It looks like the Jedi defeated the Sith Lords in this matchup. On Star Wars night at PNC Arena, the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 to get them back into the win column. Also, this was Jordan Martinook’s 600th career game and it was fitting they won in front of the home crowd.
This was a game of lead changes and swings in momentum. Also, there was a fight, which helped provide energy and get the crowd into things. The Hurricanes had six different goal scorers and scored all but one goal at 5v5. It was a great night to win a hockey game but it came at a big price.
Kochetkov Exits With Injury
This game was great from a victory standpoint but it came at a price. After the midway point of the second period, Pyotr Kochetkov collided with an Anaheim Ducks skater and went down with an injury. Upon the conclusion of the game, head coach Rod Brind’Amour said he had suffered an upper-body injury.
This is not ideal, especially given the way things have gone for the team in the goaltending department. Before last night, Kochetkov had won his last four starts and hadn’t allowed more than two goals. In this game, he managed to allow three before the injury. He finished the game with minus-1.21 goals saved above expected and a .769 save percentage. However, Antti Raanta came in to relieve him and did a tremendous job.
Related: Hurricanes’ Kochetkov Looking to Seize the Starting Role
With the roaring crowd and the fans behind him, Raanta backstopped the Hurricanes to a victory. He did not face a shot on goal to end the second period but stopped all three shots the rest of the way.
The Hurricanes have to hope the injury to Kochetkov is not serious. Raanta was strong but so was the team in front of him.
Dominant 5v5 Play Propels Team Past Ducks
The Hurricanes are a dominant team when the game is played at 5v5. In this game against the Ducks, they showed just how much more superior they are than the Ducks in this area of play. The Storm surged early and the Ducks had trouble swimming.
Once the Hurricanes found their rhythm, they suffocated the Ducks in the first period. It was the most dominant period of the game for the team for many reasons. They held the edge in shot attempts 21-7 and heavily outshot the Ducks 16-1 in the first period. As a team, they controlled the puck and did not give the Ducks room to breathe out on the ice. The most eye-opening stat was the Hurricanes’ edge in expected goals (0.7-0.42). With the best passing play of the night, Andrei Svechnikov capitalized and exploited the weak Ducks’ defensive coverage.
The Ducks showed pushback in the second period and ended up clawing their way back into the game. However, the Hurricanes did a tremendous job shutting things down in the third period. Like the first period, they dominated to secure the two points. The Hurricanes held the edge in shot attempts 17-8 and finished with a Corsi for percentage of 61.64%. The shot totals favored the Hurricanes once again (9-3) and the defense did a great job of suppressing the Ducks’ chances. The game-winning goal came at a crucial point and was a huge momentum boost for the team.
After Kochetkov left the game, the Hurricanes fueled that into what would be the game-winning goal. After winning a puck battle, Michael Bunting found Stefan Noesen who punched home his own rebound. This goal helped turn the tides for the Hurricanes and they rode that momentum the rest of the way. All around this was a dominant performance at 5v5, and one line for the Hurricanes stepped up large in this game.
Jordan Staal Line a Heavy Factor
What a night to be on the Jordan Staal line. This line was a factor from start to finish and was the most impactful line on the ice. Staal, Jordan Martinook, and Seth Jarvis went to work and did a great job against the Ducks’ defense.
As a line, they finished with the second-best CF% of 73.33 and heavily out-attempted the Ducks 11-4. The puck was on their sticks and they controlled the pace of the game. The trio factored into three goals and generated the most expected goals of any line combination (0.5). Furthermore, they did a tremendous job defensively and suppressing the Ducks’ offense, finishing with 0.12 expected goals against. This line did a great job getting below the goal line and generating chances in the high-danger area of the ice. The hard work netted positive results.
Jarvis finished the game with one goal and two assists. Martinook finished with one goal and one assist and Staal had one assist. It was a great game by this line and they helped lift the team to victory.
Hurricanes are Surging up the Standings
The first-place race is on, as the Hurricanes are closing in on the New York Rangers. Dating back to Dec. 27, the Hurricanes are 6-1 in their last seven games and have been playing their best hockey of the season.
Last night was a display of their dominant play and they continue to climb in the competitive Metropolitan Division. This game came at a price and hopefully, Kochetkov’s injury is not long-term. Given everything, the team cannot afford to be down a goaltender.
Up next is a date with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, which will be a competitive divisional hockey game.