The Carolina Hurricanes came up short in their final game of the regular season, losing 6-3 Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena.
However, to be fair, Carolina was sitting nine of their regulars.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Teuvo Teravainen (x2) scored for the Canes while Spencer Martin saved 19 in the loss.
After the game, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour along with Bradly Nadeau and Max Comtois spoke with the media in Columbus. Here's what they had to say:
Rod Brind'Amour
On the game: A lot of young kids thrown into the lineup. Their goalie played really well. I mean, he made countless saves. I think that was the key to the game. I didn't like the start. We kind of gave them a couple of the faceoff, things we don't normally do, but that's kind of what you'd expect when you're throwing in guys that don't really know what we're doing. Overall, just move on. That's about all I can say about it.
On Bradly Nadeau and Jackson Blake: They did well. You have to give them credit for stepping in. They were impactful. Could of had some goals, just nothing went their way. The one on the goal line just sitting there, just one of those nights for those guys, but they were around it which was great to see.
On Max Comtois: He made a nice play on the goal and he was all around it. Missed on an empty net tap-in. He was around it. Again, for a guy that has no idea how we're doing it, to just come up here and be impactful in a game was good. He hasn't been in our system so to come in and just play and have an impact in a game whether there's stakes on it or not, it was a good job by him and certainly shows well. We know he has NHL experience. A performance like that puts him in the conversation if we have injuries or what not. He did well.
On Scott Morrow: It's tough. There was some good moments and some not so good moments I think, and that's going to happen. But the more experience he gets, the better he'll be. It was a good night for the young kids just to get a taste of it.
On his thoughts on the regular season: It's been a great year. You've gotta give these guys a ton of credit. This game is the one you can throw away. The way we started, we had some real tough breaks early in the year and there was a lot of talk about our group, but you knew it was going to end like this, you just did, because there's so many good players in here and they get it. I'm happy with the season they've had and now we obviously turn the page. This is what we've wanted to play for all year and we're going to get an opportunity to do that.
On Jesper Fast's status: That's the part that just makes you sick, to be honest with you. You're just trying to get through the game without having that. I'm not sure where it's going to go, but that's the bad thing about what happened tonight.
On flipping the switch: Well you don't flip any switch. That's the key. The key is that you play the same way that you've been playing. Again, throw this game out because we didn't have all of our guys in there, but when you get your full group playing how you prepare, and that's the game that got you 52 wins, you've gotta bring that starting whenever it is.
Bradly Nadeau
On his debut: I think it was a fun night. Unfortunately we didn't come up with a win, but I think there was a lot of positives to take away from that game and we'll see where it goes from here.
On his emotions hitting the ice for the first time: There was a lot going on. A lot of emotions, but I got to do it with [Jackson Blake] so that was kind of fun. Obviously it's a dream come true.
On the pace of the NHL: I felt pretty good out there. I got to play with [Evgeny Kuznetsov] and [Jesper Fast] so two good players. It was fun to get to experience this have the chance to play my first NHL game with those guys.
On coming out of the gates firing the puck: It was really nice. Unfortunately they didn't go in, but two shots right to start the game helped with my confidence and I think it really helped me for the rest of the game.
On the difference at the NHL level: The pace of play is obviously faster. The puck is on and off your stick. I'll be able to adapt to that, but we'll see where it goes from here. The atmosphere here was fun but they weren't cheering for us, but I think it was a great atmosphere.
Max Comtois
On the game: It was a weird game to come in and play. Obviously with this team being already clinched and with so many guys out. I just tried to take in the moment. I haven't played in the NHL for a while, so for me, it was just getting my habits back and just my automatics. It was obviously cool for those two young guys to play in their first game so we were trying to get the win for them. Unfortunately, a couple of mistakes cost us, but it's time for the playoffs for those guys and I'm sure they'll do very well.
On how he felt about his game: I felt decent. I think I had some good opportunities with [Stefan Noesen] and [Jesperi Kotkaniemi]. We seemed to be on the same page which is kind of odd sometimes when you play your first game, but I'm pretty happy with how it happened. A couple of mistakes that I probably want back, but I'm pretty happy overall.
On the opportunity to be a Black Ace for the playoffs: It's kind of one of the reasons I signed here at the deadline. I wanted to be with a team that's going to go far in the playoffs. I'm pretty sure those guys are going to fight till the end and for me, it's just an opportunity to be around a team that's fighting for a Stanley Cup. I haven't been to the playoffs in five years in the NHL so it's been a while and it's going to be nice to hopefully be around those guys as a black ace if they give me the call. I've got three more games in Chicago so we'll see what happens.
On the culture of the team: It's exactly like Rod [Brind'Amour] used to play. I remember kind of watching some clips when I was young of him playing and it's exactly what you'd expect. A hard-nosed, simple team that goes to the net and does the simple plays. You look at their game and you know exactly why they have success. It's a team that's built for the playoffs, so I'm going to be very excited to be around those guys.