Carolina Hurricanes: Three takeaways from first loss of season

Sebastian no-show

I think that to say Sebastian Aho is fighting his mind right now is like saying the grass is green. Aho came into this game pointless in his last three and this game just seemed to show that he’s not quite right. With three or four open net chances, Aho just could not get the puck to go in. He could have sparked a Canes comeback in that 4th period alone but was never really confident.

By the end of this game, I was screaming at my TV asking for Aho to be taken off the ice. This is not something you want to say about the best player on the team. He’s not right. Either his confidence went down the toilet or he’s playing hurt because this is not the version of Sebastian Aho we have all come to know and love.

He couldn’t keep up with Florida’s lines, he couldn’t get the puck on net or when he did it was straight into the middle of the Panther logo. It was Sebastian Aho not looking like Sebastian Aho and that’s really concerning. Perhaps the extended break between this game and the game against the Tampa Bay Lightning will do him some good.

If Aho is playing hurt, and I have no information on whether he is or not, he needs to be taken out of the lineup and rested. He did not look right, and he hasn’t really looked right for a few weeks. We all want nothing but the best for Sebastian in terms of his health and performance and something right now is clearly wrong.

Aho is so important for the Carolina Hurricanes because he is the best player on the team. What separates the good teams and the bad teams in this league is often talent level. Hard work will only get you so far, but if your team is inferior in terms of talent, you’re going to have a tough time and Carolina found that out with their best player not quite at the races.