Carolina Hurricanes: Top three Bold Predictions for the End of 2019

Mrazek will not lose another Home Game in 2019

Petr Mrazek has had his ups and downs this season. There is no question about it. But at 13-6-1 in 20 games played there is no doubt that the ups have far exceeded the downs. This is especially true in PNC Arena where he is 10-3-0 in 13 games played.

Petr loves playing at PNC Arena. He has been unstoppable there. Between the rabid fans that chant his name throughout the game and cheer every head bobble, explosive outburst, and incredible save and the fact that he knows that this is his castle, there is truly no place like home for the Czech born netminder.

Did he know that this was the cult of personality that he was committing to when he re-signed late in the offseason with the Carolina Hurricanes? Maybe, maybe not but now with only three more home games left in the year there is no reason for the Hurricanes to start any netminder not Named Petr Mrazek between the pipes against the Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers, and Montreal Canadiens.

Three easily important games. Also three opponents that Petr Mrazek has defeated handedly in the 2019 Calendar year. Easy prediction for Mrazek to take us into 2020 with three home wins and three Storm Surges. What are you waiting for? GO GET YOUR TICKETS.

Andrei Svechnikov will have 50 points by 2020

Andrei Svechnikov has 32 points on the season already. You didn’t read that incorrectly. The sophomore Russian phenom is the only Carolina Hurricane to be over a point per game. That puts him at only five points shy of his entire 2018-2019 season! My Bold prediction for him before the end of the year is that he hits 50. That is right 50.

That means he needs to get another 18 points in the next ten game. That means he needs to average almost 2 points per game until the end of the year. That is completely in his wheelhouse. He already has eleven multipoint games on the season and a three point game. What is another eight before the end of the year. After all this kid keeps getting better and better:

Powerplay? Five on Five? Shorthanded? No problem, Svechnikov has you covered. But I am going to double down on this bold prediction with another one within in. That’s right folks, we are about to go within a bold-prediction-ception.

So here it is, you ready? Andrei Svechnikov will get his first NHL hat trick before the end of the year. Against who? There are so many options here. But I triple down on my predictions and say it will be against Sergei Bobrovsky and the Florida Panthers when they come into PNC for their third and final matchup against the Hurricanes.

The Panthers have already been chased out of PNC once before, now it will be Andrei’s turn to chase them out. Perhaps you might want to bring your cheap hat to this game.

The Hurricanes will sit Second in the Metro Going into 2020

The Carolina Hurricanes are sitting in the second wildcard spot behind The Penguins, Flyers, Islanders, and Capitals. They are sitting comfortably in that spot ahead of the Montreal Canadiens by five points. There seems to be no threat from anyone in the Atlantic or from the three basement teams in the Metro, Devils, Rangers, and Blue Jackets, to usurp that playoff spot.

By why settle for another wildcard spot? While the Capitals are well ahead of everyone by at least nine points, (12 ahead of Carolina), that doesn’t mean that Carolina is down for the count to getting into an automatic playoff spot before the end of the calendar year.  In fact they are only three points behind the New York Islanders who hold the second spot.

Now granted the Islanders have two games in hand on both the Hurricanes and the Capitals. But they haven’t looked very strong as of late. Their goaltending is starting to crack and the defense can only carry this team so far. That opens up an opportunity for the Carolina Hurricanes who have ten games left in the year.

What makes this the boldest of all predictions is that of those ten games, only three are at home. In fact of those ten games, half will be played in Canada. And only four will be against teams not currently in a playoff spot all in the final five of the year. Who knows where they will stand in the standings by then. But Carolina has a secret, they play better against good teams.

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In fact only three of their losses have come against teams currently in playoff spots. Two against the same team, the Philadelphia Flyers, and the third against Boston earlier this month. No, that is not a mistake, I had to go back and double and triple check my math. The Carolina Hurricanes prefer to play better teams. That means these next ten games will be a breeze.

That also means that they will more likely than not feast on the 20 available points and even go as far as finishing 2019 with at least 50 points which would put them around halfway to where they need to be at the end of the season to get in. December has not been a good month to the Carolina Hurricanes in the past, but there is no reason to let the past dictate the future.

Question for CC Readers: What are your bold predictions for the end of the year?