Thursday, November 6th at 7:00pm marked the start of one of the wildest (no pun intended) regular season NHL games I’ve ever seen in my life.
First Period
The Hurricanes faced off against the Wild in Lenovo Center, and the game got off to a quick jump with Minnesota’s Matt Boldy scoring and unassisted goal 5 minutes and 34 seconds into the first period. A little over 7 minutes later, Jackson Blake got the scoring started for Carolina during a 4-on-4 off of an assist from Sean Walker, who has been an outstanding player in the past 2 games. Brock Faber, who was dancing on the blue line for Minnesota, answered with 13 minutes left in the first period. However, the story wasn’t over yet during this 4-on-4 as Andrei Svechnikov scored right as the 4-on-4 was ending, recieving a beauiful assist from rookie defenseman Alexander Nikishin. This was 3 goals in just 52 seconds.
Additionally, during the period, Jalen Chatfield was on the recieving end of what was called an illegal check to the head from Tyler Pitlick. Chatfield was out for the rest of the game, and will likely end up out on concussion protocol. Unfortunately, the injured defensemen issue continues for Carolina.
Sean Walker didn’t seem too bothered by this, however, scoring just one second after the Canes powerplay (which they earned from the hit) ended. I’ve been absolutely awed by Sean Walker’s performance in these past 2 games, he has put on a masterclass in doing it all on the ice from defensive stops to physicality to scoring.
Second Period
The penalty kill for Carolina has been known for being quite successful this season, however just 37 seconds into the second period, Matt Boldy earned himself another goal during a Minnesota powerplay. Once again, the Canes responded quickly with Nikolaj Ehlers scoring his second goal as a Hurricane a mere 14 seconds after the Boldy goal. I immediately noticed the Canes impressive playing from behind this game, as well as how good our defense looked during this period despite the injuries on the blue line.
I predicited in my last post (see here) that this game would be a game of the goalies, and that proved correct from here on out. Freddie Andersen put on a masterclass in the crease with incredible puck tracking, while Filip Gustavsson for Minnesota was showcasing incredible reaction time.
Third Period
The beginning of the second period marked the end of the eventfulness for the night, as the game continued falling onto the net minders. However, Sean Walker was still tearing it up on the ice and doing it all. He earned himself some key defensive saves that assisted Andersen in keeping the score 4-3. Eventually, the Wild put the Canes’ defense to the test by pulling their goalie with 1:30 left in the game. Andersen and the Hurricanes’ defense manage to stay strong, and prevent the Wild from tying the game up.
Key Takeaways
There were some big stories to follow with this game, so let’s begin with Canes captain, Jordan Staal. This game marked game 910 for Staal, officially letting him pass his brother Eric for most games played in Hurricanes history. Many praises were sung for him from teammates and coach Rod Brind’Amour. He lived up to these praises by coming to the defense of Jalen Chatfield after the Pitlick hit in the first.
This game was also K’Andre Miller’s (another key defenseman for Carolina) return from injured reserve, and he put on a show (at least in my opinion). He created multiple shorthanded rushes on the PK and had many key stops in the defensive zone. This isn’t the first time he’s come back from injury this season, and I’ve been impressed by how he never seems to get rusty. It almost looks as if he’s been playing the whole time he was gone.
The Hurricanes named the three stars of the game as follows:
☆☆☆ Nikolaj Ehlers
☆☆ Jackson Blake
☆ Sean Walker
Sean Walker has proved to be an integral part of the Hurricanes core at the moment. As I’ve mentioned before, he’s doing it all and creating opportunites all over the ice. Jackson Blake has been on a heater as well, even if not completely evident in the scoresheet. He’s been a part of many key scoring chances along with Nikolaj Ehlers, who Brind’Amour has recently put on a line with Blake and Logan Stankoven.
However, my biggest takeaway from this game is, unfortunately, the injuries. The Canes practically can’t afford another injury on the d-line, and they’ve just had another one added to the list. The biggest question is how Carolina will adjust to the growing list of injuries and if they will manage to sustain how well they’ve been playing while missing key players on the team.
Thank you for reading!
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