The Carolina Hurricanes didn't have much time to sulk after a tough 3-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night. Despite a great push down the stretch, the Canes couldn't dig out of a hole, beginning the weekend on a sour note. They had to jump right back on the saddle on Sunday night, hosting the Calgary Flames for their annual visit to Raleigh.
With Frederik Andersen playing against the Oilers, Pyotr Kochetkov took his turn in the net against the Flames. Kochetkov was the victor on Whalers Night on Thursday. The rest of the lineup remained the same in front of him. He battled Dustin Wolf on the other end as the rookie netminder tried to add to his case for the Calder Trophy.
The Canes immediately had a chance to seize control of the game, drawing a power play in the first minute. The two-minute segment looked better than any of Saturday's chances, but it yielded nothing. The second chance went scoreless as well, though the penalty kill did the same to the Flames when called into action.
The first period was all Carolina. They dominated from the drop of the puck to the siren at the end of 20 minutes. Wolf had to be on his game, and he was. On the other end, the Flames didn't record a shot until nearly 18 minutes into the frame, ending the period outshot 12-1. However, where it mattered the most, the game remained tied at zero.
Calgary came out firing in the second period, immediately putting Kochetkov to work. The Canes netminder wasn't phased. He withstood an early flurry and pulled out the patented poke check on Morgan Frost. He also made two huge stops on the penalty kill to keep the game deadlocked before his guys started regaining control of the puck.
It took them a while, but the Canes finally broke the ice in the final minute of the second period. Taylor Hall labeled Nazem Kadri into the boards as he turned, forcing the puck loose to Jaccob Slavin. The defender raced up the ice with Jackson Blake, playing a game of give and go. Blake hit Slavin as he crashed toward the net, burying the pass past Wolf to give the Canes the first goal of the game.
The Canes had plenty of chances to extend their lead early in the third. Instead, a pair of penalties put them on the wrong side of a 5-on-3 chance for the Flames. While they killed the first penalty, Kadri got just enough on his one-timer to sneak it under Kochetkov's arm as Hall raced out of the box to knot the game once more.
Things got very interesting late. Jordan Martinook drew a four-minute penalty against Blake Coleman for high sticking before Joel Hanley came over and shoved him down. Andrei Svechnikov took exception to this, dropping the gloves with Hanley. The Canes failed to capitalize on the extended chance, falling to 0-for-6 in the game as both teams secured a point with overtime looming.
Only one man has scored in overtime for the Hurricanes this season. He did it again on Sunday. The Canes controlled the puck for most of overtime, with one small rush chance without a shot being the only time the Flames touched it. Slavin and Aho interchanged, allowing the Finn to uncork a one-timer under Wolf's blocker to send the fans home happy.
It doesn't matter how the Canes earn two points, so long as they earn them. This was not the prettiest game they've played this season, but they played well enough to win. Give credit to Wolf for sticking in there and turning in another excellent performance against the Canes. These were two points the Canes had to get, especially with how tight things in the Metropolitan Division have gotten.
The only negative I took away from this game was the power play, which is turning into second nature at this point. They had six chances to work, including the double-minor at the end of regulation. To go scoreless in that many chances is terrible. They had a few looks. Svechnikov had an especially good one that he completely missed the net on early in the game. Something has to give because it can't keep looking like this.
Only three Hurricanes found the scoresheet, with Jaccob Slavin and Jackson Blake contributing two points each. Sebastian Aho joined an exclusive club with his overtime winner. Along with breaking the franchise's single-season record for overtime goals, Aho tied the NHL record with his fifth winner. He joins a group that includes Brad Marchand, Steven Stamkos, Alex Galchenyuk, and Jonathan Toews.
Finishing this three-game homestand with four of six points is a good step in the right direction for the club. I've said it a few times recently but now's the time to start stringing wins together, especially with the amount of time they're spending at home this month. They can ill afford to stumble now. If they do, the rest of the division will have no problem jumping past them in the standings.
Up Next: With their mentors in tow, the Carolina Hurricanes will invade the Motor City, meeting the Red Wings for the first time this season on Tuesday night. After that, they return to Raleigh to kick off another homestand. This one is a little longer, keeping them at home for the next eight days as they battle four tough opponents, beginning with Boston on Thursday night.