The postseason-bound Carolina Hurricanes began a four-game road trip on Friday night, traveling to the Motor City to kick off their journey. The Canes secured their playoff spot on Wednesday night, defeating the Capitals 5-1 in a high-spirited bout between division rivals. With home ice for the first round still up for grabs, the group sought a good start to the trip to move closer to Game 1 in Raleigh.
Pyotr Kochetkov was in the net for the Canes on Friday night, trying to re-find his game. Jordan Staal remained absent, as did Andrei Svechnikov, paving the way for Justin Robidas to make his NHL debut. Dmitry Orlov was the extra defenseman, giving Scott Morrow a chance to re-enter the lineup. Cam Talbot started for the Red Wings, who badly need points to keep pace in the Wild Card race.
The penalty kill started with a big two-minute kill, but the Red Wings jumped on the Canes almost immediately after. It began with Ben Chiarot clapping a rebound past Kochetkov after Alex DeBrincat's initial chance hit the post. The Wings doubled their lead 26 seconds later. Sebastian Aho lost his footing, allowing Marco Kasper to get to a rebound at the side of the net for an easy tap-in.
The Canes didn't make up any ground during the remainder of the period as Kochetkov continued to be tested. While not at fault for either goal, this game could've gotten away from him early. Instead, Kochetkov bore down and made a few tough stops to keep it 2-0. The Canes had a little momentum at the end of the period but had a lot of work to do.
The top line got the Canes back into it, thanks to a smart play from Seth Jarvis. Justin Holl tried to make a pass from behind Talbot's net. Instead, Jarvis knocked it down and pushed the puck into the slot for Jackson Blake. The rookie walked into it and snapped it over Talbot's glove, giving him three goals in two games and cutting into the lead early in the frame.
Like the opening period, it only took Detroit one burst for their offense to explode. Besting their time in the first, the Red Wings scored twice in 21 seconds to balloon their lead to three. First, Mark Jankowski turned the puck over with a little help from Patrick Kane, who proceeded to score on a breakaway. Immediately after, Michael Rasmussen snuck behind the defense and buried an easy one.
Once again, the Canes started chipping away. The fourth line pulled them within two goals. Robidas threw a puck at the net, and Eric Robinson was there to tip it. The puck popped over Talbot and hit him in the back before trickling over the line, earning Robidas his first point. The Red Wings failed to capitalize on a late power play, but they ended the period with a solid two-goal advantage.
The power play failed to strike early in the third period, though they had a few good chances. The Canes pushed down by two goals and, eventually, broke through for their third. Brent Burns' shot from the point appeared to hit something on its way. It might've hit Jankowski. It might've hit Simon Edvinsson. Either way, it hit the back of the net, bringing the Canes within a goal.
The comeback wouldn't come to fruition, despite an excellent push down the stretch by the visitors. The Canes kept the puck in Detroit's end for a long time while Kochetkov was on the bench, but the Red Wings did an excellent job of getting in front of their shots. DeBrincat barely beat the buzzer, scoring into the empty net to finish a 5-3 victory for Detroit and earning them two massive points.
This isn't a game worth overreacting about. The Canes played a sloppy game for most of the night and probably didn't deserve to win. That being said, Detroit wasn't necessarily the better team either. They had two spurts of offense in which they scored two goals 26 and 21 seconds apart. That was pretty much their entire night. The bottom line is that it was a very weird game.
The top line continues to play out of its mind. Along with connecting for a goal, the trio of Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Jackson Blake combined for 15 shots, which accounted for almost half of the team's total for the game. The rest of the lines had their moments, but none provided as much sustainable pressure as the Canes' top group.
It was a pretty typical NHL debut for Justin Robidas. He didn't see much ice, only playing 8:14, which was the least among the forwards. However, the rest of his night is meaningless after picking up his first point in his first game. Robidas threw caution to the wind when he threw the puck at the net, getting a good deflection from Eric Robinson. He'll have plenty of chances to shine during this trip.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes will continue their road trip on Saturday night, facing the Boston Bruins for the third and final time this season. They'll visit Buffalo on Tuesday before the game everyone is waiting for on Thursday in a rematch with the Washington Capitals after their electric game in Raleigh. The Canes will only have four games remaining once the trip ends.