Carolina Hurricanes Suffer Second Straight Loss to Ducks

ANAHEIM, CA - OCTOBER 18: Nino Niederreiter #21 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates against Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA - OCTOBER 18: Nino Niederreiter #21 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates against Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images)
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ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Nino Niederreiter #21 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates against Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Nino Niederreiter #21 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates against Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Despite a first NHL goal last night, The Carolina Hurricanes pack up and leave Anaheim injured, tired, and with more questions than answers.

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The Carolina Hurricanes took way too long to get their legs going in Anaheim on Friday night, and they played their least inspired hockey of the young season. The Ducks were led by their hottest scorers coming into the game; Adam Henrique, Rickard Rakell, and Jakob Silfverberg.

To put it bluntly, the Hurricanes were simply outclassed by the Ducks’ speed and transition game. The stretch pass was working wonders for Anaheim, and it set up numerous grade-A scoring chances. The Ducks’ superior neutral zone play set up their first tally as well as a shorthanded marker in the second period.

The Carolina Hurricanes didn’t wake up until about halfway through the game. There are still important notes to take from the third leg of the western road swing.

ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Haydn Fleury #4 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates his second period goal with his teammates during the game against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Haydn Fleury #4 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates his second period goal with his teammates during the game against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Fleury Scores First NHL Goal

Well, it took him until his 96th NHL contest, but he finally did it. Haydn Fleury scored his first NHL goal. It was actually quite the unassisted play, too.

The Ducks were attempting to clear the zone, but Fleury had a great keep at the line. He played the puck to himself, took a few strides to the top of the left face-off dot, and let his slap shot fly. The Ducks’ goalie, Ryan Miller, was undoubtedly screened on the play.

He played it off with a humble celebration like he had scored hundreds of NHL goals. But, he definitely cracked a smile on his way by the bench. It was a nice bright spot on an otherwise dull evening.

ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks looks on after an injury to Erik Haula #56 of the Carolina Hurricanes during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Josh Manson #42 of the Anaheim Ducks looks on after an injury to Erik Haula #56 of the Carolina Hurricanes during the game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Robert Binder/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Erik Haula Leaves with Upper Body Injury

Carolina Hurricanes center, Erik Haula, departed Friday night’s game with an apparent upper body injury after taking a hit while in on the forecheck. Anaheim Ducks’ defenseman, Josh Manson, delivered said hit after Haula chipped the puck along the end boards.

Manson’s hit had enough force to create a whiplash effect, and Haula banged his head on the glass. The hit appeared clean, and no penalty was assessed on the play. It looked to be delivered through Haula’s body, and the principle point of contact was the shoulder. Though it was clean, it still warranted a fight. Joel Edmundson challenged Manson on Haula’s behalf.

The unfortunate part about Haula’s injury is that he was one of the few forwards consistently contributing on offense in the early going. The hope is that Haula won’t be sidelined for too long. But, you can never be too careful.

ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Carolina Hurricanes center Erik Haula (56) at center with his teammates after Haula scored a goal in the second period of a game against the Anaheim Ducks played on October 18, 2019 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – OCTOBER 18: Carolina Hurricanes center Erik Haula (56) at center with his teammates after Haula scored a goal in the second period of a game against the Anaheim Ducks played on October 18, 2019 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Familiar Names on the Scoresheet

Outside of Fleury’s first NHL goal, Carolina Hurricanes fans were treated to more of the same. Once again, it was Haula cashing in on the power play from right out in front of the net. He was assisted by Teuvo Teravainen and Dougie Hamilton. It seems to be that these are the only guys capable of converting right now.

I said in my game preview that in order for the Hurricanes to beat the Ducks, they were going to need Sebastian Aho and Nino Niederreiter to connect at least once. The two had a handful of shifts in which they applied some pressure, but in the end it was more of the same.

Aho was buzzing at points, and he got his looks. Niederreiter took another minor penalty, and he whiffed on a golden opportunity from the dead slot. I still think it’s too early to panic regarding these two, but each passing game without a tangible impact adds to the concern.

Like I said, they’ve generally looked good. It’s a matter of finishing. I think the catch here is that because the team hasn’t been able to look up and down the lineup for scoring, they couldn’t get into a rhythm last night. Coach Brind’Amour echoed this sentiment.

From the onset, the Ducks proved to be too fast, too structured, and too opportunistic for the Carolina Hurricanes last night. Even with a surge of inspiration following the Haula injury, the Hurricanes couldn’t rebound. Thankfully, the team is off until next Thursday when they’ll take on the Columbus Blue Jackets. Hopefully, that will be enough time to rest up and work out the kinks.

Question for CC Readers:  What was your main takeaway from the game versus the Ducks?

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