The Carolina Hurricanes came up just a bit short in their final game of the 2024 Prospect Showcase, falling 5-4 to the Nashville Predators Monday afternoon.
It was yet another slow start for the Canes who found themselves in a 2-0 hole after one period of action.
Again, the defensive coverage was a bit too sparse at times leaving Nashville with too many open looks and lanes near the net.
However, much like the other games, the offense started to find its stride as the game progressed.
Skyler Brind'Amour took a hit along the wall to establish a zone entry, feeding the puck out to Scott Morrow who had joined the rush.
The 2021 second-round pick fed camp invitee Antonin Verreault open on the left side and the forward finished in tight on the backhand to get the Canes on the board.
Soon after that, 2022 second-round pick Gleb Trikozov continued his hot streak by slamming home a lucky bounce from the slot for his fourth goal of the showcase.
But while the Hurricanes soared away with the games in each of their last two outings after the offense started clicking, today was a bit of a different story as netminder Ruslan Khazheyev struggled throughout the 60 minutes conceding a handful of soft goals.
The showcase was the first true taste of North American hockey for the young Russian netminder and it was evident that he still needs a lot of development work.
However, the Canes still made it a close match as Brind'Amour and Morrow each picked up goals in the third period.
Overall, it was a successful showcase for Carolina which went 2-1-0 over the weekend.
There was plenty to like from the prospects and the players one hoped to see standout certainly had their moments where they shined.
I'll have more on my thoughts of the showcase tomorrow, but next on the agenda for the Hurricanes will be training camp which opens up Wednesday.