The Carolina Hurricanes are down 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Final after being routed again by the Florida Panthers. Unlike Game 1, where they lost 5-2, they were on the receiving end of a 5-0 shutout loss in Game 2 on Thursday night (May 22). In every facet of the game, the Panthers had the Hurricanes’ number, and nothing was going their way for Rod Brind’Amour‘s team. What two things can be taken away from the Game 2 defeat for the Hurricanes?
Takeaway #1: Uninspired Hockey
It was evident from the start of the game that this team was not on the same page. Andrei Svechnikov had two turnovers that led to goals for the Panthers, one from Gustav Forsling and the other from Matthew Tkachuk. What did not help was that later in the period, he was given a roughing penalty following hitting Tkachuk in the back of the head after he checked him in front of the Hurricanes’ bench. During the subsequent power play, Sam Bennett was able to tip in a Carter Verhaeghe shot to give the Panthers a 3-0 lead in the first 16 minutes of the game. It was a rough period for Svechnikov with two turnovers and a bad penalty, which led to a goal. Brind’Amour postgame stated about Svechnikov’s game, “We know he’s trying, but we’ve got to do it within the way we need to and be on the same page. He was on his own page tonight and it didn’t work.”
What didn’t help was that everyone on the Hurricanes was on their own game plan in Game 2. Brind’Amour went on to say, “Obviously, we’ve got to just figure out how to win a period. I think we came out with the right intentions, but it was trying to do too much and then we’re not doing the things as a team that normally help us. I didn’t know what I was watching in the period first and that didn’t go well. The margin here is so tight. We’re not going to beat this time if we’re not on the same page. And tonight, for whatever the reason, like I said [we weren’t]. Intentions were good, everyone’s trying, ‘okay, I’m going to do this,’ but that’s not how we do it and it just backfired.”
The Hurricanes in back-to-back games have not played Hurricanes hockey. They’re a team that forechecks their opponents into oblivion and always puck-hounds if they don’t have it on their sticks. Unfortunately, the Panthers play similarly, and in the first two games of the series, they did it better than Carolina.
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The guys were hesitant to shoot, which was evident after only having seven shots through the first 40 minutes of the game. There were too many passes, especially on the power play, which went 0-for-3 in Game 2, leading to fans booing after a lack of urgency. Special teams were a rough one on Thursday night, with the penalty kill going 0-for-2, leading to both special team units going 0% in both categories. For a team that’s built on a strong penalty kill, it was one to forget, especially for assistant coach Tim Gleason, who runs the penalty kill for the Hurricanes. The power play has gone ice-cold outside of Jackson Blake’s late tally in Game 1. Other than that, a night special teams will want to forget.
It was a game that saw the Hurricanes get outclassed in every way besides the faceoffs (51.9% for Carolina). Despite outshooting the Panthers 10-5 in the third period, it was too little, too late. By the start of the third period, Frederik Andersen was taken out of the game, and Pyotr Kochetkov played for the first time since Game 5 of Round 1 against the New Jersey Devils. This was the first time in the playoffs that Andersen was removed from the game. Honestly, there was not much the Danish netminder could do with multiple tip-in goals and pedestrian play in front of him. He finished the night saving 12 of 16 shots, leading to another .750 save percentage (SV%). Kochetkov finished with a .800 SV% after saving four of five shots in his lone period of work.
Brind’Amour on why he pulled Andersen, “It wouldn’t have mattered who we had in net tonight. Wasn’t on him.” To be honest, he is right. Not much Andersen can do when the team in front of him limped through a 60-minute game in what was the worst performance in a long time. The Hurricanes will need to find some urgency going into South Florida if they want to get back in the series. Being down 2-0 and heading on the road is not a good thing, especially when you get outscored 10-2 in two games, and one of them was a 5-0 shutout. Carolina needs to get back to Hurricanes hockey because they are now 0-14 in Eastern Conference Final games dating back to 2009, being swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins. They have not won an Eastern Conference Final game since June 1, 2006, right before they went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Is there a chance to get a win in Sunrise, Florida? Yes. There is always a chance, the playoffs are weird, and anything can happen. They managed to claw their way back for a Game 6 in Round 2 during the 2024 Playoffs against the New York Rangers. Arguably, this is a deeper team, healthy, not so much with Jalen Chatfield still out and no word on Sean Walker and Seth Jarvis after both guys left during the game at one point. That said, this is a team that should be capable of winning games after winning their first two rounds 4-1 each, respectively. Game 3 on Saturday, May 24, will be a massive one that will define if they can overcome adversity and get back in the win column to make it a series. It’ll be interesting to see if they can make it a 2-1 series or face a 3-0 deficit to the defending Stanley Cup champions.
Takeaway #2: Hurricanes Need to Find Belief
The Hurricanes need to find the belief in themselves after falling behind 2-0 in the series. Captain Jordan Staal said postgame, “It’s one game, and it’s a seven-game series. We know we have to be a lot better. Just have to stay positive there and we know we can find a way to get our game going. If it takes a greasy road win to get us going, it’s going to have to start next game.” At this point, it’s one shift at a time, one period at a time. This team, while down 2-0, has shown glimpses of turning bad games around and getting back after it in the next one. This has been one of the roughest weeks for the Hurricanes in a long time, and it’s one they will need to figure out if they want to get back in the series and not fall down 3-0.
Related: Panthers Rout Hurricanes, Again, in a 5-0 Game 2 Shutout Win
Brind’Amour echoed about finding belief following the Game 2 loss, “That’s a good question. Sometimes it’s easier to recover from a game like that because there’s nothing good out of it. If you’re close, a play here or there makes a difference. There was nothing good from this game for us. We’re going to have to learn, but everybody has to be.” This is a game where the team needs to play simple hockey, playing Hurricanes hockey again. The series is far from over, however, adjustments need to be made. Urgency needs to be there from the opening puck drop, and everyone needs to be pulling in the same direction. They cannot afford not to play their game for another game if they want to avoid a third straight loss. It’ll be a tough hill to climb, but all there is to do is believe in themselves and just claw back one period at a time, one shift at a time.
Game 3 on Saturday in Sunrise
The series shifts over to Sunrise, Florida, as the Panthers will host the Hurricanes in Game 3 on Saturday night. Game 3 is set for an 8 p.m. Eastern puck drop, with the game being exclusively on TNT, truTV, Max, SportsNet, and CBC. Hurricanes fans can listen to the game on the radio at 99.9 The Fan with Mike Maniscalco and Tripp Tracy on the call. The series is far from over, but the Hurricanes have a hill to climb to get out of the 2-0 hole, and only scoring two goals in two games, while allowing 10. It’ll be interesting to see what happens on Saturday night in South Florida. Will it be a 2-1 series after Game 3, or will they be in a deep hole, down 3-0? Only time will tell.
