For the last time before a week-long rod trip, the Carolina Hurricanes took the ice in front of the Caniacs at the Lenovo Center, battling the Detroit Red Wings for the third and final time this season. The Canes hoped to extend their point streak to 12 games and their winning streak to five after returning from the Olympic break with a 5-4 win over the Lightning on Thursday night.
Frederik Andersen took the net for the Hurricanes, making his first start since late January with the team. He performed well in three starts for Denmark in Milan. The rest of the Canes' lineup remained the same. The Red Wings countered with Cam Talbot. Like Andersen, he hasn't been in the net for his team in well over a month.
The Canes didn't get the goals out of the chute as they did on Thursday, but they found a way to strike first. After Andersen made some big stops early, Taylor Hall blocked a pass and skated it the other way, faking out Talbot and sliding it around his pad. In the final seconds, Sebastian Aho's pass for Seth Jarvis on the power play redirected off a Detroit stick, giving the Canes a 2-0 lead after 20.
The fourth line put the Canes further ahead. Sean Walker intercepted a pass at the defensive blue line, allowing his team to turn it up the ice as Eric Robinson put home a rebound. Things were looking good, but Detroit pushed during a 4-on-4. Simon Edvinsson found space and put it bar-in on Andersen. Less than a minute later, Patrick Kane picked the corner. Suddenly, the lead was just one.
Detroit's momentum didn't carry into the third, thanks to the Stankoven line. Jackson Blake and Shayne Gostisbehere played a game of give-and-go, ending with Gostisbehere snapping it top shelf. Blake was rewarded a few minutes later, burying a 2-on-1 to tie his career high and restore the three-goal lead. It was a cake walk from there. The Canes won their fifth straight, beating Detroit, 5-2.
Whatever the Stankoven line did during the break is clearly working
On Thursday night, the Stankoven line was great in the first period. Tonight, they were the Canes' best line all night. They broke the ice on Taylor Hall's goal, his second in as many games since returning from the break. In the third period, they were on the ice for both goals, with Jackson Blake playing a part in each, assisting on the first and scoring the second. Hall added assists on both, too.
Blake needed a big third period, especially after a tough middle stanza. He hit the post and made an ill-advised drop pass that led to Detroit's second goal. His assist on Gostisbehere's goal established a new career high in points, and he tied his goal total from a year ago with his snipe a few minutes later. That contract extension looks better and better with each game.
Andersen's Olympic momentum carries into his first start
Frederik Andersen went into the Olympic break on a five-game point streak, though three of them were extra-time losses. I hoped that a good showing in Milan for Denmark would do him some good for this stretch run. Through one start, I'd say things are looking up. He was excellent tonight against the Red Wings, and might've been the team's best player.
Neither goal rests on his shoulders, and there were about a dozen saves surrounding them that stand out as game-saving. He robbed Dominik Shine twice to deny his first-career goal. He also flashed the pad on Andrew Copp. Andersen made the stops when he needed to, and he prevented any of his mistakes from snowballing. As a result, he improved to 3-0-3 over his last six starts.
Additional Thoughts
Shayne Gostisbehere really likes playing the Detroit Red Wings this season. He scored a goal in all three encounters, and tonight was his second three-point outing of the season against them. After the way the second period ended, his goal proved to be the biggest of the night. It's his fifth three-point effort of the season as he reaches 10 goals and 40 points.
With the win, the Hurricanes finish February perfectly, winning all three games before the pause and both after. Their lead in the division got a small boost with Pittsburgh losing in overtime, pushing it to nine as we head into March. They had a few close calls this month. Tonight was looking that way at the end of the second, but they pulled away early and made sure it never got close again.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes kick off March with a trip to the Pacific Northwest. Their journey begins on Monday night in Seattle, and then they'll cross the border into Vancouver on Wednesday. Before they take the ice again, the trade deadline will pass on Friday. Then, it's a back-to-back in Alberta next weekend, meeting Edmonton on Friday and Calgary on Saturday.