It's no secret that this has been a tough series for Andrei Svechnikov.

After a disappointing regular season, the talented winger came out with a purpose in the postseason and was a true difference maker through two series. 

Svechnikov had eight goals in 10 games (one behind Mikko Rantanen for the most through two rounds of the playoffs), three of which were game-winners, and of those, one was a series winner.

He was a constant scoring threat whenever he was on the ice through the first two rounds and looked to be the player everyone has counted on him to be.

While the 25-year-old has been a consistent playoff performer, there always seems to be a wall for him and right now, Florida is that wall.

In three games, Svechnikov has just one assist and he's only gotten a single shot on net. He also essentially sealed the Game 2 loss on his own, with a trio of mistakes that all led to immediate goals against.

"Of course you put pressure, on yourself, but you also have to try and stay positive," Svechnikov said Monday morning. "I know it hasn't gone our way, but I'm trying to work out there. You make mistakes, but it's not that I'm not trying to do the right things and try to get shots and all that stuff. I know I'm trying, it just hasn't happened."

One thing that Svechnikov has always been good at though is staying positive through difficult times. It'd be easy to be down and discouraged in a moment like this: down 3-0, getting heavily outplayed, outscored, but the Russian is trying to keep up those good vibes not only for himself, but for his team too. 

"Yeah, obviously. I hate this time right now, but today's a new day," Svechnikov said. "Only good vibes right now and trying to think positively. Just try to go out there and have the best game you can.

"We're just going to go out there and not even think about being down 3-0. Just try to stay positive and try to play our game. The first two periods, we were so close and then the third period was just a hard period for us, but for two periods we were close. Just have to go day by day and see what will happen."

Hurricanes Turning Back To Number One Netminder For Game 4 The Carolina Hurricanes will be turning back to their number one goaltender tonight as they look to stave off elimination at the hands of the Florida Panthers.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs aren't ever easy. It's a grueling two-month, four-round journey that only one team comes out in the end of.

There's plenty of good teams and good players that never make it even close to the summit.

"You want it to be hard otherwise it's not the Stanley Cup," Svechnikov said.

But for the Carolina Hurricanes, the climb has been seven years in the making and they're still no closer than they were when they started it.

Many say that you have to lose before you can learn how to win, but how many more years of lessons does Carolina need?

"To be honest, we've been losing for seven years," Svechnikov said. "It's kind of frustrating, but to win it takes everything. It's going to be so hard. It's always going to be hard. We know it and we've been here for seven years. It doesn't get easier. Every year I actually feel like it gets harder and harder."

The Hurricanes are staring down the barrel. They know that the odds are against them, but they also know that these opportunities don't come often.

All they can do is as Svechnikov said: Go out there and try to play your best game.

"We know it's our last step," Svechnikov said. "We're standing in a corner right now and we just have to get out from there and that's what we're going to try to do."

Be sure to check out the Carolina Hurricanes 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Hub for all postseason stories!     

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