Carolina Hurricanes: 3 Keys to Beating the Los Angeles Kings

1. Don’t Play Down to Competition

The Hurricanes need to keep their foot on the gas pedal. They are in the thick of a very tight playoff race in the Eastern Conference. The team currently sits as the first wild card team with the Philadelphia Flyers, the second wild card team, and the Florida Panthers within three points of the Hurricanes.

They can’t afford to play down to their competition. These are two points the Hurricanes need and should be able to get. I know that anything could happen on any given night, but on paper this Hurricanes team is miles ahead of the Kings. Ride the wave from last night and take control of this game as well.

The crowd should be a large one tomorrow since it is Whalers night, so the team could have extra motivation. They need to play a full game and not let up. They can’t resort to getting lazy and taking unnecessary stick infractions or getting out of position by not skating with urgency. The Hurricanes have a great opportunity to keep climbing in the standings and this game is perfect example of that.

What the Hurricanes can’t do is take the Kings lightly and look ahead to Monday’s game against the Capitals. Worry about the game against the Capitals when the game against the Kings is over. This happens to teams and I wish it wouldn’t and the Hurricanes can’t fall victim to that. Yes, the game on Monday is a bigger matchup and a game that the Hurricanes are probably marking on their calendar, considering the bad blood. But the game tonight is just as important for the Carolina Hurricanes.

2. Get Out in Front Early

The Carolina Hurricanes need to score early. They need the first goal of the game. The Hurricanes for a stretch this season went behind early and fought their way back to win. That hasn’t been the case lately except for the last two games the Hurricanes have played. Scoring the first goal makes the Hurricanes team play differently now. It gives them confidence that they can control the game from that point on. When they allow the first goal the team has seemed deflated and it seems to take the edge off their game.

In three of the last four games, the Hurricanes have allowed each team to start with a 2-0 lead. Against the Washington Capitals and Tampa Bay Lightning the Hurricanes couldn’t fight back. The goaltending hasn’t been there to where the Hurricanes can fall behind and expect to be able to win the game.

In the game last night against the Arizona Coyotes, the Hurricanes got out in front in the first period. They didn’t look back from that moment on. Although the Coyotes had chances, the Hurricanes kept pushing and pushing and they kept the momentum on their side throughout the game. On the second game of a back to back when the team you are facing has an off day it is always beneficial to get the first goal early. That is so you can keep the momentum you had from the previous game and make it easier to fight fatigue later in the game.

The records from when the Hurricanes score first and the Kings allowing a goal first would heavily favor the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes are 19-3-0 when scoring the first goal of the game this season. The Kings are 3-17-1 when allowing the first goal. The first goal in this one will have a huge impact on the outcome of the game, and it is very important that the Hurricanes are able to score it.

3. Effective Offensive Play by the Defense

I have always been a huge advocate for getting defenseman involved on offense. That is only when it is done so effectively and doesn’t affect the team on the defensive side. What that means is that you want the defenseman to pinch when they know they are going to keep the puck in the offensive zone. You don’t want the defenseman to pinch when three forwards are caught deep because that leads to odd man rushes and puts a lot on the goaltender.

An example in last night’s game shows when you shouldn’t pinch. In the second period Dougie Hamilton pinched up and it led to one of the Coyotes best chances of the night to get on the board. He was bailed out by Mrazek to help keep the momentum on the Hurricanes side. But if the Coyotes ended up scoring on that play it could have potentially shifted the game in the opposite direction.

The Hurricanes always play better when the defense gets involved on offense. I preach this because the Hurricanes do have talented defenseman on the offensive side of the game. Hamilton is by far the best offensive defenseman the Hurricanes have and maybe the best in the league this season. Hamilton has been a machine on offense this season having 14 goals and 25 assists. In games that Hamilton scores a goal, the Hurricanes are 10-3-1.

Even players like Jake Gardiner, Brett Pesce, and Jaccob Slavin can contribute effectively on offense. Gardiner has had a pretty down year so far but is turning it up as of late with four points in his last three games with one goal and three assists. Getting him involved on offense helps the power play as well as his puck moving skills as well as his shot improves with more and more confidence.

Pesce has improved his offensive game a lot this season and still needs to get involved more on offense. Slavin has always had an underrated offensive game, but obviously is known more as a shutdown defenseman. When these four are being involved on offense it just makes the Hurricanes offense even more lethal than it is. Get the defense on the score sheet and good things will come.

Game Notes 

Puck Drop: 7:00 PM EST

Location: PNC Arena

TV: Fox Sports Carolinas

Radio: 99.9 The Fan

Uniform: Whalers Green

Potential Lines:

Svechnikov – Staal – Foegele

Niederreiter – Aho – Teravainen

Dzingel – Haula – Necas

McGinn – Wallmark – Martinook

Slavin – Hamilton

Gardiner – Pesce

Edmundson – van Riemsdyk

Potential Goalie Matchup:

Carolina Hurricanes: James Reimer

Los Angeles Kings: Jonathan Quick

Question for CC Readers: Which key to the game is most needed for a Carolina Hurricanes win?