Carolina Hurricanes Create History in Streak Extending Win Over Islanders

The Carolina Hurricanes set a franchise record five game undefeated win streak against the hapless New York Islanders in a stunning game to top the NHL.

The Carolina Hurricanes are undefeated. The Carolina Hurricanes have at least a one point lead on everyone else in the National Hockey League. The Carolina Hurricanes have a four point lead on the rest of the division. The Carolina Hurricanes are putting a serious fear into the rest of the league as they threaten to run away with it. This season is already shaping to be something special.

Last night was no different. The Carolina Hurricanes came into the game and while they took a lick or two, especially on the penalty kill, they just kept the ball rolling. Last night was historic not only for winning but for how they won. These are not fluke wins folks. The advanced analytics show that. This team is serious and is making a serious run for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Islanders have now lost the last SIX games against the Carolina Hurricanes. This team has established themselves as a Metro threat and seem to own their opponents. Every single play has bought into it too. Even the new guys who seem to be leading the way for this team, even in the post game celebrations:

Are the Carolina Hurricanes going to be able keep up this trend and remain undefeated? That’s a debate for another article. For now let’s just enjoy the win and points that will absolutely come in handy down the road as this team makes another bid for the playoffs. No need to worry about what could have been so far because this team is everything it could be.

Here are the takeaways from last night’s historic win against the Islanders that has put the team on everyone’s radar.

The Penalty Kill has Become a Problem

The Carolina Hurricanes, only two seasons ago, were the top penalty killing team in the league. This season, after they finally seemed to have fixed their power play woes, seems to have done the reverse for that portion of their special teams. The first two penalty kills last night ended up in quick powerplay goals for the Islanders.

The third power play was quickly negated by an islanders penalty right off the initial draw that led to an almost full two minute 4v4. Which in turn was negated by another Carolina Hurricanes penalty which led to a brief 4v3 and eventually back to a conventional 5v4. That’s when a real penalty kill effort finally showed up.

The fourth power play for the Islanders didn’t come until over halfway through the third period of the game. At this point the penalty kill finally adjusted to the Islanders. It was the only full two minute penalty killed by Carolina last night.

Petr Mrazek looked lost early during those two powerplays that found the net behind him. He did not see a single shot in the final penalty of the game. That might have been his saving grace. But he had a good chance to stop at least one of the two Islanders goals. Just take a look at this wicked shot from Brock Nelson in which Mrazek had a wide open look at:

Now I know that most of those penalties against Carolina were really weak ones, courtesy of Tim Peel, who seems to have a bias against the Carolina Hurricanes for some unexplained reason, but a bad call or three doesn’t negate a need for effort on the penalty kill.

Perhaps Jordan Martinook, who has seen 6:42 short handed time across the first four games of the season, helped keep the penalty kill working hard. There is a reason that man wears a letter. His absence is being felt in this regard. He really can’t get healthy and come back soon enough. The good news is that his surgery went well and his rehab is already under way.

The Carolina Defense Really is the Best in the NHL

The Carolina Hurricanes Defense can do it all. Last night they once again proved that they can play both sides of the puck. They held the Islander to only 19 shots last night! They didn’t allow any more than NINE shots on goal in any given period and only 2 in the third! This is the reason this team is sitting at the top of the league. This is the reason the rest of the league is terrified.

Not only are they good at stifling the opposition and hogging the puck they know when and how to jump in on offense and take full control of the game. Last night saw Dougie Hamilton and Brett Pesce get on the score sheet as goal scorers. Hamilton picked up a second point on an assist on Teravainen’s goal while Jaccob Slavin picked up a point on Hamilton’s.

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Not a single defender finished with a negative plus minus rating. Hamilton and Joel Edmundson each finished with a +3. Even though Mrazek once again finished the game sub- 0.900 vs % he managed to skate away with his third win of the season. He has this defense to thank as he racks up a career high in wins this year.

Tonight will be James Reimer in net against the Columbus Blue Jackets who also played last night. This defense really doesn’t care who is in net anymore. At some points I feel that an empty net can secure a few wins all by itself. They are that good. Last year the motto was Take Warning. Well I really can’t tell you how much more of a warning you can get than a 5-0-0 start.