The Carolina Hurricanes came into Game 5 on Tuesday night (April 29) looking to end the series against the New Jersey Devils. The last time the Hurricanes defeated the Devils in Game 5 was back in 2023 in Round 2 in overtime, thanks to Jesper Fast. While it was in overtime, the Hurricanes defeated the Devils 5-4, this time in double overtime, to clinch the series in five games to advance to Round 2.
Game Recap
The Hurricanes had a rough start to the game as they saw the Devils take a 3-0 lead. Dawson Mercer got the first goal after a wild sequence in front of the Hurricanes’ goal. There could have been a challenge as Erik Haula was in the crease poking at Pyotr Kochetkov’s pads. Rod Brind’Amour didn’t challenge the play, so it was 1-0. Under two minutes later, Timo Meier scored to double the lead off of not-so-great play in the Hurricanes’ zone. Former Hurricane Stefen Noesen tipped a shot into the net on Kochetkov to make it a 3-0 game. It took three goals on seven shots in under 10 minutes to see this game go sideways quickly for the Hurricanes. The Devils outshot the Hurricanes 13-9 in the first 20 minutes of play.
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If the first period was all Devils, the second period started with all Hurricanes. The Hurricanes scored three goals in 5:40 to go from 3-0 down to tie the game 3-3. Logan Stankoven started the scoring just as the power play expired to get the Hurricanes on the board. It was a great goal to finish off the pass from Taylor Hall. Jackson Blake scored his first playoff goal as Jacob Markstrom was not ready for that shot from the North Dakota product. Finally, Andrei Svechnikov sniped the puck past Markstrom to score his fourth goal in two games to make it a 3-3 game. What a flurry of goals from the Hurricanes to rally back from a 3-0 hole.
Nico Hischier did get the Devils back out front to stop the bleeding. However, the Hurricanes tied the game up again as Sebastian Aho scored on the power play to make it a 4-4 game. It was the Hurricanes’ fifth power-play goal of the series as the second period was an absolute barnburner. The Hurricanes outscored the Devils 4-1 in the period to end it tied at four all.
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The third period saw chances for both sides, more so for the Hurricanes than the Devils. Carolina outshot the visitors 16-8 in the third period, but Markstrom stopped all 16 to keep their season alive. Kochetkov made some key saves as well, especially with the Devils having two power plays in the period. However, nothing came of it, and the game went into overtime.
It took until double overtime but the game finally ended as Aho scored his second of the game, on the power play once again. The Hurricanes won the game 5-4 in period five, and they will move on to Round 2 of the 2025 NHL Playoffs.
Round 2 Bound
With the win, the Hurricanes advance to Round 2 for the fifth consecutive season. Furthermore, it makes Brind’Amour the first coach to advance past the first round of postseason play for the seventh consecutive season. They take the series 4-1 in five games, and now they wait for the winner of the Washington Capitals and the Montreal Canadiens.
