Heading into Game 4, the Carolina Hurricanes had just a single 5v5 goal from a forward outside the top line.
The 3-0 hole they found themselves in against the New York Rangers was contributed in big part to the failure of the power play and while that's certainly a big factor, the lack of depth scoring only compounded that issue even more.
So it's no surprise that once the Canes started to get a bit of depth scoring, they started to pick up some wins even despite the power play's continued struggles.
Game 4: 4-3 W
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Game 5: 4-1 W
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So far this postseason, the Hurricanes have been led in scoring by Jake Guentzel and Seth Jarvis... and Noesen and Kuznetsov.
All four skaters are leading Carolina with four goals each, but actually, only Kuznetsov and Noesen have scored all four of their goals with a goaltender actually in the net.
If you're going to go far in the playoffs, you need everyone contributing and the Hurricanes are back to getting those key contributions.
With Jordan Staal's big goal yesterday, the Canes have now had 15 different goal scorers so far in the playoffs and with Jesperi Kotkaniemi picking up an assist, every single starting roster player has registered at least one point against the Rangers.
That's the kind of balanced attack you need to be successful and especially against a team like the Rangers with a goaltender like Igor Shesterkin.
Of course you're going to need your stars to show up too, which has also been the case for Carolina.
The top line of Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov and Jake Guentzel have dominated the Rangers scoring five goals between them and setting up an additional two.
In fact, every single line for the Hurricanes has controlled play at 5v5 with no trio being any lower than 58% CF
So with that sort of control over play, the Canes' depth was due to get some bounces and it seems like they finally are getting them.
Carolina is still staring up out of a hole and have to treat every game like it's their last (because it very well could be), but if they can continue to keep this balanced scoring, they might be able to overcome the abysmal power play.
"We're going to need all 20 guys." - Rod Brind'Amour
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