Carolina Hurricanes: Takeaways From Each Period vs. Leafs

1st Period Takeaways

Penalty Kill

Haydn Fleury took a penalty getting back in trying to stop a two on one opportunity that the Leafs had. The penalty kill bailed him out by having an absolutely shutdown type of a kill. Later in the period, the Hurricanes took a bench minor for too many men on the ice and the penalty kill finished the period leaving 50 seconds left on the penalty to start the second period.

Challenge

William Nylander was way offside on a two on one that led to a goal, but the Hurricanes challenged, and they won it. The Hurricanes responded by scoring a goal of their own by Justin Williams who beat Garret Sparks who didn’t control the post and somehow leaked through him.

The challenge and goal late in the period completely shifted momentum towards the Hurricanes. That was much needed, especially since the Hurricanes controlled the first period offensively, to score the first goal. The forecheck was a huge factor in the way the Hurricanes operated offensively. Lucas Wallmark had a grade-A chance set up by Jordan Martinook, but he missed on the shot.

Petr Mrazek 

Petr Mrazek wasn’t really tested much during the first period. Although Toronto had a few two on one’s the defense was there, or something happened to prevent the scoring chance (challenge and penalty). Mrazek had a few chances on him towards the end of the period on Toronto’s power play, but they were handled by the Hurricanes.

2nd Period Takeaways

Power Play 

Dougie Hamilton broke through on the power play early in the second period. The power play has been trending upwards as the Hurricanes have a power play goal in the last three games. Also, when the Hurricanes get the defense involved on offense it always tends to lead to good things for the Hurricanes. But how good has Hamilton been since the start of 2019?

Penalty Kill (again) 

The penalty kill can only bail you out so much. Nino Niederreiter took a bad offensive zone penalty in the middle of the period. Very early in the power play, Mrazek made a save on the initial chance, but John Tavares buried the rebound to give the Maple Leafs a jolt. A couple minutes later, Mitch Marner broke in and had a scoring chance that was shut down by Justin Faulk.

Weathering the Storm

The Maple Leafs completely shifted the game in the second half of the second period. Whether it was Mrazek making saves, defenseman blocking shots, or even Jordan Staal having a goal saving play on Auston Matthews. The Hurricanes were able to escape the second period with their lead intact.

3rd Period Takeaways

Goaltending 

Petr Mrazek made big time saves early in the third after seeing some chances, but not a lot of volume. Mrazek was a big reason of keeping Toronto off of the score sheet in the first half of the third. The Leafs were getting chance after chance and Mrazek just kept shutting it down. This has been the Mrazek magic we have all become familiar with. He wanted to prove himself as a number one goalie and he has done that and beyond.

Insurance

Jordan Staal gave the Hurricanes and insurance goal with about 10 minutes left in the third. Staal was coming off the bench as the Hurricanes were changing and Niederreiter found him in the slot where Staal just ripped it passed Sparks. This was huge for the Canes as the Leafs were building off of momentum gained from their power play goal in the second. Also, this was key in securing the victory as the Hurricanes have been struggling to finish games as of late.

https://twitter.com/NHLCanes/status/1113258103200374784

Not Letting Up

After getting the insurance goal, the Hurricanes controlled the game from there on out. The Leafs had a couple opportunities, but the Hurricanes had the answers. With about two and a half minutes left in the game Sparks was pulled and the Hurricanes completely shut down the Leafs offense and had most of the chances during the empty net scenario. The Hurricanes eventually got an empty net goal from Dougie Hamilton, after Brock McGinn‘s was disallowed for offside.

Recap

Overall the Hurricanes scored goals when they needed them, had timely saves and plays on defense, and had a huge challenge that completely changed where this game was going to go. The Hurricanes showed the desperation they needed to keep their playoff dreams alive. Dougie Hamilton is the hottest Canes player right now and can pose as a huge threat to opponents moving forward.

Question for CC Readers: What was the most important factor in the Hurricanes getting two points in Toronto?