Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers: A Tale of Top Lines

Speed is the Name of the Game

The Carolina Hurricanes and Rangers each rely on top speed

The Canes front line has 13 years among the three players. Known as the SAT line, the Hurricanes’ top line consists of Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, and Teuvo Teravainen. The trio has combined for a total of 190 points in the 2019-2020 season thus far. Out of a total of 597 points so far, the SAT line accounts for 31% of these points.

As Jason Mariani predicted earlier this year, the SAT line has gotten better. Despite some brief struggles towards the end of the season, this line has dominated the Canes scoring and turned into a fan favorite pairing over the course of this season.

It’s simply not enough to have three excellent players. Without the proper chemistry, top players can’t produce and fall short of their potential.

It’s hard to underestimate the chemistry of these three players, especially the stellar connection between Aho and Teravainen. This throwback from a January 17 2017 contest against the Columbus Blue Jackets is just one example of how Teravainen excels at setting up Aho. Teravainen leads the trio in assists at 48 so far this season.

Sebastian Aho was on track to his best season yet before the season was paused. Svechnikov has almost doubled his points from last season with 61 points compared to 37 points last season. I have no doubt that this line will be the story in the postseason this year.

The Rangers’ front line does have more experience under their belt, with a total of 18 years combined. This top-line consists of Phillip Di Giuseppe, Pavel Buchnevich, and Mika Zibanejad.

Phillip Giuseppe appears to be the weak leak in this top-line thus far as this is his rookie year as a Ranger. He has produced four points in twenty games during his time as a Ranger. Caniacs should take note that he spent 2015-2018 as a Carolina Hurricane.

Buchnevich and Zibanejad have both had the best seasons of their careers this year. Zibanejad was on a 6 game point streak, including a 5 goal effort against the Washington Capitals when the season was paused.

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An important facet of this top line’s play that I have observed after watching numerous parts of game footage is that they will capitalize on mistakes. It is important that the Carolina Hurricanes D clears pucks carefully because this line produces point after point off of loose pucks.

Zibanejad wreaked havoc in the latter half of the Ranger’s season, so it is important that the Hurricanes don’t let him find his feet and become comfortable in the game.

Best Defencemen in the League

The Carolina Hurricanes have two of the best defenders in the league.

It is hard for me to only say a few words about the combination of Dougie Hamilton and Jacob Slavin. Both players excel not only in defense but also as a dual-threat with plenty of offensive production. Both men are leaders on the team, and Slavin only improved with Hamilton’s injury absence this season.

The dual-threat of each player is what makes both players crucial to the Hurricanes backline. Hamilton is also key to the Cane’s power play, and I believe this will provide a boost to the unit when he returns for the postseason.

This line has a second chance to make waves with the 2020 playoffs after a stunted season for Dougie Hamilton, and I have no doubt this line will be the talk of Canes media in the games to come.

Slavin has already surpassed his prior seasons in scoring with 36 points. I think without the regular season-ending injury that he suffered, Dougie Hamilton would have also surpassed his prior seasons’ numbers.

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The Rangers top defencemen are Jacob Trouba and Brendan Smith, who both have plenty of experience in the league. This is Jacob Trouba‘s first season with the Rangers, and although this season’s numbers fall as average among his past years, he still has recorded 27 points.

Smith has been with the Rangers for four years, and he is on the way to exceeding his points total from last year.

Like many teams, the Rangers’ backline seems to struggle with traffic in front of the net. Players like Justin Williams who excels at getting to the net to produce goals will be key in dismantling the Ranger’s defense.

I won’t speak about the goalie match up very much because I have spoken about it extensively prior. However, I will mention that Petr Mrazek’s goaltending was one of the reasons for Canes’ success in the 2019 playoffs. Bill Masterton trophy nominee James Reimer has excelled this season, and I believe the goalie duo will excel in the playoffs as well.

The more I watch the footage and go over statistics from the regular season, the more my excitement for this match up grows. While the Rangers will be challenging for the Hurricanes, I believe the Canes will exceed expectations and move one step closer to the Stanley Cup.