Carolina Hurricanes: Three keys to Finishing off Weekend with Win over Devils
Less than 24 hours after a wild 7-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings the Carolina Hurricanes take on a second adversary in the form of the New Jersey Devils.
Last night was fun right? Who is ready to do it again? The Carolina Hurricanes will take on another adversary donned in red tonight after cleaning up the Detroit Red Wings with an epic 7-3 win which saw them score in FIVE different ways. Tonight’s matchup pits them up against the New Jersey Devils for the first time this season.
The last time the Carolina Hurricanes saw the New Jersey Devils was their last regular season home game of the 2018-2019 season. The Hurricanes beat the Devils then which, with some help, purchased their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2009, ten years prior TO THE DAY.
While much of the game isn’t very memorable, the Hurricanes handily defeated the playoff contention eliminated New Jersey Devils quietly in front of a roaring crowd. What happened next was unforgettable. In its final regular season moments, the PNC scoreboard showed the out of town scores which included Washington defeating Montreal.
Along with the two points that came with the win against the Devils, that was all they needed to end the playoff drought. Petr Mrazek was the first to look up and notice. He almost jumped out of his skates as he embraced his teammates. Fittingly enough he was the first star of that game and in his interview he only had one thing to say:
“WE’RE IN, WE’RE IN! YES! YES! WOOOOOOOOOOO”
The crowd roared his name as he fed off their energy. Since then the Hurricanes have taken a seven game series against the then reigning Stanley Cup Champions, and swept a team that swept a team, only to be swept themselves in the eastern conference finals by a team that would eventually lose to the Stanley Cup Champions.
Tonight’s game against the Devils most likely does not have the same implications for the playoffs that the game last April did. That said, the Carolina Hurricanes need to secure as many points during this home stand as possible. That means two points tonight.
So what will they need to do to replicate the successes seen last night as well as the success of the team that beat the Devils on route to their first playoff game in a decade? Lets take a look at the three keys to tonight’s game.
1. Score First
This seems to be a recurring theme with keys to the game. There is a good reason for that. When the opposing team scores first the Carolina Hurricanes are 2-3-1. Compare that to when they score first at 7-0-0 including last night’s game. Simply put this team plays better with the lead early, no matter how brief they hold on to it.
There is probably a deeper psychology to it, but for tonight they just need to know that the sooner they can get a puck past the Jersey goaltending the easier the game will be. It seems that once the Carolina Hurricanes score once, another is soon right behind it.
Considering that MacKenzie Blackwood played the total 65 minutes and shootout period in yesterday’s game against the Flyers, the New Jersey Devils will more likely than not place Cory Schneider between the pipes. To say that Schneider is having a tough season, is an understatement of epic proportions.
In the five games that he has played in so far this season he has seen 144 shots and has allowed 22 goals. That’s only good for an 0.847 save percentage. The Carolina Hurricanes have the prime chance to stack up points and goals on back to back nights at home with him in net. They need to take full advantage of it early to set the tone for the game.
2. Keep your sticks down.
The New Jersey Devils do not have an excellent power play unit. They are 26th in the league with only 14% conversion rate. That said they still scored two of their three goals last night on the man advantage. The Carolina Hurricanes need to ensure that they give them no room to try and improve their numbers again tonight.
That starts by keeping your stick down. The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the more penalized teams in the league. While their 12th place penalty kill has helped keep them out of trouble, they need to get back to playing Rod Brind’Amour‘s style of hockey and stay disciplined.
It all starts with keeping their sticks down and avoiding high sticking penalties. Last night FOUR different Carolina Hurricanes managed to earn themselves trips to the sin bin on high stick violations. What is even more impressive is that none of them were Andrei Svechnikov, who is notorious for them.
High stick calls are the easiest to detect, the easiest to call, and the more likely to draw blood and force teams to kill four minutes instead of two. They are also the easiest to avoid committing. All you have to do is PUT THE STICK DOWN. I know I am not really saying anything here that Brind’amour isn’t already telling them in the locker room, but it still needs to be said.
If the Carolina Hurricanes can cut out their high sticking and perhaps even other stick penalties such as hooking, slashing, or tripping, they would eliminate over half the penalties they have take so far this season. Stick control is important. And sometimes, it really can dictate the course of a game.
3. Keep the Passing Lanes open
So this key is something I have been thinking about for a while now. It wasn’t until last night’s game that it all came together for me. Passing has been what makes or breaks this team. It has been since last season. The Carolina Hurricanes, when they are playing poorly, have failed to win games with sub par passing. They have also been winning games easily when the passing is on point.
Take last night for example, Martin Necas‘s goal in the second was the work of some masterful passing by Ryan Dzingel. Even Necas has to give him props for that one and might as well have given him a second assist it was that nice. Jaccob Slavin‘s “pass” (it was really a shot, but the Andrei was right there) to Andrei Svechnikov was another excellent example.
It worked well against a fast team like Detroit. Well the young New Jersey Devils are no slower. To keep them at bay and continue winning games against them the Carolina Hurricanes need to ensure the passing lanes remain open. That in turn opens up the shooting lanes and will turn Schneider into swiss cheese.
Lets be real, the Devils are really just another version of the Detroit Red Wings. A young team with some aging stars that have the wrong mix of experience and youth. Eventually that will level out for them. But for now it will either be speed and youth or experience and patience. Crisp clean passing will help keep both at bay and ensure the Carolina hurricane have the space they need.
Who knows, perhaps that space and passing will lead to another epic goal?
Carolina Hurricanes
Game Notes
- Puck Drop: 7:00 PM EST
- Location: PNC Arena
- TV: Fox Sports Carolinas, NHL.TV
- Radio: 99.9 FM The Fan
- Uniform: Home Reds
- Potential Lines:
- Svechnikov-Aho-Teravainen
- Niederreiter-Staal-Foegele
- Dzingel-Haula-Necas
- McGinn-Wallmark-Gibbons
- Slavin-Hamilton
- Edmundson-Pesce
- Gardiner-TVR
- Potential Goalie Matchup
- New Jersey Devils: Cory Schneider
- Carolina Hurricanes: James Reimer
85. 5. 109. Prediction. 2
The Carolina Hurricanes are more than just on fire. The Devils will be limping in from an overtime shootout loss where they were absolutely humiliated. Expect tonight to go as expected from two teams heading in different directions. Jack Hughes will be playing his first game in PNC Arena tonight. Keep your eyes peeled out for him.
Question for the CC Readers: Who will score the first goal?
The Rivalry with New Jersey. dark. Next
Carolina Hurricanes’ November Schedule Predictions
by Ryan Henkel
After a historic start, what lies ahead for the Hurricanes in November?
The Carolina Hurricanes are coming off of one of their best starts in franchise history with an 8-3-1 record in the month of October. This ties with the 2005-06 season, you know, the one in which they won the Stanley Cup, for the best start ever.
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