Hurricanes, Islanders switch roles for a night. Why that spelled trouble for Carolina
Secure in their own dominion, the Carolina Hurricanes don’t get to see the mood that so often prevails in opposing locker rooms after frustrating nights getting ground into tiny pieces by the Hurricanes’ relentless pressure.
The uniforms and the venues change but the sense of pervasive frustration and helplessness does not, universally experienced by those unfortunate enough to face the Hurricanes when they’re at their best and on their game. Not only is there no space on the ice, there’s the sudden and baffling inability to do all the things they normally do because the Hurricanes are so often in the way.
It’s what the Hurricanes do well, how they win, exactly what has made them good year after year after year after year after under Rod Brind’Amour, who was able to take what the 2006 team he captained did well and turn it into a guiding and enduring philosophy.
In their return to PNC Arena and home re-opener, after not only surviving but thriving on the dreaded State Fair Road Trip, the skate was on the other foot.
It doesn’t happen often, but the New York Islanders basically did to the Hurricanes what the Hurricanes do to everyone else. As the Hurricanes discovered themselves in a 6-2 loss, there’s a reason other teams don’t enjoy it very much.
That had a lot to do with the Islanders, but the Hurricanes were certainly to blame as well. Whether they were fat and happy after a 4-1-1 start or just unwilling, on this evening, to meet the Islanders’ level of intention, is almost immaterial. There’s a way they have to play to be successful, to do to other teams what the Islanders did to them, and this wasn’t it.
“This is what happens,” Jordan Martinook said, “when you go off script.”
It’s also just one of 82, a forgivable lapse of concentration filled with uncharacteristic miscues that are not, presumably, prone to recurrence. If the Hurricanes get back to their usual ways Saturday night in Philadelphia, this will be forgotten in the jet wash of their hurried departure Friday night.
Bad games come and go, and the Hurricanes should be able to overcome them in the end. But nights like this also shine a light on the darker corners of the roster, and whether it was the struggles of the third defensive pairing or the chronic sloppiness of some of the Hurricanes’ better players — Teuvo Teravainen in particular, although Sebastian Aho won’t enjoy watching the tape either — that can’t become a trend.
On the brighter side, Martin Necas’ hot start has unquestionably become a trend, finishing off a nice give-and-go with Brady Skjei to chip the puck over Ilya Sorokin after storming down the slot. His line, with Andrei Svechnikov and Jesperi Kotkaniemi, has been kept off the board only once in seven games.
And the Hurricanes had a chance to flip things around late in the second period, with 83 seconds of two-man advantage. But Dylan Coghlan hit the post, and the Hurricanes were buzzing around Sorokin but failed to convert. It went from 3-2 to 6-2 in the third, as the Hurricanes — like so many of their opponents — had been worn down to a nub by waves of Islanders.
“You don’t win games when you play like that,” Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal said. “There’s too many good teams out there.”
The Hurricanes are one of them. Usually. They got the same treatment Friday they so often hand out, and they found out just how little fun it really is.
Never miss a Luke DeCock column. Sign up at tinyurl.com/lukeslatest to have them delivered directly to your email inbox as soon as they post.
Luke DeCock’s Latest: Never miss a column on the Canes, ACC or other Triangle sports
This story was originally published October 29, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
