The Carolina Hurricanes sought to use last night's win over the New Jersey Devils as a launching pad for tonight's contest against the Montreal Canadiens. The Canes scored five unanswered goals against the Devils to complete the season sweep of their division foes with a 5-2 win. Three players had multi-point nights, and Brandon Bussi was outstanding in the net.
Sunday's contest brought us the same goalie matchup from their meeting on Tuesday in Montreal. This meant Frederik Andersen and Jakub Dobes went head-to-head once more. Andersen played well in the game, but Montreal's offense proved too timely and opportunistic. Dobes was nearly unbeatable, allowing two early goals before settling in and making 41 stops.
Much like Tuesday, the start was all Carolina. Andrei Svechnikov broke the ice on the power play, hammering a shot past Dobes on a broken play to get it rolling. Montreal didn't record a shot until almost 12 minutes in, and their only sustained attack came courtesy of a late power play, which the Canes killed. After 20, the 1-0 lead remained intact for the home team.
The more the Hurricanes pushed without scoring another goal, the closer it felt like we were getting to the dam breaking. When Nick Suzuki tied it early in the second, the dam finally went with it. Cole Caufield got one late in the period, and Suzuki added another in the final seconds on the power play. All of a sudden, despite dominating most of the contest, the Canes were behind by two after two.
Whether it be the iron or the brick wall in the crease, the Hurricanes failed to make a dent in their deficit over the final 20 minutes. They had two chances on the power play that didn't convert, while they did their part in preventing it from ballooning. Eventually, time became a factor, and it was too late. For the second time this week and the third time this season, the Habs beat the Hurricanes.
The script between Tuesday and tonight was eerily similar
While I'd appreciate it if you stuck around a little longer, you could read Tuesday's recap and get a similar one tonight. The Canes were the better team for most of the night, especially at the very beginning. They were peppering shots left and right, and eventually, one got in. They had the lead, just as they did on Tuesday, with an early goal.
From there, try as they might, they couldn't get another one to go. The Canes' top line felt like they were all over it. Andrei Svechnikov, who scored the lone goal, led the team with five shots. Seth Jarvis had four. Sebastian Aho only had one, but he had a post to go with it. I think the Canes deserved better than what they got once again, though that's of little comfort now.
Caufield, Suzuki, Hutson, and Dobes is all Montreal needed
Admittedly, this sentiment is a little oversimplified because there was quite a bit that went into this win for Montreal. For starters, they blocked 32 shots, with just about everyone getting one. However, it's these four players that really set the tone. The offense didn't come until the second period, but Nick Suzuki factored on all three goals, while Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson had two points each.
However, the star of the show, once again, was Jakub Dobes between the pipes. After 41 stops on Tuesday, he made a measly 34 tonight. The Hurricanes were all around the net, but they failed to solve him after scoring the first goal. So many of them were high-danger shots, and quite a few were one-on-one. It's like he finds a different level against the Canes.
Additional Thoughts
I can't, in good faith, place the blame squarely on Frederik Andersen's shoulders. You could argue that you need a stop on either of Montreal's first two goals, but he tried as hard as he could to keep Suzuki's second goal out. It's also hard when you have Dobes playing like the second coming of Dominik Hasek on the other end. It is what it is, and I don't blame Andersen for it.
In more positive news, the power play scored another goal tonight, bringing them to six games in a row with at least one cash-in. Svechnikov did the honors with a clapper from the dot, with Jarvis and Aho getting the assists. It would've been nice to see one of their tries in the third period go as well, but it wasn't in the cards tonight.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes start next week with a home-and-home against the Columbus Blue Jackets. They close their March slate by returning to Columbus, where they lost 5-1 earlier in the month. Both teams will be in Raleigh on Thursday to wrap the season series. The Canes play another back-to-back next weekend, hosting the Islanders on Saturday and flying to Ottawa on Sunday.