Carolina Bounces Back, Defeats San Jose in Shootout

The Carolina Hurricanes returned home to face a surging San Jose team that was hungry for a win. After a physical and highly contested matchup, Carolina walked away with a 3-2 victory in the shootout.

After being blanked by the Boston Bruins earlier this week, it was very important for the Carolina Hurricanes to play with a sense of urgency. After being shut out in two of their last three games, the offense needed to show some signs of life, and it certainly did tonight.

This game was back-and-forth all night. It didn’t take long for the Hurricanes to open up the scoring though. Just 51 seconds into the game, Andrei Svechnikov scored off of a beautiful feed from Warren Foegele. This wouldn’t be the only time the young Russian would make an impact either.

After a slight breakdown in coverage by Jake Gardiner, Joe Thornton set up Marcus Sorensen for a wide open net after Petr Mrazek overcommitted, which tied the game at one at the 12:44 mark of the first period.

At around the half-way mark of the 2nd period, a beautiful display of passing between Warren Foegele and Jake Gardiner would lead to the second tally of the night. This seemed to be huge for Gardiner, who has had some tough times recently when it comes to his defensive coverage. I think we all hope this provides that spark he needs to get himself back on track.

Those pesky final minute goals struck in the 2nd period when Logan Couture tied the game on a shot that Mrazek had no chance of stopping. Giving up those final minute goals can be a huge momentum boost for the opposing side, but luckily, that didn’t happen tonight.

After a 3rd period that didn’t see much except some exciting physicality from both sides, the game went into overtime. There were some great chances for Carolina, but they couldn’t bury it passed Aaron Dell. We then head into a shootout, where Mrazek took over. He stopped every shot he faced, and got Carolina the extra point.

This game was evenly played throughout the entire night. A quick look at the numbers will show just how close these two teams were. For a cross-conference matchup, this game had some fireworks, and that was very exciting to watch. Carolina needed this win, and they got it. Let’s take a look at three takeaways from Thursday nights game at PNC Arena.

Petr Mrazek Bounces Back

For the last two weeks, all eyes have been on the backup, James Reimer. For Petr Mrazek, he had a few rough games in that stretch and had many wondering if he still had what it took to maintain the starting position for the team. It was important that he had a bounce-back game, and he certainly did tonight for the Hurricanes.

Despite giving up two goals in this one, Mrazek was really solid. He stopped 28 of the 30 shots he faced, and most importantly, stopped all three shots in the shootout. While he shined in the shootout, it was the 3-on-3 portion of the night where he really stood out and took this game into his own hands with some dazzling stops that kept the team alive.

While he had some great moments, there were times where he looked shaky as well. After an altercation with Joe Thornton, his head didn’t seem like it was all there. And as the 2nd period rolled along, the Sharks took advantage and tied the game with less than a minute.

Despite that one hiccup, Mrazek was solid in this one, and he definitely needed it. If Carolina hopes to return to the playoffs and make a deep run like they did last year, Mrazek is going to have to play a big role in that. His enthusiasm can fuel this team and take them to another level, and we saw an example of that tonight. Let’s hope this is the start of a good run for him and the team.

Physicality From Both Sides

When it comes to cross-conference play, you typically don’t expect a game that is very rough and physical. The game was a surprise for me, because both teams didn’t lay off of each other at all. It was clear that they didn’t like each other tonight.

The most prominent moment was the altercation I mentioned on the last page between Petr Mrazek and Joe Thornton. Mrazek took exception when Thornton tried to pry the puck loose after Mrazek covered it. One thing led to another and Thornton essentially punched Mrazek in the mask, sending him to the ground.

Even beyond just that particular moment, the game featured multiple huddles behind the net with many players involved. Of course, it wouldn’t be a physical game without Joel Edmundson providing some of that toughness and physicality from the back-end. He’s pretty good at lip service as well.

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While we come to expect the display of physicality from guys like Mrazek and Edmundson, there was another player tonight that displayed it who really isn’t known for doing so. Of course, I’m talking about Sebastian Aho. One particular moment that stood out to me was a sequence of big hits against Mario Ferraro in the 3rd period.

When you think about cross-conference games, the last thing you think about is a brawl where both teams simply don’t like each other. Typically you’ll see games where players have a clean 60 minutes and then move on to the next one. This game was completely different and had a bit of everything.  It was an exciting game to watch, and Carolina finished with two points that they really needed. On to the next one!

Next Up: Vs Minnesota on December 7th