Streaking Hurricanes hope to slow Oilers’ Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl. Here’s how
The Carolina Hurricanes did a good job Friday of shutting down Patrik Laine of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Now comes a tougher challenge: the dual threat of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers.
Laine was limited to one shot on goal as the Canes earned a 4-0 victory, ending an 11-game point streak by the forward that included 13 goals.
The Hurricanes (36-11-4), with last change at home, were able to get the matchups they wanted — often defenseman Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce on the ice with Laine — while goalie Frederik Andersen cleaned up the rest in his third shutout of the season. Laine, a real sniper, and the Jackets’ Boone Jenner, who has 22 goals, were nonfactors in the game.
McDavid might be the best player in the world, an assertion Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour won’t argue. Draisaitl clearly is among the best. They’ll be the Canes’ matchup problems Sunday in the 1 p.m. game at PNC Arena.
What makes McDavid so special?
“He pretty much covers everything, but the dynamic part is what makes him real special,” Brind’Amour said Saturday. “There are real good players and then good players who do more. Put all the great players together and he’s got more, if that makes senses. He’s quicker, his stick-handling is incredible and his speed with the puck. He just explodes like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”
So, is McDavid the best player in the NHL?
“He’s got to be” Brind’Amour said. “There’s a lot of great ones that are nipping at his heels, but just overall talent, I’d have to say so.”
Then there’s Draisaitl. He has 36 goals, tying him with the NHL leader, Auston Matthews of Toronto. McDavid, who has 28 goals, and Jonathan Huberdeau of Florida each have 75 points, most in the league.
The Oilers (29-20-3) and Panthers faced off Saturday afternoon in Sunrise, Florida, and it was Derek Ryan who was Edmonton’s big star in a 4-3 victory. The former Canes forward had a hat trick while Draisaitl had a goal and McDavid two assists.
Skjei was asked Saturday — other than “taking away time and space,” the mantra for all NHL defensemen — what can be done to slow down McDavid or Draisaitl.
Skjei smiled.
“Well, that is the No. 1 thing, I think,” he said. “If you give those elite players any time at all they make those plays around you. So you try to stay above them as much as you can and don’t let them get behind you.”
The problem with McDavid is he is the fastest player on the ice. He gets behind you, beats you.
“You’ve got to start skating and moving early,” Skeji said with another grin. “With a guy like him you’ve got to be aware of where he is on the ice when the play’s going on, because he can kind of hide and jump around you pretty quickly. You’ve got to have an awareness of where he is.”
Another way to muzzle McDavid or Draisaitl is to keep the puck in the offensive zone as long as possible. The Canes did that Friday, getting off 50 shots against Columbus and keeping the Blue Jackets busy defending their own zone. Had goalie J-F Berube not been sharp, it easily could have been a 5-0 or 6-0 game.
“When we’re at our best, we’re playing in the opposite zone, on top of guys, cycling the puck down low,” Skjei said.
The Canes beat the Oilers, 3-1, on Dec. 12 in Edmonton when Sebastian Aho scored twice and Nino Niederreiter had a goal. That was well before the Oilers fired Dave Tippett as coach, before the Oilers signed enigmatic forward Evander Kane.
The Oilers were in a freefall, losing 15 of 20 games, when Tippett was fired on Feb. 10 and replaced by Jay Woodcroft, who had been coaching the Bakersfield Condors, Edmonton’s AHL affiliate. They’ve become a tougher out the past few weeks, reeling off five straight wins after the coaching change and fighting for playoff position.
“You can tell they’ve put a little more structure into their game and I think they’re using their group a little differently,” Brind’Amour said Saturday. “I think a lot of times when a new guy comes in everyone has a new, fresh start and are playing with a little more energy.
“They were always a good team. They just hit a little lull there. Obviously the talent is there.”
The Canes held a short practice Saturday at Wake Competition Center. Aho did not participate but Brind’Amour said the Canes’ top scorer was taking a maintenance day.
Carolina Hurricanes vs Edmonton Oilers
When: Sunday, 1 p.m.
Where: PNC Arena, Raleigh.
TV/RADIO: Bally Sports South, WCMC-99.9 FM.
