The Carolina Hurricanes began Saturday night amidst one of their hottest stretches of the season, extending their point streak to seven games with Thursday's win over the Chicago Blackhawks. Mikko Rantanen scored in his home debut to help the Canes earn a hard-fought 3-2 win against a feisty Chicago team. The goal was to extend the streak on Saturday with the Los Angeles Kings in town.
The revolving door continued for the Canes. Sebastian Aho and Taylor Hall returned after dealing with a bug on Thursday, but Andrei Svechnikov was the next man out, missing the contest with an upper-body injury. Frederik Andersen was in the net for the first time since his shutout win in New York on Tuesday. He would be opposed by Darcy Kuemper from the Kings.
There were fireworks almost immediately. Juha Jaaska, fresh off the first multi-point effort of his NHL career, took exception to a hit from Akil Thomas, leading to the third fight in four games for the Canes. The top line thought they had a goal in the latter stages, but it was ruled a hand pass by the referee, wiping a Sebastian Aho goal off the board.
The Canes would strike first, breaking through less than a minute after the waved-off play. Jesperi Kotkaniemi redirected Sean Walker's shot from the point to start a new point streak. Hall, playing in his first home game as a Hurricane, started the play in the defensive zone by poking the puck away and leading the group up the ice in transition.
The lead was short-lived. Full disclosure, I thought the stripes had a tough night and nothing epitomized it more than this goal. Dmitry Orlov appeared to be hooked as he went around the net. He threw the puck up the middle of the ice for Philip Danault to pick off and snap over Andersen's blocker. The fans were irate, but the goal stood as the teams entered intermission tied.
The second period was the difference in the game. Almost instantly, the Kings took the lead. Trevor Moore won a battle in front of the net, popping a loose puck over Andersen on his second whack to give Los Angeles a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Late in the period, they would extend their lead. Kevin Fiala made Orlov and Andersen look silly, dangling past the defender and outwaiting the goalie to make it 3-1 and give the Kings all of the momentum.
Never out of the fight, the Canes responded in the third period. Brent Burns and Jaccob Slavin combined to make a good defensive play to deny Thomas. Then, Burns sent a stretch pass up the ice to spring Eric Robinson on a breakaway. Robinson picked the corner to draw the Canes within a goal and earn Burns his 900th NHL point. The Canes nearly had another seconds later, but the puck bounced on Seth Jarvis in the crease.
The momentum was in the Canes' corner, but it would shift back to the Kings after another excellent effort from Fiala. Victimizing Orlov for a second time, Fiala outworked him in the neutral zone before snapping a shot over Andersen's blocker to restore the two-goal advantage. This would doom the Canes. They couldn't make good on a late power play as the Kings snapped the Canes' point streak with a 4-2 victory.
The Canes were due for an effort like this at home. They didn't play terribly, but the Kings played like a desperate team. In fairness, they really were. They had lost four straight, arriving in Raleigh for the final stop of their road trip after being shut out in back-to-back games. They made the Canes pay for their mistakes, getting back into the win column in a big way.
The Aho line couldn't buy a goal on Saturday. They were the best trio on the ice in the first period by several country miles. Sebastian Aho was robbed by Kuemper's pad early in the period and had a goal called off for a hand pass. Mikko Rantanen and Jackson Blake nearly connected on a beautiful give-and-go late in the period. Rantanen and Aho caught iron later in the game, too. They were the group's most effective line all night.
This power play is seriously broken. I wanted to give it a few games with new personnel before judging it harshly, but it became a hindrance against the Kings. Their first attempt was solid, generating a decent chance and two more shots that missed the net from good spots. After that, it was rough. They had a chance 6-on-4 to make the Kings sweat late in the game that generated nothing. This is the only area of their game that is preventing me from being confident in their chances in April and May.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes' next two games will be on the road, starting with a trip to Winnipeg against the Western Conference-leading Jets on Tuesday. They'll head to Minnesota on Thursday night to face the Kirill Kaprizov-less Wild on Thursday night before playing their final game before the break against the Utah Hockey Club in Raleigh next Saturday.