Hurricanes homestand ends with a whimper. Takeaways from the Wild’s 5-2 win over Carolina
The Carolina Hurricanes’ six-game homestand, their longest of the season, ended Sunday — and it did not end well for the home team.
The Minnesota Wild topped the Hurricanes 5-2 at PNC Arena, with winger Kirill Kaprizov notching a hat trick and goalie Filip Gustavsson turning back 40 shots. Joel Eriksson Ek had the game-winner, knocking a loose puck by Canes goalie Antti Raanta at 9:32 of the third period.
Martin Necas scored for the second straight game for the Canes (25-15-5) and Michael Bunting tied the score 2-2 in the third, but Carolina — playing Sunday without injured forward Andrei Svechnikov — was stymied much of the game by Gustavsson.
Eriksson Ek’s goal came 1:15 after Bunting had tied it up with a shot from the left circle that beat Gustavsson to the blocker side. With the Canes unable to clear the puck from their zone, the Wild took the lead on Eriksson Ek’s 19th of the season.
“It definitely was frustrating,” Canes center Sebastian Aho said. “We could have done a better job, too, just in not getting frustrated and just trusting that it will come. We definitely had some (good) looks every period and at the end, as well, to tie the game and win the game.”
The Canes had a late power play but were unable to convert and finished 0-for-4 with the man advantage.
“It’s going to show up as an 0-for, but we were in their zone the whole power plays and had some great looks,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said.
Kaprizov’s third goal was an empty-netter after the Canes pulled Raanta, and Jake Middleton added another in the final minute as Eriksson Ek earned his second assist.
Call it a frustrating game and loss for the Hurricanes, who had a 3-2-1 record in the six home games. The Canes outshot the Wild 18-3 in the first period, 31-10 through twoand 42-19 in the game.
Gustavsson was steady in net, the Swede swallowing up shots and allowing few rebounds. When he needed help, the Wild blocked 22 Canes shots for him.
“They were selling out to blocks and the goalie played an unreal game,” Aho said.
It has been a challenging season for the Wild (20-21-5), filled with numerous injuries. Captain Jared Spurgeon is out for the season with a hip injury. Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury now is sidelined.
Kaprizov, always dangerous with the puck on his stick, scored on the Wild’s second shot of the game, then picked up his second just after a Minnesota power play ended in the second period.
Takeaways from the game
▪ Kaprizov is a very good but also very sneaky player. In Sunday’s game, he often looked to fly the Wild zone when it appeared the Wild might take possession.
His first two goals came on skill plays: the deflection of an Alex Goligoski shot in the first period and then a quick shot from between the circles in the second. Both goals came against Jordan Staal’s line, normally the Canes’ best checking line.
▪ Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s offensive struggles of late have been noted. He entered Sunday’s games with three points — a goal and two assists — in his past 23 games and with new linemates.
Brind’Amour made a change against the Wild, having Jack Drury center Stefan Noesen and Necas and Kotkaniemi center Brendan Lemieux and Jesper Fast on the fourth line.
“Just trying to get a little more juice,” Brind’Amour said.
The Drury line clicked in the first period on a well-executed rush — Drury to Noesen to Necas for the goal.
▪ The Canes ranked third in the NHL on the power play and the Wild 31st in penalty killing before Sunday, but it didn’t look that way.
The Canes were 0-3 on the power play in the first two periods -- Bunting abbreviating the second one with a bad tripping penalty -- and 0-4 for the game.
“We score on one of those and it’s a whole ‘nother story,” Aho said. “Even the last one, we had Grade-A’s.”
▪ The Canes can only hope Svechnikov’s absence is a brief one. They need him in the lineup. Things just look different with the power forward on the ice, at even strength and on the power play.
Svechnikov, who had the winning goal Friday on a power play against Detroit, was scratched Sunday with an upper-body injury after missing the team practice Saturday.
▪ The Canes’ first period was the kind that can add a few more gray hairs to Brind’Amour’s head. Carolina had 10 scoring chances to the Wild’s 3 and allowed just one high-danger chance. But Kaprizov scored on the Wild’s second shot the on a deflection that took a hop off the ice and past Raanta.
“The first period we needed more,” Brind’Amour said. “We did everything you’re supposed to, the way we wanted to do it and had opportunities. Then to come out of there tied, that probably was deflating.”
▪ Jordan Martinook’s four-game goal streak, the longest for the Canes this season, came to an end.
This story was originally published January 21, 2024 at 7:42 PM.
