It would be an incredible understatement to say today was just a game for the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes host the New Jersey Devils at PNC Arena this evening.
And oh yeah, both teams are tied for first place in the Metro Division.
After this evening, the Metro Division will have a sole representative. The Devils had been holding the spot for quite some time thanks to a hot start to the season with a 13-game win streak.
As expected, and to no fault to the Devils, they cooled off.
The Devils have played.500 hockey in their last ten games. More recently, the Devils have fallen three games in a row.
Although the Devils have cooled off a bit since the win streak, they have just one regulation loss on the road this season and 11 victories.
In comparison, the Hurricanes are on a five-game winning streak and have lost 3 regulation games at home.
The Devils are fueled by some serious young talent at forward with Jack Hughes leading the way.
The former first-round pick has 16 goals and 36 points.
Jesper Bratt has 10 goals and 30 points this year, while the captain, Nico Hischier, has 13 goals and 29 points.
Former Hurricanes defenseman, Dougie Hamilton, leads the way on defense with 7 goals and 24 points.
The strength of this group is on the offense, but the defense has done enough to keep the Devils in most games which usually allows the young guns to outscore the opponent.
In net, Vitek Vanecek is having a solid first season in New Jersey with 12 victories in 18 games started. He has 2 shutouts with 2.37 goals against average and a .912 save percentage.
Pyotr Kochetkov will have his hands full this evening, but he has proven that he is up to the task.
Containing the speed to the outside will be the main objective of the Hurricanes’ defense but that will be easier said than done.
I expect to see a high-scoring matchup tonight but the chess game between Rod Brind’Amour and Lindy Ruff will be fun to watch.
Either way, having a matchup like this in December is certainly a treat for hockey fans.