No. 2 Seed Carolina Hurricanes Start Strong Against Ottawa Senators
The second-best team in the NHL in the regular season on standings points, the Carolina Hurricanes shut out the Ottawa Senators 2-0 on April 18 in Game 1. Both teams played well, and it was a close game considering that Carolina is a top seed (winning the Eastern Division) and Ottawa (the second wild-card out of the same division) is a low seed.
Regular Season Recap
The Hurricanes are a balanced team with no individual superstars, and their consistency led to regular-season dominance in the Eastern Division and league overall. It took a shootout for the Philadelphia Flyers to beat them on April 13, and the Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders 2-1 to end their regular season. Goalie Brandon Bussi ranked 6th in the NHL with an average of 2.47 in GA, and rookie Alexander Nikishin tied for 6th in the league with 22 assists.
Sebastian Aho led the team with 27 goals and 80 points. Nikolaj Ehlers scored 26 goals and 71 points, Andrei Svechnikov scored 31 goals and 70 points, and Seth Jarvis scored 32 goals and 66 points. The Hurricanes’ top two goalies, Bussi and Frederik Andersen, had SV% of 0.895 and 0.874.
The Senators are strong both offensively and defensively. They were in a tight battle with several teams in the Eastern Division, including the Washington Capitals, for the last few playoff spots until they clinched their wild-card position. Tim Stülze leads the team with 34 goals and 83 points. Drake Batherson scored 33 goals and 71 points, and Dylan Cozens scored 28 goals and 59 points. Goalie Linus Ullmark had an SV% of 0.891.
On paper, the Hurricanes are the better team, but all in all, the April 19 loss wasn’t devastating for the Senators.
Hurricanes vs. Senators: Game 1 Recap
The first period brought no goals from either team, then Logan Stankoven scored early in the second period for the first goal of the playoffs. Early into the third period, Batherson got the puck past Anderson, but the goal was overturned upon review.
Taylor Hall scored later in the third period for the Hurricanes, and both he and Stankoven got a goal and an assist. Stankoven only recorded 11 points during the regular season, but is now on an 8-game points streak when it matters.
Anderson played well, stopping 22 shots for his sixth career playoff shutout. He is now tied for 6th in NHL history with the effort. Ullmark saved 27 shots in a good performance as well.
The teams sounded positive at the end of the game. Senators captain Brady Tchachuk spoke to the press. “I thought we played a really solid game. There weren’t many chances on both sides of the puck there. Two good bounces for them end up in the back of the net. They’re always on top of you. They’re always in the right spots, and you can see that they blocked a lot of shots, especially at the end, but all game they’re sacrificing their bodies.”
“I think (we) just provide some secondary scoring for our team,” Stankoven said, speaking about himself, Hall, and Jackson Blake, who assisted on both Hurricanes goals. “Since the (Winter Olympics), our line has been clicking pretty good. We’ve been able to find each other. We’re all hungry to track pucks. We’re not afraid to go to the net.”
The Hurricanes are now 7-0 in their playoff-opening games, dating back to 2020, and are the 5th team in NHL history to achieve that feat.
Game 2 Preview
The Hurricanes and the Senators will face off once again on April 20, with the Hurricanes hosting.
