The Carolina Hurricanes are back at home to begin another four-game homestand after a successful trip to California. The group won two of their three games on the other coast, finishing with a 5-2 victory over the Ducks led by Taylor Hall's third-period hat trick and Frederik Andersen's masterful work. To start the final homestand of the season, the Canes welcomed the Predators.
Pyotr Kochetkov was back in the net on Tuesday, working his first game since Saturday's lopsided loss to the Kings, which halted the team's eight-game win streak. The lineup remained the same, though Rod Brind'Amour speculates that Andrei Svechnikov should be available on Friday. Juuse Saros started for Nashville, who announced captain Roman Josi is out for the rest of the season.
Two critical points in this game determined its outcome. The first came early in the first period. After Dmitry Orlov took a high-sticking penalty, the Canes had done a good job of keeping the Predators quiet. That's until Kochetkov made a stop on Kieffer Bellows and lost sight of the puck. Michael Bunting was there to clean up the garbage, scoring with five seconds left in the penalty.
The rest of the period swung in Carolina's favor. Jack Roslovic might have nightmares about this game because he had several chances to score. His best chance came a few minutes after the goal. Jesperi Kotkaniemi made a beautiful pass for Roslovic to tap home, but he wedged it wide with Saros likely unable to get back. Instead, Nashville survived the period with its one-goal advantage.
The second critical moment was in the opening minutes of the second period. The fourth line generated plenty of chances, but none better than Tyson Jost's 2-on-1 chance that rang the crossbar. Seconds later, the Predators capitalized on a poor line change by the Canes, allowing Luke Evangelista to undress Kochetkov on a breakaway to double the lead.
The Canes quickly drew their first power play of the game, converting for the second straight contest. After Jackson Blake had a shot thwarted by Saros, Taylor Hall made no mistake as he stormed in on a reload. Seth Jarvis' touch pass to Hall allowed him to fly past the defense and work around Saros for his fourth goal in less than three periods, pulling the Canes within one.
Once again, the Canes were clearly the better team. They outshot the Predators 16-2 in the middle frame and had three tries on the power play. However, they couldn't find another way past Saros. For as great as their territorial advantage was, the Predators' netminder couldn't be beaten. Nashville was fortunate to cling to its one-goal lead through 40 minutes.
Jarvis had a breakaway denied in the opening seconds of the third, and Logan Stankoven, who was all over this game, was robbed after he forced a turnover. Otherwise, the Canes failed to create the necessary pressure in the third. Evangelista picked up his second goal of the game midway through the period, redirecting a shot past Kochetkov to restore Nashville's multi-goal lead.
The Canes pulled Kochetkov for a late 6-on-5 coming out of a commercial break, but they couldn't draw closer. Hall nearly threw a pass into the empty net, getting a little help from the iron to keep it out and saving him the embarrassment of scoring into his own net. The Predators locked the Canes down, holding on for a 3-1 victory behind Saros' 34 saves.
Every so often, you run across a game when it feels like you do everything right offensively, yet you don't get anything to show for it. I would point to the game in Minnesota last month as being a great example. The Canes deserved so much better on the scoreboard than they got. We have Juuse Saros to thank for that because he had another great game in Raleigh on Tuesday.
It felt like all four lines worked well, generating a ton of chances. The top line combined for 12 shots, led by Blake's five. Logan Stankoven had four shots, two of which were incredibly high-danger. Tyson Jost had the shot off the crossbar. Jack Roslovic couldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat. It was a frustrating night for the offense.
Though I fail to place Saturday's loss on Pyotr Kochetkov, he's had two straight tough outings after another subpar game against the Predators. The first goal was rough, but the second goal might've been the best indicator. Luke Evangelista beat him in a fashion we've seen few manage. Kochetkov bit on the move before being danced around. He needs to be better down the stretch.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes continue their homestand by welcoming the Montreal Canadiens on Friday night. They'll host the Islanders on Sunday and the Capitals next Wednesday before another four-game road trip through the Northeast and D.C. After returning from the nation's capital, the Canes will only have four games remaining in the regular season.