First off, it’s so good that after so many months off and somewhat meaningless preseason hockey to actually have real games to look back on and look ahead to. It also helps when the one you’re looking back on was an entertaining win.
The Canes took the ice for the first time as a whole unit on Thursday Night, and showed off their newest acquisitions in ways that should have fans excited for the rest of the season. The Canes and the Devils played an exciting up and down game that a lot closer than
the final 6-3 score.
That kept going after the game when he had this back and forth with Seth Jarvis during the media scrum in the locker room:
The vibes are usually going to be good after a win, but the way the Canes won should portend some good things as the Devils were the pick for many to be the Canes’ main competition in the Metro.
Saturday’s opponent is the Philadelphia Flyers, committing to a rebuild now with the ouster of John Tortorella. They put up a good fight against Florida in their season opener, losing 2-1. Brad Marschand scored what would be the game winner early in the third, and the Panthers held on despite outshooting the Flyers by double-digits. While Tortorella may be gone, the style still remains so the fans who enjoyed the up-and-down action of Opening Night might be in for a bit of a change tomorrow.
Dan Vlader was the goalie peppered with all those shots by the Panthers, and we’ll see if Philly coach Rick Tocchet sticks with Vlader or goes with a roation and puts in Sam Ersson.
The Canes have an optional skate on Friday, not surprising considering the turn around and the long road trip ahead so don’t expect much if any changes to the lines and pairings we saw Thursday. That also goes for between the pipes as we still await word on Pytor Kochetkov’s injury and coach Rod Brind’Amour is unlikely to go with the new acqusition of Brandon Bussi.
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For fans who missed the home team announcers, this game will mark the season opener for FanDuel Sports Network. Mike Maniscalco, Tripp Tracy, Hannah Yates, and Shane Willis will guide us with their pregame starting at 6:30 and the puck drop at 7. While its nice to be on national TV, it’s also nice to get going in the season with the faces and voices fans have grown accustomed to. In a weird way it’ll feel like the season is really starting. The good news for fans is that the next game not on FanDuel won’t be until the end of the month.
If you’re going to the game, note a couple things. The renovations in the 300 level aren’t complete yet, and you’re going to see a tarp covering the View Bar area. The team hasn’t said when it’ll be ready, but if you’re sitting upstairs be ready for the change up. Also Saturday is Margaritaville Night at Lenovo Center, complete with a t-shirt if you buy your tickets through that link—though you better hurry as most of the shirts are already gone. Expect to see the ode to Jimmy Buffet throughout the night.
After Saturday the State Fair moves in and the Canes fly out. They’ll start their first west coast swing by hitting up the California teams, working their way back east with Vegas, Colorado, then the first of the two highly anticipated meetings against the Stars. The next time they play in Raleigh will be Oct. 28th.
