Three Keys - CAR @ WPG 12.4.23 The Carolina Hurricanes throttled the Buffalo Sabres 6-2 Saturday night at PNC Arena. Sebastian Aho, Jack Drury, Teuvo Teravainen, Stefan Noesen and Brady Skjei all scored while Pyotr Kochetkov stopped 20 of 22. Here are my three takeaways from the game: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cashing In To be honest, the Buffalo game wasn't much different than the game against the Islanders. The only difference really was Carolina was scoring at will on Saturday. The Hurricanes did most of their damage through 40 minutes, scoring five goals on just 21 shots. They also scored at all situations (even-strength, power play, shorthanded). "They gave us a few opportunities that we were able to cash in," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour. "That's the key. It wasn't that we had more opportunities than the night before. It was just that we were able to find the back of the net." The Hurricanes' offense has really been pushing the envelope as of late and it seems the goals are coming with a bit more frequency throughout the lineup. "I've liked how we've played for quite a while," Brind'Amour said. "We really haven't had... even the game that looked like it was really bad, really wasn't that bad, just weird things happened. I thought tonight was good to just get rewarded for some of the work the guys have put in." Special Teams After a tough outing on Thursday, the Hurricanes' special teams really showed out on Saturday with a beyond perfect game. On the power play, the Hurricanes converted on both of their chances, each time in under 30 seconds. Andrei Svechnikov had the primary assist on each, first to Sebastian Aho and then to Teuvo Teravainen. On the penalty kill, the Canes went 5-for-5 including 48 seconds of a 5-on-3. They also scored a shorthanded goal with Brady Skjei rifling home a shot after a clean o-zone win by Teravainen. Can't get much better than that. Rebounding It was a good response game in multiple ways for the Canes. Firstly, they stuck to their game plan despite not getting the results on Thursday. "[The game] was good," Brind'Amour said. "It was just we got results. I think we played well. It was very similar to the one other game, we were just able to score and for the most part, keep them off the scoresheet. The overall game I thought was good and very similar to how we've been playing." It was also a good bounce back game for Pyotr Kochetkov who stopped 20 shots in the win. "We wanted to try and give him a night off, but Raanta wasn't able to go, so you've got to give him credit for answering that," Brind'Amour said. "Didn't have a ton of work, but he made a few saves and allowed us to kind of cruise." "Today went a little bit better," Kochetkov said. "Today was a nice chance for me to play better. The team helps me every game. Today, it was a lot of goals and a lot of blocked shots. Tonight, I was happy." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recent Articles Carolina Hurricanes @ Winnipeg Jets: Lineups and Game Preview [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/news/carolina-hurricanes-winnipeg-jets-lineups-and-game-preview-12-3-23] Player of the Game: Sebastian Aho (Game 23) [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/opinions/player-of-the-game-sebastian-aho-game-23] Hurricanes Throttle Sabres in 6-2 Blowout Win [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/news/hurricanes-throttle-sabres-in-6-2-blowout-win] Sebastian Aho, Jack Drury, Pyotr Kochetkov and Rod Brind'Amour on Blowout Win: 'We were able to cash in. That was key' [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/news/sebastian-aho-jack-drury-pyotr-kochetkov-and-rod-brindamour-on-blowout-win-we-were-able-to-cash-in-that-was-key] Carolina Hurricanes Defense Sets Yet Another Franchise Record [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes/features/carolina-hurricanes-defense-sets-franchise-record]
