts, and get behind the boys as they look to get back on track tomorrow night.