Carolina Hurricanes: Three Takeaways Against the New York Rangers

The Carolina Hurricanes went into Madison Square Garden hungry for a win after dropping their last two. Despite a comeback effort, the Hurricanes fell to the New York Rangers by the final score of 5-3.

Well, that was certainly an interesting game. Going into Madison Square Garden, you’re always weary because of the “curse”, and here we go again. This game featured many things, but overall, I found myself very frustrated throughout. Sloppy plays, the inability to capitalize on timely opportunities, too many unnecessary penalties, I could go on and on.

In the first ten minutes of the game, you felt pretty good if you were a Hurricanes fan. They were swarming the zone, playing their game, and even got an early goal from Lucas Wallmark. After Warren Foegele took an interference penalty late in the first period, the Rangers would capitalize on the power play and we would go into the first intermission tied at one.

The second period was simply not good, at all. Chris Kreider would score on a 2-on-1 the other way to give the Rangers an early lead. During a Carolina power play, Aho seemingly tied the game, it would later be taken away by a coaches challenge for offsides.

A few minutes later, Artemi Panarin would take advantage of a scramble in front of the net to extend the lead to two. By the end of the 2nd, it was 4-2 Rangers.

Early on in the third, there was some push back from Carolina. Sebastian Aho would cut the lead down to one after another scramble in front of the net. Things were back and forth from then on, with both sides generating opportunities. The back breaker came when Ryan Strome scored to make it 5-3. Carolina would get a late power play, but could not capitalize. Let’s take a look at three takeaways from Friday night.

Big Night From Lucas Wallmark

With all of things we could look at from this game from a negative standpoint, there was a least a few positives to come out of this one. One of those, of course, being the amazing game that Lucas Wallmark had tonight for the Hurricanes. With his performance tonight, he has pushed his point streak to five consecutive games.

When Wallmark came into the mix last year in a much bigger role, many people weren’t expecting much from the young center. Luckily for us, he’s fit right in. As of now, he has seven goals and ten assists in his 37 games. While we don’t expect him to light up the scoreboard and produce a ton of points, there’s a lot he does on the ice that contributes a lot.

As I stated in the recap, Wallmark got the scoring started early in the first period. At the time, the game was in Carolina’s favor as they came out playing really fast. In the second period, he would have a 2-on-1 with Brett Pesce. He would set up Pesce for a very timely goal that gave Carolina a chance going into the third period.

While the spotlight is typically on the big guys from the Hurricanes such as Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen, it’s nice to see some depth guys step up and produce. Wallmark has come a long way, and his development continues to show as he keeps getting better. Let’s hope he can keep his streak alive tomorrow against Washington.

Lopsided Special Teams Battle

Something that has been a strength for the Carolina Hurricanes all season long, the special teams took a bit of a hit tonight. It was a rare night where both the power play and penalty kill struggled. If there was one aspect that I looked for that set the tone for this game, it was the Rangers’ ability to outwork Carolina on both aspects of the special teams.

The power play had some chances, but overall, it wasn’t that great tonight. Between the Rangers stacking up on the blue line and Henrik Lundqvist continuing his domination against the Hurricanes, the power play simply could not generate much. They had plenty of chances, but could not capitalize on any of their opportunities. They went 0/5 on the night.

The penalty kill struggled a bit tonight as well. With how lights out the penalty kill has been over the course of the season, it’s bound to have a few rough patches. To their credit, the Rangers power play looked really good tonight. They exposed some holes in the Hurricanes’ defensive efforts and capitalized on their chances, turning the game in their favor. Carolina gave up two goals on four chances.

When you look at it, it was the special teams that really tells you all you need to know about this game. The Rangers’ penalty kill was outstanding tonight, not allowing many chances. Their power play came up big when they needed it the most, and that was truly the difference maker in this one. Let’s hope Carolina can get their special teams back on track tomorrow against a tough Capitals team.