For the first time this season, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Ottawa Senators battled it out, meeting in Canada's capital on Saturday night for Hockey Night in Canada. With a winter storm threatening North America, the teams sought refuge on the ice, as the Canes tried to rebound from their 4-3 shootout loss to the Blackhawks on Thursday.
The only change to the lineup was in the net, as Brandon Bussi tried to replicate his performance from Monday afternoon against the Sabres. He stole the show for his group, making a few saves that took over the internet. Former Hurricane James Reimer stood across from him for the Senators, making his fourth start since recently joining the team.
The Hurricanes defied most of the laws of logic in the first period. The Senators outplayed the Canes for much of the frame. However, when the Canes carried the play, they scored. Ottawa didn't. William Carrier and Seth Jarvis struck under two minutes apart to give the Canes an early lead. Late in the frame, Taylor Hall snuck one through. Meanwhile, Bussi was perfect, keeping the Sens off the board.
The bounces kept going the Canes' way early in the second period. After drawing a 5-on-3, Andrei Svechnikov threw something at the net from a tough angle. The puck hit Tyler Kleven's skates and beat Reimer to make it 4-0. The Senators got one back on a good feed by Jake Sanderson. Tim Stutzle was the benefactor, cutting into the Canes' lead, though it stood at 4-1 after 40.
Almost the entire third period was spent in front of Bussi, but the Senators couldn't muster a second goal. The defense was under siege the entire frame, as Ottawa outshot Carolina, 15-3. Bussi was perfect once more. The group endured a prolonged 6-on-4 with Reimer on the bench to get the win on Saturday night, taking down the Senators, 4-1.
This wasn't a great effort for the Carolina Hurricanes
The score tonight isn't quite indicative of the game that the Carolina Hurricanes played. This was not the effort of a team that won by three goals. The Senators owned the edge in zone time, they won over two-thirds of the draws, and they nearly doubled up the Canes in shots. Fortunately, the Canes had a bus parked in the net.
Once again, Brandon Bussi was the star of the show. The team in front of him might not have been locked in all night, but the man between the pipes was. He was outstanding for the beginning, the middle, and the end. He wasn't forced to make the highlight-reel stops that he did on Monday, but his calming presence in the net did the trick. Bussi is up to 19 wins in 23 starts.
However, they capitalized on what little time and space they generated
In many ways, tonight is the type of game that we've seen go against the Carolina Hurricanes plenty of times. More often than not, the shoe is on the other foot, and they're the team playing well but losing. Despite not having their best stuff, the Hurricanes made sure to strike when the moment presented itself.
The first period exemplified this idea. Their power play to open the game was dreadful, but the fourth line picked them up and scored after a bad Ottawa line change. Then, they won a battle along the boards to double the lead. The third goal was a gimme that Reimer should've stopped, but it killed Ottawa's momentum and forced them into a deeper hole.
The middle frame was a little better, with the Canes earning the bounce for the fourth goal. By this point, it was too late for the Senators, and the game was pretty much over. They got one back and played a good game after that. They didn't have an answer for Bussi. It was those few moments that got the job done. Two points look good, no matter how you get them.
Additional Thoughts
While it wasn't a pretty night for the Canes, there were still plenty of great efforts. Seth Jarvis and Jalen Chatfield were the only players with multi-point efforts, with Chatfield playing the most tonight of any Hurricane. Svechnikov was only credited with a power-play goal, but he and Sebastian Aho were instrumental on the Canes' game-winning goal by Jarvis.
The penalty kill also needs a lot of love for their work tonight. The group went 4-for-4, allowing just five shots to the Senators' power play. They got some better looks short-handed than Ottawa did up a man, with Chatfield nearly scoring on the kill and instead hitting the post. They prevented the Senators from swinging the game in their favor.
Up Next: You can now count the number of games before the Olympic break on one hand. The Carolina Hurricanes don't play again until Thursday night, when they'll host the Utah Mammoth. They'll stare down a weekend back-to-back with the Capitals and the Kings next Saturday and Sunday before closing it out at home against this Senators team and in New York against the Rangers.