The Carolina Hurricanes cruised to victory Thursday night in a 6-2 win over the New York Islanders, a game which saw contributions up and down the lineup. It was a good "get right" game for the Canes, who got back in the win column thanks to some timely offense. Here are seven observations from the win: Seth Jarvis Possible To Play In Boston Despite Injury Scare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. ANDREI SVECHNIKOV FINDING A RHYTHM Is it too early to proclaim that Svech is back? After eight games of uninspired play, Svechnikov has put together back-to-back signature performances, and last night was definitely the best he's looked all season. The Russian winger had a two-point performance on the night, assisting on the game-winner and scoring a beauty of a response goal that really showcased how valuable he is when he's on. "Really, he might have been the most dynamic player last night and he came out on fire to start the game," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour. "He was instrumental on the Martinook goal and then obviously they get that one and make it 4-2, then all of a sudden, he comes down and pulls a Svech, which is the kind of player that we know him to be. It's nice to see him maybe getting a little bit of a rhythm going." Svechnikov has looked great alongside Jordan Martinook and Jordan Staal. He's shooting pucks, being physical, forechecking, backchecking and even taking penalties. The full Svech experience is back. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. ALEXANDER THE GREAT The Canes have been riding rookie blueliner Alexander Nikishin hard since the Canes' injury issues and he's held his own very well. The Russian defenseman has logged over 20 minutes in five of his last six games and he's been filling the stat sheet in that span too. Last night, the 6-foot-4 defender had four hits, a block, an assist and was a +3. He brought some much needed snarl to the game too, standing up for multiple teammates. He's been a dynamic force for the Canes and he's just going to keep getting better. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. SECOND LINE DAZZLES The Hurricanes' new-look second line of Logan Stankoven, Jackson Blake and Taylor Hall has been dominating opponents all year and last night was just another feather in the cap for the trio. The three dominated the Islanders, outchancing them 17-9 at 5v5 and the trio combined for two goals and five points. On the year, the three have a 60.74 CF% and a 59.41 xGF%. In the first 10 games of the season, Blake is up to three goals and eight points, Stankoven is up to four goals and seven points and Hall has two goals and six points. "They've been pretty good all year," Brind'Amour said. "Pretty dynamic and creating a lot of offense. Haven't necessarily connected all the time, but you have some talent out there as you can see. Blaker, is a special player too, and those three have been pretty solid and creating a lot of chances, so it was nice to see them get a couple tonight. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. NHL FIRSTS The Hurricanes had a pair of rookies register a couple of big milestones last night. Firstly, Bradly Nadeau finally scored his first career NHL goal. After Mark Jankowski and Jesperi Kotkaniemi forced a turnover deep in the Islanders zone, Nadeau jumped all over the loose puck, ripping one past David Rittich. "It's a cool moment," Brind'Amour said. "That's a nice goal too. Like, he ripped it, which is kind of what you expect out of him. Nice to get your first one like that. Kind of got us started on the right foot. " "It felt unbelievable," Nadeau said. "Obviously the two guys, KK and Jank, had a good forecheck going. Puck popped out and I just got the shot off and it went in. An unbelievable feeling. You dream about scoring a goal in the NHL as a kid and I was able to do it tonight." Not only did Nadeau score his first career goal, but goaltender Brandon Bussi also registered his first career point as well in just his fourth NHL appearance. It wasn't the most well-earned point in the world, just settling a puck behind his net for Taylor Hall to go and do the rest of the work, but I'm sure he'll take it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. BUSSI MAKING A CASE Speaking of Bussi, he's setting Carolina's front office up for some really tough decisions. The rookie netminder has been outstanding so far through his first four career games, with a 3-1-0 record and a 0.916 save percentage. "I worked really hard to get to this point and obviously you never take it for granted," Bussi said. "You never know when it might end or not. But I think my game overall, I've gotten more and more comfortable every start." With Pyotr Kochetkov nearing a return, the team is going to have three good goaltenders on their hands and they'll have to decide how to juggle three, who's going to get the bulk of starts or even who might be the odd one out. "We'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it," Brind'Amour said. "It's close. Kochetkov has been practicing and I think he's about ready to be ready. So we'll have to figure that out. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. THE MIKE REILLY REVENGE GAME Who doesn't love a good ol' revenge game? After two seasons on Long Island, the Islanders decided to move on from Mike Reilly and so the veteran blueliner ended up finding his way to Raleigh. Even with a deep blueline, Reilly knew he'd eventually get a chance to play, it just perhaps was earlier than even he expected. But with some big minutes and a sweet goal, the Illinois native is making the most of his opportunity. "I was excited to play these guys," Reilly said. "Didn't know if I saw a goal coming, but it felt good. Obviously I'm close to a lot of those guys over there. Good obviously to get a win." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. INJURY UPDATES The Hurricanes haven't had an easy go at things to start the year, with already six NHL regulars out with injury, and they potentially got dealt an even bigger blow on Thursday as Seth Jarvis exited the game early. The team's leading scorer blocked a shot off of his skate late in the third period and had to be helped off the ice as he could put no weight on his left leg. "That didn't look great, to be honest," Brind'Amour said. "We won't know more till tomorrow, but he's not feeling great at this moment. Hopefully it won't be serious, but it doesn't look good." However, Jarvis did take the ice for a few minutes on Friday. No gear, but he was skating around and testing out the foot, so that's a good sign at least. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RECENT ARTICLES 'There Were Some Real Good Individual Plays': Bradly Nadeau, Brandon Bussi, Mike Reilly, Rod Brind'Amour On Win Over Islanders, NHL Firsts [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/f63d229d-ea49-46e5-ad72-4eb8b16c769f.jpeg] 'There Were Some Real Good Individual Plays': Bradly Nadeau, Brandon Bussi, Mike Reilly, Rod Brind'Amour On Win Over Islanders, NHL Firsts Nadeau nets his first, Bussi shines, and Canes stars ignite in a dominant victory over the Islanders. Here's what they had to say from the locker room. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/game-day/there-were-some-real-good-individual-plays-bradly-nadeau-brandon-bussi-mike-reilly-rod-brind-amour-on-win-over-islanders-nhl-firsts] Has Andrei Svechnikov Finally Found His Game? [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/players/has-andrei-svechnikov-finally-found-his-game] Five Rookies Make Appearance On Road Trip As Hurricanes Deal With Deluge Of Injuries [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/latest-news/five-rookies-make-appearance-on-road-trip-as-hurricanes-deal-with-deluge-of-injuries] How Bad Has The Carolina Hurricanes' Power Play Been? [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/latest-news/how-bad-has-the-carolina-hurricanes-power-play-been] Logan Stankoven Returns To Dallas For First Time Since Trade [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/players/logan-stankoven-returns-to-dallas-for-first-time-since-trade] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwmeDfCA?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] to never miss a story. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free [https://thehockeynews.store/products/print-subscription]. 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