Carolina Hurricanes: Keys to Returning to Form Against Nashville

The Carolina Hurricanes host the Nashville Predators tonight for a two-game miniseries at home. The Canes head into tonight’s contest having lost their last two games against Detroit; Nashville, on the other hand, is on a bit of a hot streak, having lost only 1 game of their last 6.

As of right now, there are 15 games left on the Carolina Hurricanes’ schedule and 26 days left in which to play them.

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Four of those are against the Nashville Predators, two are against the Tampa Bay Lightning, two are against the Florida Panthers, two are against the Dallas Stars, three are against the Chicago Blackhawks, and the Canes still play both the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets once more each.

This means that there are still 30 points in the standings left on the table, and the teams the Canes are consistently good against are running out.

Having dropped more games than they should’ve against Detroit, the Canes will definitely be looking to put Nashville back in their place tonight, especially since Nashville is the only team left in the Discover Central Division that has yet to beat them this season.

3. Hakanpaa Draws In

After arriving to Raleigh a few days ago and practicing with the Carolina Hurricanes yesterday, Jani Hakanpaa is set to make his Carolina Hurricanes debut tonight.

The 6’5 defensive defenseman was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks at the NHL Trade Deadline alongside a 2022 6th round pick in exchange for Haydn Fleury, who made his debut with the Ducks last night.

Without delving too much into the nuances of the trade (Nick did an incredible job of that already), Hakanpaa fills a need as a right-handed defensive defenseman that can both shore up and complement the more offensive playing style of both Jake Gardiner and Jake Bean.

As of the writing of this article, Hakanpaa is 3rd in the NHL in hits, so it’ll be interesting to see just how his physicality shapes up in his Canes debut tonight.

2. Svechnikov Still Slumping

Andrei Svechnikov is still going through the mother of all slumps.

He’s just not getting bounces, but it isn’t for lack of trying by any means. Every day, Svech looks to be getting closer and closer to breaking out of it and finally getting a sorely needed goal.

Could tonight be the night he finally breaks out and manages to net a puck or two? Who knows.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed for him, for sure. Rod Brind’amour has mentioned that he’s giving Svech every avenue to get himself out of the slump, and that can be evidenced by Rod lining him up on the first line next to Sebastian Aho from time to time to try and get him going again.

Hopefully we see the up-and-coming superstar break out of his slump tonight; I think we all could use a pick-me-up after the past two stinkers against Detroit.

1. Mrazek Starts, Ned Backing Up

Petr Mrazek gets the call to the starter’s crease once again tonight as Alex Nedeljkovic will serve as his backup.

Mrazek has been stellar since his return from injury, despite dropping a loss to Detroit several days ago. So far this season, Mrazek has turned in a .943 SV%, 1.47 GAA, and a 4-1-1 win/loss record.

The Carolina Hurricanes have remained adamant that they’re rolling with a 3-goalie system for the remainder of the season. The past three starts have gone to both Mrazek and James Reimer, and Nedeljkovic finds himself on the outside of the starter’s crease yet again, oddly enough.

Ned has done more than enough to prove that he deserves starts over James Reimer, but it still remains to be seen if he will actually get those.

Nevertheless, Mrazek is starting tonight; look for a big game out of him and the defense in front of him to make up for the past two games of… well, let’s just say ‘lack of effort’ and leave it at that. Onward and upward!