Carolina stands one victory away from Stanley Cup glory after Andrei Svechnikov’s two-goal surge and Brandon Bussi’s poised goaltending stifled Vegas to secure a pivotal Game 5 win.
The Carolina Hurricanes are one win away from lifting the second Stanley Cup in franchise history after a 4-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5.
Brandon Bussi stopped 23 shots in the win, while Andrei Svechnikov had a pair of goals.
After the game, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour along with Svechnikov, Bussi, Nikolaj Ehlers, Sebastian Aho, Sean Walker and Jordan Staal spoke with the media. Here's what they had to say:
Rod Brind'Amour
On the team’s poise: To be honest, I didn't think we had a great first period, that's for sure. But then we kind of got our game going, I think, I don't know... poise, I'm not sure. I didn't like a lot of the stuff we were doing, at times, but I think the goalie, Bus, had a lot of poise. I think he looked pretty calm in there, and obviously played a great game for us.
On keeping his team focused with one more win to get: It's probably good to have a couple days in between, to be honest, because there's a lot going on now and it's not ideal. So we’ve got to get that all figured out and then get ready to play a game because we know how hard it's going to be and refocus. But I don't think it'll be too hard to focus this group.
On if this game was more akin to Hurricanes Hockey: After the first. You forgot to mention that. Even then, you look at that first period, who got us back into it? Jordo. So we could take a breath and be like, ‘All right, no damage done.’ I can't say enough about him.
On Jordan Staal scoring again: Massive, right? It's not necessarily that you're expecting him to put up those kind of numbers, but when he does, that’s an added bonus. And, I mean, he deserves it. He’s playing great, but we’ve got to get that one more still, and he knows it. He’ll have our group ready.
On playing a better second period: I get it. It doesn’t look great, but that’s how it's gone, that's for sure. But we don't really talk about it. I don't know how to really explain it. There's certain segments of the game that you’ve got to be better at. I think we needed to improve that during the second period, but the game itself, we’ve just got to keep playing the right way. I think we did that tonight in the second period and the third period.
On if his team is getting better as the series has gone on: I don't know. I liked our effort for sure and I hope we're getting better. I think there's certain areas of our game that are starting to look a lot like we need it to look. But I do think there's still another level that we're gonna need to get to to find that next one.
On Andrei Svechnikov bouncing back after a tough start to his season: We have conversations all the time, and Jeff (Daniels) works with him daily. We also had other pieces that were new, and we were fixing things around. I knew that he was not going to stay with that group for an extended period of time, but he got it going. And then the playoffs, here tonight, I hope this kickstarts him because we need him scoring goals, and that’s what he did tonight.
On Nikolaj Ehlers finding ways to contribute even though he said it was "his worst game of the playoffs": So that's the key, right? Everyone's going to have nights where you make some mistakes, but then he still had an impact on the game on a positive note. He causes the first [goal against] when he tosses it over the glass, but then who made the pass for Jordo’s goal. That was Fly. And then another great play on the power play. So he always seems to find a way to contribute, and that's a good mark on him. And yeah, I'm glad his dad's a hockey coach, so I can trust that he'll take care of the other stuff for me.
On if he felt he needed his “top guys” to be on the scoresheet: Kind of? But that hasn't really happened, and we're still here. So it doesn't necessarily have to be that way, but they have to have an impact in the game, whether it's on the scoresheet or doing other things. It certainly makes it a lot smoother if they’re scoring. It takes a lot of pressure off other guys to do that, and I guess that's what happened tonight.
On what it’s like to be in your late 30s and play as Jordan Staal has: It's a great question because the playoffs, until you've done it and actually lived it and been through, it's a massive grind, mentally and physically. You guys have to travel, you know how hard that is, and now, well now add doing this every night. So to do it at his age just says a lot about him. He’s our guy, and he's our warrior. I'm really happy for him. You guys are getting to see it. I got to see this for I don’t know how many years. Fourteen. Every day. So I’m very fortunate.
On seeing Sebastian Aho finally pot one this series: I thought he’s played really well. And again, to your point about getting on the score sheet, he knows he needs to do that. He's playing all the power plays, getting all that time to cash in. It doesn't mean you're not playing well. And he was doing, all playoffs, he’s done, I think, played really well. But man, if we can get that out of him, that's just a big bonus for our team.
Andrei Svechnikov
On the key to the power play's success: I think we’ve got the little simple things, the shooting mentality and obviously Staalsy out there, a big horse, just tipping the pucks. We’ve just got the shooting mentality and looking for rebounds. I think we’ve got the chemistry going on and looking forward for the next game.
On this being one of the biggest games of his career: This is the biggest win in my life, personally, but thank God we won that game. Obviously our focus right now, it’s in our mind. We’ve got one more win to do here and we’re all focused for the next game.
On staying positive when things didn't go his way to start the year: Obviously, I think that was the toughest 10 games, on the start of the season, but I tried to always fight through it and it doesn’t matter what’s happening. I always try to stay positive and that’s what kind of happened and I think I had my best season of career and right now as a team we’ve got the best playoffs so far.
On Nikolaj Ehlers’ pass to him for his second goal: To be honest, we know what kind of passes Fly can make, but I mean, I was kind of back door and I knew he was going to make that pass because he just sees everything on the ice and I just kind of had to stick out my stick there and, obviously he hit it. So unbelievable play by him.
On if he was thinking of shot right away for his first goal: Yeah. That’s it. That was the kind of shooting mentality. I try to get as quick a shot as possible, and, obviously, it work out.
Nikolaj Ehlers
On being one win away from the Stanley Cup: It's huge, obviously. It's going to be really hard, a really tough game, but we're excited for it, ready for it. This team has been working all year for moments like these and especially these moments. We're excited.
On the team having a better second period: Our second periods up until today have been... not good. So obviously there were some things we needed to change and I think today, we were able to play a little more simple and make sure pucks were getting deep and make sure you don't just change without looking behind you. I think that worked pretty well.
On if tonight was closer to playing Hurricanes hockey: I would say so. It's the closest to a full-60 that we've played in the last five games. And that's obviously a positive, but we also have to realize how we play and how we did those things and how we need to play to give ourselves a chance, because we're playing against a really good team.
On what was going through his mind after his penalty leads to the first goal against/the relief he felt assisting on the equalizer: That one felt pretty good. Personally, that was probably my worst game of the whole playoffs. I'm not excited to... I'm excited, but not excited to see my dad after the game tonight. For those who know, he's been a hockey coach for the last 25 years. But yeah, you want to get one back. To do that twice in a game [Puck over glass penalties] is not something I'm proud of, but you have to try and stick with it and try to make up for it, but not try to do too much, which I also did tonight. I got a little better than I had tonight.
On Brandon Bussi: He's been like this the whole season. Even the last few months where he hasn't played. Our goalies, like I mentioned the other day, we're a very confident group in our goalies. The way they've been playing the whole year and to be able to come in like Bussi did, not having played for two months and then play two games in the Final and be as calm as he is and make the saves that he has is incredible. Of course that gives a team confidence. That's exciting for us. We're happy for him as well.
Sean Walker
On if it felt more like Hurricanes hockey: Yeah. I mean, it was definitely nicer than going to double overtime, but, I mean, we still find a way to make it interesting, but we battled hard all night and got the job done.
On having a better second period: Obviously I don't think anybody can really put their thumb on it, what's been going on in the seconds, but tonight we had a good second and that was key for us winning the game tonight. And again, we've been good in the thirds, so if we continue to do that, we should have success.
On being one win away from the Stanley Cup: Yeah, it's pretty crazy, but like you said, it's one win away, right? So we'll just go into Vegas with the same mindset that we've had all playoffs, play our game, and hopefully get the result we want.
On Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho getting on the board: Yeah, it’s big players showing up at big times. You know, those were huge goals for us tonight. I think if they're scoring for us, we're definitely doing things right, and we're gonna have success.
On Brandon Bussi: We have the confidence in Bus. He makes a ton of big saves, even when there's breakdowns. We trust him back there and he gives us tons of confidence to play our game and just be aggressive all night, so again, outstanding performance by him, and happy to see him get the win.
On Sebastian Aho's goal: That's the reason why Aho is one of the best players in the league and why he's been so successful for so long and in the playoffs. Just an unbelievable talent, skill and one of our leaders on the team. And when he's playing his game and doing things like that, it's special to watch. He's a big reason tonight why we won that game.
On the team's aggressive style of play: That's the style of play that our team wants to play. We want to be aggressive and tight. And when you're tight like that, it doesn't really give opponents a lot of time and space to make those plays, and you can… I don't want to say catch them by surprise, but sometimes guys aren't expecting players to be so tight. You know, it's been a long year and long playoffs. I think any time you can lay a hit on somebody, it's going to take its toll and wear them down. So I'm just trying to do my part. We have a lot of guys that are really physical, and I think it's a key to our success.
On if tonight was the best example of their style so far: I honestly don't know if we've still gotten to our best hockey, to be honest. I think that's as close as it's been in this series, but I think earlier in the playoffs you saw us really dominate, take over games, and it really didn't feel like the other teams were getting any chances at all, and tonight was pretty close to that. So we'll look to do that in Vegas.
Sebastian Aho
On finally scoring a goal in the series: It feels good obviously, but we play for the win here and the win feels a lot better.
On if he had a sense for how big his goal was: Yeah. The power play got us going in the second. We made good plays there and then obviously a big goal by Svechy. Then following it up with that 5v5 goal, I feel like the game really shifted in our favor at that point. It was big.
On playing their best game of the series: I hope we still have another level to get to. I mean, I didn't think the first was our best. Obviously they made nice plays there on their power play and stuff like that, but we can be better.
On Andrei Svechnikov's first goal: It was big obviously. Tie game at the moment and obviously him finding the back of the net gave us the lead. Really big.
On being one win away from the Stanley Cup: Obviously tonight was a big win, but the job is not finished. We're gonna rest and recover here and we'll be ready for whenever the next game is.
On if he's felt the team's gotten more to their game as the series has gone on: Yeah. I mean, sure. I didn't like our first, to be honest, but I think we built the game from there. After that, it was solid.
On his goal: Jordo finished his shift and put the puck in deep and then Marty went to work. Not sure exactly what happened behind the net, but he wins the puck battle, it goes to the point and I came straight from the bench and obviously a heads up play by Walker. A good pass and I was able to pick it up with the skate and get a quick shot.
On if he felt the team was winning a lot of puck battles: Yeah. I mean, sure. I thought so. I thought maybe not so much in the first, but after that, I think we were pretty solid.
On what's been going right for the power play: I think we work hard for each other, we're giving outs, executing the passes and shots. It usually comes down to that.
Jordan Staal
On Brandon Bussi: Bus, I mean, what more can you say. Just stepped in and played unbelievable tonight, last game. He just grinds, man. He's a big boy that finds ways to stop pucks and gives us a chance to win.
On Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho: Big nights for a lot of guys obviously. Fish had a big goal and Svechy, we needed him to get going and he had a huge impact tonight. We're going to need everybody and those guys had a big night for us. Hopefully they can continue that.
On Svechnikov having the season he has had after a tough start to the year: He's the hardest worker in this group. He wants it more than anything. He continues to try and make himself better and find ways to contribute. There's ups and downs in everyone's careers and it was a slow start for him, but he continued to build his game this year and tonight was a big one for us.
On scoring in five straight Stanley Cup Final games: Good company, but I'm looking for wins and finding ways to help get the lead.
On Brandon Bussi (again): There's not much more to say. The guy's been unbelievable, great all year long. He battles and finds ways to make big saves and gives us a chance. He was unbelievable tonight and had a big game for us.
On what he's thinking when he saw the puck go in for another goal: I'm thinking it's 1-1 and we need to get going. We didn't have a good start and so we needed to get going. It's 1-1 and let's go. That was it.
On the power play success: We have an extra guy out there and we have talented players. We've done a better job at finding that open guy and executing. I think the original plan kind of got them off their game plan and got them thinking and now the guys have really started making some good plays and finding ways to open it up and create some pretty goals.
On the team starting to roll in the second and third periods: I think we got to our game more and more, especially with hounding their D and finishing hits. We've been trying to invest in that as much as we can. It could take five, six games and then you get that little bounce and that little break and then you make them pay. I think Marty epitomizes what we do here and that was an unbelievable play there and a big goal.
On getting one more win: Nothing changes. It's just going to need to be everybody executing and finding ways to get that win. There can't be any rust, there can't be any off shifts. It's gotta be everybody and everyone at their best.
Brandon Bussi
On willing the team to one win away from the Stanley Cup: I don't know if I'm willing the team. We like our game right now. It's fun to be a part of. We work hard, we sacrifice. We care about the guy next to us. So, good win tonight for us. Enjoy tonight. Tomorrow we move on to Game 6.
On playing Hurricanes hockey: I think when we're able to roll four lines, six D, we're successful. I liked their game a lot. Would have liked to have kept the second one out so we could kind of keep everybody calmer, but it happens, and our sacrifice there those last, what, six minutes, it was great to see. We never give up. The crowd was getting loud, right? We were able to manage their pushes very well tonight. I think that was big. When we got going, we were able to score on our chances.
On if he's getting more comfortable as he gets more games here: Yeah, it's been a lot of fun. You know, I think that's just about it. You know you work hard, you enjoy the moment, and you put your head down and grind.
On what the games have been like: It's been fun. We're playing hockey at the highest level. I feel like I give you guys the same answer, so I'm sorry, it might be boring in that sense, but that's just who I am, right? It's been, it has been fun to be a part of it.
On the defense saying they needed to play better in front of him: I think we're all our worst critics in a way, you know? I think our D-corps battles a lot every night. We battle hard. Mistakes happen because that's the nature of the game and they're a good team. I loved our effort tonight, our sacrifice, the blocked shots, the pick-up sticks. You need those things to win games.
On if it's difficult to keep composure: No. I don't know, just stay focused, stay to myself, enjoy it. I don't know how I'm able to keep my composure, just that I am.
On if he thinks at all of being one win away from the Stanley Cup: No. This series, we've been trailing a lot, and honestly I think we need to keep that mindset. We need to be hungry. We're going there for Game 6, and we're probably going to see the best version of them. And we're going to probably see the best version of them for whatever happens, so I think that only means that we need continue to step it up.
On if this win feels better than Game 4: Come on guys, you should know the answers already. Yeah, it feels good right now, but the next one's always the best one.
On the Bussi chants: Yeah, it's cool. The energy they give us, the support they give as a team is special, you know? It's fun to play here and the fan base has been amazing.
On how he winds down after these games: Probably get on the couch and try and find something on Netflix or Peacock or Hulu. Just decompress. I'm a pretty boring guy. We're between shows right now. We're kind of in a gray area right now, so hopefully I can make a decision quick tonight. Hopefully that doesn't keep me up.
On how he'd imagined this moment would be: Sliding cross-crease, two-pad stack, glove windmill, all the extra stuff that you probably won't see me do. Yeah, I think it's cool to think back to that, and some of those thoughts are true, as being a part of it. It's cool to think about it, but it's one thing to actually do it. We got a lot to still do here but it's nice to be one step closer.
On the third period: I think if I don't give up the second one, we don't really get to that point of hecticness, but no give-up in our team, right? It's battle. It's not always going to be pretty. We found a way to get that kill and not give up a third one to really keep their push going
On if these games are starting to feel any different: Honestly, they've all been the same. I felt good the entire time. I can't say it's been getting better, but it feels good and I like where my game's at.
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