Everything Comes Full Circle
Going for his 300th win in a shootout would be a very fitting way for Cam Ward to get the job done, especially since his first career win in 2005 came in the first shootout in franchise history. New to the game after the lockout, the Hurricanes' home opener for the 2005-06 season came against the Pittsburgh Penguins. After battling to a 2-2 tie through 3+ periods, Ward faced a Pittsburgh trio comprised of Hall of Famers Mario Lemieux and Ziggy Palffy and rookie sensation Sidney Crosby. Ward stopped them all, getting a shootout goal from Cory Stillman to secure the first of many wins in his career.
Twelve years later, Ward was back in the skills competition, trying to complete another milestone. First for the Golden Knights was Alex Tuch, who sent his shot high to the glove side. Sebastian Aho came out first for the Canes, sending his shot high as well. In the second round, David Perron stepped up for Vegas but became the third shooter to miss the net. The first save of the shootout came when Marc-Andre Fleury denied Jaccob Slavin with his glove.
Reilly Smith was the first to score, working past a poke check from Ward to score on his backhand to put the Canes on the brink. The game was on Brock McGinn's stick and the moment wasn't too big for him. McGinn got Fleury wobbling before scoring under the goalie's blocker to force a fourth round. Cam Ward got his stick on Erik Haula's chance in the fourth round, and Fleury shooed Justin Faulk's chance away to extend it once more.
In the fifth round, Ward and the Hurricanes caught another break. Jonathan Marchessault had Ward dead to rights but put his shot off the glove-side post to push the Canes to the edge of victory. Phil Di Giuseppe took the attempt for the Hurricanes and it would prove to be the dagger. Di Giuseppe, who had played sparingly early in the season, caught Fleury guessing, beating him with a deke to his backhand to seal Ward's 300th victory. The team jumped off the bench to celebrate their goalie, who'd become the 32nd in league history to reach 300 wins.