The Carolina Hurricanes outskated, outhit, outhustled, and outscored the Florida Panthers in one of the most dominant games in recent memory.
After being shut out for the first time all season on Tuesday, head coach Rod Brind’Amour shuffled the lines searching for some offense. The team was challenged to return to their style of game and finish on the offensive end, and the Canes delivered on both.
The 9-1 win matches the most goals scored by the Hurricanes since relocation, with the two previous times
coming during the 2009 season.
But there is not much time to celebrate. The January grind continues with the third back-to-back of the month. Carolina travels north to take on New Jersey tonight at 7:00 PM.
When Jake Allen shut out Buffalo on November 28, New Jersey jumped over Carolina to take first place in the Metropolitan Division standings. Since that time, the Devils have been 8-14-1, and are now four points behind Pittsburgh for third place in the Metro division and six points out of the final Wild Card spot.
There are a couple of factors for this regression. Since the beginning of December, New Jersey has ranked near the bottom of the NHL in five-on-five scoring. Nico Hischier scored only two goals the entire month of December, and Jack Hughes has just two goals in his last 19 games played. New Jersey is now tied for the fifth-worst goal differential in the league.
Without this goal support, the light shines brighter on the defense and goaltenders. Allen and Jacob Markstrom have not played as well over this period. Markstrom ranks near the bottom of the league in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx), ranking 77th out of 82 qualifying goalies.
Just this week, New Jersey Devils president and general manager Tom Fitzgerald said of Markstrom, “He needs to be better, but I do believe that he can,” continuing, “We don’t ask our goalies to be spectacular every game.” Just give us a chance.”
The Devils are searching for answers on the blueline as well. New Jersey made headlines by scratching defenseman Dougie Hamilton on January 11 versus Winnipeg. The Devils contend it was a hockey decision based on the return of Johnathan Kovacevic and wanting to keep Simon Nemec in the lineup, while Hamilton’s agent said it was an intentional decision to force a trade.
Hamilton has played in the last two games, and the Devils are on a two-game winning streak. New Jersey has not won more than two consecutive games since three straight in late November.
Despite the struggles on five-on-five, the New Jersey penalty kill has played quite well in recent games. In their last 10 games, New Jersey has killed 16 of 19 penalties, and since December 1, the kill is at 84 percent.
This will be an intriguing matchup since the Carolina power play has been one of the best in the league during this same stretch. The Canes scored four power play goals last night and have scored at least one power play goal in 11 of their last 20 games. For Carolina, keeping the power play momentum alive must remain a focus of the team each game.
The Devils report that Nemec will likely be a healthy scratch this evening. Zack MacEwen is out for the season after knee surgery earlier this month, and Stefan Noesen is on the injured reserve with a knee injury.
The challenge for the Hurricanes is to put the same energy and effort into tonight’s game as they did last night, especially since the Devils are finishing up a three-game homestand with two days’ rest.
Carolina was blanked by one of the worst teams in the NHL earlier this week, and was facing off against the team that has kept them from advancing in the playoffs in two of the last three seasons.
Brind’Amour challenged the team, and the Canes had an overwhelming response.
This season, the Hurricanes are 2-1-1 in the second half of back-to-backs. One of those two wins was against the Devils.
There are a few pieces to the lineup to watch, and there may not be any answers until closer to game time.
Since this is back-to-back, the assumption is Frederik Andersen will get the start tonight. Another consideration for the schedule is Jaccob Slavin. He was held out of the previous back-to-back, but Brind’Amour said yesterday that he is hopeful he will no longer have this rehab restriction.
Shayne Gostisbehere did not play last night due to a lower-body injury, and William Carrier has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury. Carrier practiced Thursday, but there were no new updates on Gostisbehere as of writing.
Noah Philp remains in the concussion protocol.
Here’s how to check out the action:
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Location: Prudential Center – Newark, NJ
TV: FanDuel Sports Network with Mike Maniscalco, play-by-play; Tripp Tracy, color analyst; Shane Willis, analyst; Hannah Yates, rinkside.
Radio: 99.9 The Fan FM
Line: ML: CAR -115; PL: CAR -1.5 +210
