Hurricanes blast back into action with a thrilling 5-4 victory, showcasing offensive firepower and a clutch third-period defensive stand.
The Carolina Hurricanes got right back to business Thursday night, picking up a 5-4 win over the Eastern Conference leading Tampa Bay Lightning.
Carolina saw its offense kick it high gear right away and although the defense took a bit longer to show up, it came through with a good third period.
Here's four takeaways from Thursday's victory:
1. Expected Results After A Long Layoff
When you take three weeks off from competitive hockey, things aren't gonna look pretty when you return.
That was much the case last night as there were plenty of moments where guys looked like they were still getting their feet back under them.
Rust is always a factor of concern for any player that misses time, but when it's your whole team, the game isn't gonna be as crisp as one might expect.
Add in the fact that the Tampa Bay Lightning already had a game to get reacclimated too and you can see why this one looked much the way it did.
"Listen, everything that went on in that game was kind of what you knew was coming," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour.
"It was probably entertaining for the fans that were here and watching," said Taylor Hall. "A little bit back and forth. Not really the style we're constantly playing, but at the end of the day, we got a win against a team that, played last night, but probably knocked some rust off. For us, that's a long time to go without playing."
2. Olympic Forwards Pick Up Right Where They Left Off
The Carolina Hurricanes honored their Olympians before the start of the game and that must have fired up their three Olympic forwards as each of them scored a go-ahead goal in the game.
Nikolaj Ehlers, who represented Denmark, got the game's first goal, rifling a shot past Jonas Johansson after receiving a great stretch pass by K'Andre Miller.
Seth Jarvis, who represented Canada, put the Hurricanes back up 4-3 after the team saw a three-goal lead dissolve, finding some soft space right in front of the Tampa net.
Then Sebastian Aho, who represented Finland, scored the eventual game-winner, sending a knuckler in past Johansson on the power play.
"Personally, I felt pretty gassed, to be quite honest," said Aho, who played in six Olympic games over the NHL break.
3. Locking It Down In the Third Period
Thursday's game was as open as any you'll see through the first two periods and the score reflected that.
Eight goals on 45 shots isn't necessarily what you'd expect from the top two Eastern Conference teams, but with the talent on both sides and the lack of playing time under each's belt, it makes sense.
However, Carolina looked a lot more like themselves in the third period.
After a back-and-forth 40 minutes, Carolina held the Lightning to just two 5v5 shots on goal in the final frame.
Tampa still had zone time, but the Hurricanes were able to get in lanes, block shots and stymie the Lightning's elite offense enough to hold onto the win.
We'll see if they can carry over that type of game in Saturday's matchup.
"I thought the game got a little bit better there in the third," Brind'Amour said. "I liked our game. We didn't give up much and that was the key. We were giving up a few too many good looks, but I thought in the third, we settled down a little bit and got to our game a little better."
"Being able to reset between periods [was key]," said Logan Stankoven. "They're so good at being able to get the puck in the neutral zone and hit guys with speed and they're very dangerous off the rush. I thought that was just something we talked about between periods. That and limiting turnovers."
4. Second Line Starting To Get Some Bounces
The Carolina Hurricanes' second line of Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake has been one of the team's most consistently dangerous lines this season.
The trio has combined for the highest rate of scoring and high-danger chance generation on the team and also have the highest expected goals total.
However, they've been a bit unlucky this season in comparison to what they've generated.
Last night, we were able to see what the line is capable of, as they combined for two goals and a dominant showing.
"Lots of pretty goals," Brind'Amour said. "You don't always see that, but I think that line in general creates a lot for us and they're not always on the scoresheet, but they're always around it and they have the potential every shift to kind of make something happen. They were our best line."
The Hurricanes are going to need them to continue be difference makers if they want to be successful in the postseason.
"Obviously there's games where we would have liked to have produced a bit more, but I think our team has that depth where we have different lines that can step up and contribute at different times," Stankoven said. "Sometimes, you can't control where the puck goes, but if you can work as hard as you can and keep building on the little things, that's all you can ask of yourself."
Recent Articles
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
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.