Blue Jackets-Hurricanes game had another strange call, and this time, Carolina lost
It was just one of 56 games this season, or so the Carolina Hurricanes hope during the pandemic, and the second of eight against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Like the first game Sunday, it had a ruling that left a head coach shaking his head. Unlike the first game, Monday’s matchup had the Hurricanes playing shorthanded, with 11 forwards and six defensemen as center Vincent Trocheck was a late scratch.
The Blue Jackets won 3-2 at Nationwide Arena and the winning goal was a beauty from a hockey sense, Jack Roslovic stickhandling his way through Brett Pesce and Ryan Dzingel up the slot and then beating goalie Alex Nedeljkovic with a backhander.
Roslovic’s goal at 15:24 of the third period was a great individual effort by the forward. But the Blue Jackets’ second goal, from Cam Atkinson in the second period, was a stumper for the Canes (7-3-0).
With the Canes on a power play, Teuvo Teravainen couldn’t handle a puck near the Columbus blue line. Atkinson jumped on it and began a shorthanded breakaway before Teravainen reached out and hooked him.
Canes defenseman Dougie Hamilton was close to Atkinson, but the ruling was a penalty shot. Atkinson then beat Nedeljkovic, making his first start of the season, with a backhand-to-forehand move.
“I’ve never seen that, a penalty shot called from the blue line,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “Usually they give you a chance to see if a guy is going to catch him or whatever. I guess that’s the rule now, I’m not sure.”
Vincent Trocheck becomes Canes’ fourth injured player
Brind’Amour also was not sure about the severity of Trocheck’s injury although saying he hoped he would not be out long. Trocheck, he said, “took a shot” and then “didn’t feel right” after Sunday’s game.
Trocheck became the Canes’ fourth injured player, joining goalie Petr Mrazek and forwards Martin Necas and Max McCormick. None are on Long Term Injured Reserve (LTIR), although Mrazek could be out an extended period after surgery on his right thumb.
Pushed against the salary cap, the Canes could not call up another player. By playing one game with 17 skaters, they now are allowed an emergency call-up.
“I don’t know how it works but I know that’s how we had to do it,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s part of it. It’s the way it’s going this year. There are a lot of injuries and things going on. We’re spending to the cap now and that’s a good problem to have, going out and getting players. It’s just one of those things you have to deal with.”
Trocheck, who has six goals this season, was the man in the center of the storm Sunday in the Canes’ 6-5 win. His goal late in the second period was challenged by Columbus coach John Tortorella, who claimed Trocheck had been offside entering the zone. After review, the ruling was a good goal and penalty against Columbus.
During the second intermission, the NHL said a “miscommunication” had resulted in a wrong decision. Other replays showed Trocheck offside. The goal was allowed because of the resumption of play but the final 45 seconds of the Canes’ power play was wiped out.
With that controversial backdrop, the first two goals Monday were on lucky breaks.
Brock McGinn scores again
Blue Jackets defenseman Scott Harrington scored the first when his shot glanced off the shoulder of Canes forward Andrei Svechnikov in front of Nedeljkovic. Nino Niederreiter then scored for the Canes when goalie Joonas Korpisalo took a swipe at the puck, which bounced off Niederreiter’s leg and into the net.
Atkinson’s goal was matched by the Canes’ Brock McGinn, who scored for the third straight game. McGinn lunged across the ice in the low slot to knock in the rebound of a Warren Foegele shot.
“They got a fortunate bounce on the first one and then two breakaways,” Nedeljkovic said. “I’ve got to find a way to (stop) one of them if not both of them and find a way to bail the guys out.”
Roslovic and Patrik Laine both came to Columbus in the mega trade Jan. 23 that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to Winnipeg. In an interesting twist, Tortorella benched Laine, who scored twice Sunday, for the last 26 minutes Monday after Laine was a bystander on the McGinn goal.
“We really worked hard tonight, being short-staffed,” Brind’Amour said. “On a back-to-back I thought we grinded it out and probably deserved better.”
This story was originally published February 8, 2021 at 6:48 PM.
