Hurricanes battle Lightning's potent offense tonight. Can Carolina overcome recent struggles and tame Kucherov and Vasilevskiy?
What - Game 66 (41-18-6)
When - 7 p.m., Saturday, March 14
Where - Benchmark International Arena; Tampa Bay, FL
How to Watch - FanDuel Sports Network South
The Carolina Hurricanes will look to get back on track tonight as they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Carolina is coming off of a 3-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues, a game which they controlled almost every facet of, but just couldn't find enough finish.
It was a frustrating loss for the team and one would expect them to have a better outing, albeit they'll have to really show up against one of the East's best in the Lightning.
Tampa Bay is coming off of a 4-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings and although they dropped out of the top spot in the Atlantic due to the red hot Buffalo Sabres, they're still a handful.
Nikita Kucherov is third in the league in points so far this season and Vasilevskiy looks to be back in form as one of the NHL's best goaltenders.
Streaks
- Mark Jankowski (2g) has goals in back-to-back games.
Milestone Watch
- Rod Brind'Amour will coach his 600th game tonight in Tampa Bay.
- Taylor Hall is two goals shy of 300 career goals.
- Sebastian Aho is three points shy of 700 career points.
Game Notes
- Carolina is 1-1-0 against Tampa this season, having lost 6-4 and won 5-4.
Key Matchups
Projected Starting Goalies
- Frederik Andersen: 10-11-5; 0.872 Sv%; 3.18 GAA
- Andrei Vasilevskiy: 30-11-3; 0.914 Sv%; 2.29 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Seth Jarvis (28) / Nikita Kucherov (34
- Points - Sebastian Aho (66) / Nikita Kucherov (106)
Power Play
- Carolina - 22.2% (11th)
- Tampa Bay - 22.2% (11th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 79.6% (14th)
- Tampa Bay - 81.5% (8th)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Andrei Svechnikov - Sebastian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Taylor Hall - Logan Stankoven - Jackson Blake
Nikolaj Ehlers - Jordan Staal - Jordan Martinook
William Carrier - Mark Jankowski - Eric Robinson
Jaccob Slavin - Jalen Chatfield
K'Andre Miller - Sean Walker
Mike Reilly - Alexander Nikishin
Brandon Bussi
Frederik Andersen
Injuries and Scratches: Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Nicolas Deslauriers, Shayne Gostisbehere (LBI), Pyotr Kochetkov (hip)
Lightning Projected Lineup
Gage Concalves - Brayden Point - Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel - Anthony Cirelli - Jake Guentzel
Zemgus Girgensons - Yanni Gourde - Pontus Holmberg
Corey Perry - Nick Paul - Oliver Bjorkstrand
Victor Hedman - Darren Raddysh
Ryan McDonagh - J.J. Moser
Declan Carlile - Charle-Edouard D'Astous
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Jonas Johansson
Injuries and Scratches: Scott Sabourin, Conor Geekie, Max Crozier (abdomen), Domincic James (leg), Emil Lilleberg (face)
Stay updated with the most interesting Carolina Hurricanes stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.