A More Complete Effort in Front of Ned
Alex Nedeljkovic will get the start tonight, per Michael Smith. After his two most recent games, I think he’s earned a nice, easy game.
Ned has finally established himself with the big club and been nothing short of stellar in his last three starts. He started the stretch by earning a 25-save shutout against Tampa Bay, the first of his NHL career against the defending champs. He then kept the Canes in his next start against the Bolts a few nights later, only allowing two goals while the Hurricanes failed to muster any sort of meaningful offense, then stood on his head last time out against Florida, again allowing just two goals while making a career-best 44 saves.
Goaltender is a position that is so much about who is in a rhythm, and Alex has been absolutely locked in the last couple weeks. With Reimer’s struggles at times this year, many Canes fans are clamoring for him to have a role even once Petr Mrazek returns.
While I’m not sure I see Rod Brind’Amour doing that yet – or, at least, giving him the backup role over Reimer – Ned has proven he’s an NHL-caliber goalie. His taxi squad days are done, because if he hits waivers there is a 0% chance he clears a second time.
Back to the point; the Carolina Hurricanes have, by and large, struggled to put together three periods of hockey this season. We have watched them allow teams back into games far too frequently, the most recent being last game against Nashville when a 3-0 second intermission lead quickly became 3-2 in the final frame. In a vacuum, that particular game was less concerning due to the circumstances (back-to-back, end of a long road trip, arriving in Nashville at 3:00 AM the night before), but the pattern is nonetheless alarming.
I’m looking for the Hurricanes to develop more of a killer instinct. If you build a 3 or 4 to nothing lead, who cares? Keep the foot on the gas, and erase any thoughts of a comeback happening before it starts. You cannot let up in the NHL, no matter the score, and I hope this is a lesson this young squad is learning.