2. Get on the Board Early
Historically Lundqvist has been good against the Hurricanes. In 44 games he hosts an impressive 31-12-1 record with a goal against average of 2 with a .929 save percentage. Just by glancing at this record one can see that he’s been dominate, coming away with a victory in 70% of the contest.
When you look deeper at these numbers he’s only given up more than 2 goals 13 times. In all but a few of those games the Canes have came away with two points. With that being that case, it’s clear that the Canes need to score early and often if they want to come away with a victory.
As of the time writing this, Carolina is a top five team in scoring, with 82 goals on the season, translating to roughly 3.42 goals a game. Outscoring their opponents 34-16 in their last seven victories it appears as if the Hurricanes’ offense is firing on all cylinders. Getting contributions from players up and down the lineup they need to continue their offensive confidence into tonight’s game.
Like any goalie you need to take away Lundqvist’s eye. Having a big body like Jordan Staal plant himself in front of net and use his 6′ 4” frame to his advantage will go along way in beating the 5th winningest goalie of all time.
Earlier in the season the Hurricanes managed to chase Sergei Bobrovsky, another goaltender they’ve historically struggled to score against, when they found the back of the net four times on 14 shots in the first period of an October 8th game.
After chasing him they bested him again a few nights ago when they scored three. Should the Canes manage to best Lundqvist on the road it very well could have a similar impact on future meetings between the two clubs.