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Carolina Hurricanes: 3 Keys to Road Victory in Game 5 in Washington

ByTony Trotmann|
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 13: Carolina Hurricanes center Jordan Staal (11) skates off the ice after scoring a game tying goal in the third period against the Washington Capitals on April 13, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 13: Carolina Hurricanes center Jordan Staal (11) skates off the ice after scoring a game tying goal in the third period against the Washington Capitals on April 13, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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RALEIGH, NC – APRIL 18:The Washington Capitals celebrate after a goal by Carolina Hurricanes left wing Warren Foegele (13) in the opening minute of the first period of Game Four of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, April 18, 2019. (Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC – APRIL 18:The Washington Capitals celebrate after a goal by Carolina Hurricanes left wing Warren Foegele (13) in the opening minute of the first period of Game Four of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, April 18, 2019. (Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

3. Shut The Crowd Up Early

The Carolina Hurricanes have given us evidence that scoring first wins you the game in this series. The Washington Capitals scored first in both Games 1 and 2, the Hurricanes scored first in Games 3 and 4, the team that scores first has tended to win the game. The Hurricanes will not be scoring for a rise out of the crowd this time, they will be scoring to silence the crowd and shut them up.

The Hurricanes thrived from that PNC Arena crowd, the Capitals should get a similar feeling (although it’s similar, it’s nowhere close to how great Hurricanes fans are at PNC Arena) and they will use it to channel their performance and fight through momentum adversity. As the keys to Game 3 involved striking early and especially first, the Hurricanes will need to do just that in Game 5.

Scoring first, and hopefully early, is not just the only key, but silencing this crowd will also involve dominating possession, shots, hits, and the special teams. The Hurricanes scoring first could maybe give way to another 5-0 route.

A trend needs to break to win this series and that trend needs to be a win on the road that is necessary either in Game 5 or Game 7 if Game 6 is to be won. Hopefully, this Carolina Hurricanes team will give us some breathing room and help our heartbeats by winning in Game 5 and possibly closing this series out in six games, but if seven games is the only way the Hurricanes want to win like in 2009, we’re fine with that.

Question for CC Readers: Do you think Warren Foegele nets a hat trick in Game 5? Why or why not?

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