Using Qualifiers to enhance this postseason (it’s a breakdown of the 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers and Round Robin action). Plus the Seattle Kraken!
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Tag: Teuvo Teravainen
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Look To The Rafters: Carolina Hurricanes (Part II)
In the early days of DTFR, we made an educated guess as to who each team might honor in the future regarding retired jersey numbers. Since then, the Vegas Golden Knights came into existence and more than a few jersey numbers went out of circulation across the league.
It’s time for an update and a look at who the Carolina Hurricanes might honor by hanging their name and number from the rafters of PNC Arena someday.
Carolina Hurricanes Current Retired Numbers
2 Glen Wesley
10 Ron Francis
17 Rod Brind’Amour
Did Anything Change In The Last Five Years?
No! But that could change as soon as current Minnesota Wild forward, Eric Staal, eventually decides he’s had enough and calls it a career. Not just could, it should and (probably) will.
Possible Numbers to Retire Someday
9 Gordie Howe
Let’s keep this one short and sweet– it’s “Mr. Hockey”. Howe spent his final year in the NHL (1979-80) with the Hartford Whalers and subsequently had his number retired by both the Detroit Red Wings and the Whalers, but when Hartford relocated to North Carolina, the Hurricanes chose not to honor any of the retired numbers from their Whalers days.
As such, Howe’s No. 9 is technically available, but it has never been worn in Carolina. Why not go all out sometime on Whalers Night and re-retire Howe’s No. 9 out of a formality?
12 Eric Staal
From the 2003-04 season through part of the 2015-16 season, Staal was a fixture on the Hurricanes roster. In 909 games with Carolina, he scored 322 goals and had 453 assists (775 points), which ranks 2nd on the all-time scorers list in franchise history (behind only Ron Francis, of course, who had 1,175 points as a Hartford Whaler/Carolina Hurricane).
Staal had a massive 100-point season in his sophomore campaign in 2005-06, en route to Carolina’s Stanley Cup championship over the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. He notched career-highs in goals (45), assists (55) and points (100) that season in all 82 games played and only had one season below 70 points– his rookie season, in which Staal had 11-20–31 totals in 81 games in 2003-04– until an injury in 2013 disrupted his prolific playing ability.
As time moved on, it became more clear that Staal would need a change of scenery and the Hurricanes would be wise to cash in on what they could still get for him at a high rather than let him walk away for nothing.
After three consecutive seasons of at least 50 points from 2012-13 through 2014-15, Staal entered the 2015-16 season with Carolina, but finished the season with the New York Rangers.
On Feb. 28, 2016, the Hurricanes dealt Staal to the Rangers for Aleksi Saarela, New York’s 2016 2nd round pick and New York’s 2017 2nd round pick.
Staal had ten goals and 23 assists (33 points) in 63 games for Carolina at the time of the trade that season. He had three goals and three assists in 20 games for the Rangers down the stretch.
The Hurricanes won the trade, which had seen the departure of their first true “homegrown” star, having drafted Staal 2nd overall in 2003.
And there’s still connections to the Staal trade with the Rangers on the roster to this day.
Saarela was later packaged with Calvin de Haan on June 24, 2019, in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks for Gustav Forsling and Anton Forsberg. You might recognize Forsberg as one of Carolina’s many goaltenders this year after David Ayres made his NHL debut back in February.
The 2016 2nd round pick (50th overall) was packaged with a 2017 3rd round pick (originally belonging to Chicago) in a trade with the Blackhawks before the de Haan deal on June 15, 2016, in which the Hurricanes received Teuvo Teravainen and Bryan Bickell.
Finally, the 2017 2nd round pick (52nd overall) was used by Carolina to draft a right-shot defender from the University of Michigan named Luke Martin.
Staal played more than one vital role in the ever changing landscape of the Hurricanes from Cup winner to modern day playoff contender on the upswing after making an appearance in the 2019 Eastern Conference Final (albeit losing in four games to the Boston Bruins).
20 Sebastian Aho
Entering the 2015-16 season, Carolina kicked things off by drafting Aho in the second round (35th overall) in 2015. Little did anyone know, but it was poetic selection as Staal later was traded that season and Aho made his NHL debut the following season– proving to perhaps be the heir to Staal’s legacy as the current face of the franchise.
In his rookie season of 2016-17, Aho had 24 goals and 25 assists (49 points) in all 82 games. He followed that up with a sophomore campaign of 29-36–65 totals in 78 games in 2017-18, then set a career-high in assists (53) and points (83) in 82 games last season.
Up until the shortened regular season due to the COVID-19 pandemic this season, Aho had a new career-high in goals (38) and 66 points in 68 games played. He was on pace for another 80-point season.
It’s truly a shame we didn’t get to see what might have panned out– and that’s ignoring the cutthroat Eastern Conference playoff berth race.
At the very least, Aho is no flash in the pan. He’s the real deal in terms of skill, consistency and the true direction of where the franchise is going.
Only four seasons into his NHL career, it looks like he’s destined to be honored for eternity in Hurricanes lore one day with a jersey retirement night.
37 Andrei Svechnikov
Svechnikov just wrapped up a sophomore season that was cut short due to the pandemic, but improved on his 20-17–37 totals in all 82 games in his rookie season last season.
This year, Svechnikov had 24 goals and 37 assists (61 points) as well as two lacrosse wraparound goals henceforth referred to as “The Svech”.
Gifted, young, crafty Russian wingers are sometimes hard to predict, but Svechnikov appears to be the real deal– especially since he was the 2nd overall pick in 2018.
Sure, the Hurricanes have had a young Russian first round product before in Alexander Semin, but whereas Semin was drafted by the Washington Capitals 13th overall in 2002, Svechnikov was drafted at the same overall position as Pittsburgh Penguins center, Evgeni Malkin. Malkin was a 2004 Draft product and look how he turned out for Carolina’s division rival.
It might be early to say that Svechnikov’s No. 37 will be hanging from the rafters of PNC Arena one day, but it’s not too late to admit that you really liked “The Svech” and you won’t moan about “the disrespect for goaltenders and the game that it has caused”.
What’s not to love?
Final Thoughts
Carolina has their best chance in franchise history at winning a Cup and remaining an annual Cup contender in the process. The first (and only) time they won in 2006, the Hurricanes utilized assets picked up via trades and otherwise to push them over the edge and into eternal glory as names like “Staal”, “Williams”, “Cole”, “Brind’Amour” and others were etched onto Lord Stanley’s chalice.
But this time around, something’s different.
This time, the Canes have been built primarily from within and over the years via the draft. While Aho has a great chance at being a cornerstone for the franchise, players like Brett Pesce, Jaccob Slavin and Teravainen have been around for at least a few years and could cement their names in franchise lore by winning a Cup in Raleigh.
If they’re able to win multiple Cups in Raleigh, then they just might move themselves up into consideration for having their numbers hanging from the rafters of PNC Arena.
The hard part is, however, that the accolades of Slavin and Pesce, for example, may otherwise go unnoticed by the rest of the league. Real Caniacs will know the impact they’ve had on the blue line for the franchise, but how much of the impact will be measured in twine on a pulley that brings their last name and number to the ceiling forever?
Finally, guys like Martin Necas, well, he just had his rookie season, so it seems a bit premature to run around just yet and declare him a player destined to have his No. 88 retired by the Hurricanes (but he just might someday, so you heard it here first if it happens and don’t quote me unless I’m right).
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DTFR Podcast #177- And A Dollar Short
2020 Winter Classic sweater reviews, a standings update and Top-10 NHL power rankings.
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Bruins storm Hurricanes, 6-2, in Game 2
The Boston Bruins third line dominated scoring on Sunday as the B’s defeated the Carolina Hurricanes, 6-2, at TD Garden in Game 2 of the 2019 Eastern Conference Final.
Charlie Coyle (three assists), Danton Heinen (goal, two assists) and Marcus Johansson (two assists) led the way for the Bruins while Torey Krug (three assists) chipped in from the blue line in the dominant display of offensive secondary scoring.
Tuukka Rask (10-5 record, 2.02 goals against average, .937 save percentage in 15 games played this postseason) made 21 saves on 23 shots against (.913 SV%) in the win for Boston.
Hurricanes goaltender, Petr Mrazek (5-5, 2.72 GAA, .894 SV% in 11 GP this postseason) stopped 19 out of 25 shots faced for a .760 SV% in the loss.
Bruins head coach, Bruce Cassidy, had Charlie McAvoy back in his lineup alongside Zdeno Chara on the first defensive pairing after McAvoy served his one-game suspension in Game 1.
As a result, Steven Kampfer rejoined the long list of healthy scratches (including Lee Stempniak, Zachary Senyshyn, Jordan Szwarz, Peter Cehlarik, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Zane McIntyre, Paul Carey, Ryan Fitzgerald, Jack Studnicka, Urho Vaakanainen, Jakub Zboril, Jeremy Lauzon, Anton Blidh, Trent Frederic and Karson Kuhlman), while John Moore (upper body) and Noel Acciari (upper body) remain day-to-day. Kevan Miller (lower body) is still out.
Midway through the opening course of the action, Chara tripped up Hurricanes forward, Andrei Svechnikov, and was sent to the penalty box at 11:56 of the first period.
Carolina was not able to convert on the ensuing power play– their first of the afternoon on Sunday.
Less than two minutes after killing off Chara’s minor, the Bruins rallied with a scoring chance of their own after maintaining possession deep in the offensive zone.
Coyle worked the puck back to the point where Johansson flipped a pass over to Matt Grzelcyk as the Boston defender pinched near the face-off circle to the right of Mrazek.
Grzelcyk (2) fired a shot past the Carolina goaltender’s blocker on the short side and the puck trickled past the goal line to give the B’s the lead, 1-0.
Johansson (5) and Coyle (4) tallied the assists on Grzelcyk’s goal at 15:22 of the first period.
A few minutes later, Justin Williams interfered with Heinen in front of the Canes net and was sent to the box at 18:26 with a minor infraction.
Six seconds into the power play, David Pastrnak ripped a shot from the point that Jake DeBrusk (3) tipped on Mrazek, collected his own rebound and pocketed the loose puck into the twine to give the Bruins a two-goal lead.
Pastrnak (6) and Krug (8) had the assists on DeBrusk’s power play goal at 18:32 of the first period and Boston led, 2-0.
Heading into the first intermission, the B’s led on the scoreboard, 2-0, and in shots on goal, 11-6.
The Bruins also held the advantage in blocked shots (3-2), giveaways (4-2), hits (20-14) and face-off win percentage (62-38), while Carolina led in takeaways (4-2).
The Hurricanes were 0/1 on the skater advantage, while Boston was 1/1 on the power play entering the second period.
Patrice Bergeron opened the second period with a tripping penalty 69 seconds into the middle frame and Carolina went on the power play for the second time of the afternoon. They did not score on the resulting skater advantage.
Less than a minute after killing off Bergeron’s minor, the Bruins caught the Hurricanes in the “vulnerable minute” after special teams play as Johansson worked a pass that almost got blown up by Greg McKegg over to Connor Clifton as the Boston defender worked his way in from the point.
Clifton (1) buried the puck in the open net as Mrazek was left diving in desperation across the crease at 3:46 of the second period.
Johansson (6) and Heinen (5) had the assists on Clifton’s first career Stanley Cup Playoff goal and the Bruins led, 3-0.
As a result of his goal, Clifton became the 19th different goal scorer for Boston this postseason– tying their franchise record for most in a single playoff run set in 1988.
Chris Wagner tied up Williams behind the Boston goal midway through the second period and was assessed a minor penalty at 13:36.
Carolina did not score on the following penalty and followed up their skater advantage with a skater disadvantage of their own as Williams held Brad Marchand at 16:07 of the second period.
Late in the ensuing power play for Boston, Krug sent Coyle up ice with a lead pass that led to a drop pass back to Grzelcyk (3) whereby the Bruins defender pulled the puck to his backhand and released a shot past the glove side of Mrazek for his second goal of the afternoon.
Coyle (5) and Krug (9) were credited with their second assists of the afternoon– joining Johansson in the two-assist department for Boston– and the B’s led, 4-0, at 17:56 of the second period thanks to Grzelcyk’s power play goal.
Through 40 minutes of play, the Bruins led, 4-0, on the scoreboard and, 21-17, in shots on goal– though the Hurricanes held the second period advantage by itself, 11-10.
Boston dominated every other statistical category after two periods, leading in blocked shots (6-4), takeaways (8-4), giveaways (8-4), hits (28-26) and face-off win% (54-46).
Entering the third period, Carolina was 0/3 on the power play and the Bruins were 2/2– having scored a goal on four out of their last five power plays in Games 1 and 2.
Boston came out of the second intermission with an early attack and tapped in yet another goal as David Backes (2) scooped up a loose puck and buried it into an empty frame while Mrazek was out of position after David Krejci slid a pass through the crease to Backes.
Krejci (8) and Krug (10) notched the assists on Backes’ goal at 1:10 of the third period and the Bruins led, 5-0.
As a result of the secondary assist on Backes’ goal, Krug tabbed his third helper of the afternoon.
He became the fifth defender in Bruins franchise history to record three assists in a playoff game in multiple outings and joined Ray Bourque (5x), Bobby Orr (5x), Brad Park (3x) and Carol Vadnais (2x) as the only members to do so in a Boston sweater.
About a minute later, Bergeron tripped up Williams and was sent to the box at 2:22 of the third period.
After killing off the penalty, Bergeron was freed from the box and received a lead pass from Coyle, then swerved the puck around former Bruins defender, Dougie Hamilton, and tossed the rubber biscuit to Heinen (2) for the short side goal on a backhand shot while unopposed.
Bergeron (4) and Coyle (6) had the assists on Heinen’s goal and Boston led, 6-0, while Coyle tabbed his third assist on the afternoon at 4:32 of the third period.
Midway through the third period, Williams freed the puck from behind the net in Carolina’s offensive zone and worked it back to the point whereby Justin Faulk unloaded on a shot that Williams (4) deflected to rob Rask of the shutout.
The Hurricanes cut Boston’s lead to five as Faulk (6) and Sebastian Aho (6) picked up assists to trail, 6-1, at 11:17 of the third period.
Late in the final frame of regulation, Rask skated out of his crease to clear the puck, but gave it away to Teuvo Teravainen (7) who pounced on the botched clearing attempt and wired the puck into the empty net as Rask couldn’t get back fast enough at 17:32.
The Hurricanes trailed, 6-2, and that’s all that was written from TD Garden in Game 2.
Boston finished the afternoon with the, 6-2, win and 2-0 series lead, while dominating in shots on goal (25-23), blocked shots (10-7), giveaways (11-7), hits (35-27) and face-off win% (59-42).
Carolina went 0/4 on the power play on Sunday, while the Bruins finished 2/2 on the skater advantage.
The Canes have allowed 11 goals against through the first two games of the Eastern Conference Final (they only allowed five goals against in their Second Round sweep of the New York Islanders).
The B’s have won five-straight games and improved to 9-0 when leading after two periods this postseason.
Boston leads the series 2-0 as the 2019 Eastern Conference Final swings to Raleigh, North Carolina for Games 3 and 4 at PNC Arena.
Game 3 is scheduled for Tuesday night with puck drop a little after 8:00 p.m. ET. Viewers in the United States can catch the action on NBCSN, while those in Canada can tune in on CBC, SN or TVAS.
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DTFR Podcast #157- Play Gloria, You Jerks
Nick, Cap’n and Pete mourn the Columbus Blue Jackets, review the Vegas Golden Knights front office moves, Ken Holland to the Edmonton Oilers and the Philadelphia Flyers new assistant coaches. Finally, the guys preview the 2019 Eastern Conference Final matchup between the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes, as well as the 2019 Western Conference Final matchup between the San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues.
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Bruins score four in the third, beat Hurricanes, 5-2, in Game 1
Four unanswered goals in the third period propelled the Boston Bruins over the Carolina Hurricanes, 5-2, in Game 1 of the 2019 Eastern Conference Final at TD Garden on Thursday.
Patrice Bergeron scored the game-winning goal while on the power play in the third period before the B’s added two more goals for good measure as the Bruins jumped out to a 1-0 series lead.
Tuukka Rask (9-5 record, 2.02 goals against average, .938 save percentage in 14 games played this postseason) made 29 saves on 31 shots against (.935 SV%) in the win for Boston.
Carolina goaltender, Petr Mrazek (5-4, 2.40 GAA, .907 SV% in 10 games played this postseason) stopped 23 out of 27 shots faced for an .852 SV% in the loss.
Mrazek was back for the Hurricanes for the first time since leaving Game 2 against the New York Islanders in the Second Round with a lower body injury.
John Moore (upper body), Kevan Miller (lower body) and Noel Acciari (upper body) missed the action in Game 1 for Boston, while B’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, re-inserted Steven Kampfer on his blue line while Charlie McAvoy served his one game suspension for an illegal hit to the head against Josh Anderson in Game 6 at Columbus in the Second Round.
Cassidy bumped up Connor Clifton to the right side of Zdeno Chara on the first defensive pairing and slid Kampfer in on the right of the third pair with Matt Grzelcyk.
He made no other changes to his lineup.
Lee Stempniak, Zachary Senyshyn, Jordan Szwarz, Peter Cehlarik, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, Zane McIntyre, Paul Carey, Ryan Fitzgerald, Jack Studnicka, Urho Vaakanainen, Jakub Zboril, Jeremy Lauzon, Anton Blidh, Trent Frederic and Karson Kuhlman made up the long list of healthy scratches for the Bruins.
Boston is making their eighth appearance in the Eastern Conference Final since the format was introduced in 1982. The B’s last made the Eastern Conference Final in 2013 (also 1983, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 2011). The Bruins swept the Pittsburgh Penguins in four games in 2013.
Carolina is making their fourth appearance in the Eastern Conference Final and first since 2009 (also 2002, 2006). The Hurricanes were swept by the Penguins in 2009.
Kicking things off with the first goal of the series was Kampfer (1) in just his second career Stanley Cup Playoff game.
Kampfer scored his first career Stanley Cup Playoff goal at 2:55 of the first period after Marcus Johansson slipped through the neutral zone with speed and dropped the puck back to Kampfer as the Bruins defender pinched in from the point.
Johansson (4) had the only assist as Boston jumped out to the, 1-0, lead.
But the B’s lead was shortlived as Sean Kuraly picked up a roughing minor against Brock McGinn at 3:39 of the first period, yielding the first power play of the series to the Hurricanes.
Just 47 seconds after Boston took the lead, Carolina tied the game with a tip-in past Rask as Sebastian Aho (5) skated through the low slot– point blank– while Andrei Svechnikov threw the rubber biscuit on goal.
Svechnikov (2) and Jordan Staal (6) notched the assists on Aho’s goal at 3:42 and the Canes tied the game, 1-1.
Late in the period, Charlie Coyle hooked Teuvo Teravainen and was sent to the penalty box at 14:37, but the Canes did not convert on the ensuing power play.
Shortly after killing off Coyle’s minor, Boston found themselves going on the power play after Nino Niederreiter slashed Brad Marchand at 16:55.
The Bruins did not capitalize on their first skater advantage Thursday night.
After one period, the score was tied, 1-1, while the Hurricanes led in shots on goal (10-8), giveaways (5-3), hits (9-7) and face-off win percentage (61-39).
Boston held the advantage in blocked shots (5-4), as well as takeaways (3-2) entering the first intermission.
Carolina was 1/2 on the power play, while the B’s were 0/1 on the skater advantage heading into the second period.
Early in the middle frame, Kuraly got a stick up high on Calvin de Haan and went back to the sin bin for his second time of the night at 4:08 of the second period.
The Canes fired five shots on goal– including an impressive one-timer from Teravainen that was denied by Rask as the Bruins goaltender went from post-to-post– but couldn’t wire the puck into the back of the twine on the skater advantage.
Nonetheless, moments later, Greg McKegg (2) charged into the offensive zone, crashed the net and scored while bowling into the Boston netminder.
Carolina led for the first time of the night, 2-1, thanks to McKegg’s goal. Jordan Martinook (4) and Micheal Ferland (1) tallied the assists at 9:18 of the second period.
Boston had not trailed in a game for a span of 210:42 since Game 3 against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Second Round prior to McKegg’s goal.
Late in the period, Ferland’s name popped up again on the event sheet– this time for interference against David Krejci— and the Hurricanes forward took a seat in the penalty box with a minor penalty at 16:56.
Boston’s power play could not convert on the late skater advantage as time dwindled down in the second period.
Through 40 minutes of play, the Hurricanes led, 2-1, on the scoreboard and in shots on goal, 25-18 (including a, 15-10, advantage in the second period alone).
Carolina also led in blocked shots (10-8), giveaways (7-6), hits (19-17) and face-off win% (57-43), while both teams had four takeaways each after two periods.
The Canes were 1/3 on the skater advantage and the Bruins were 0/2 on the power play heading into the third period.
In the final frame of regulation, Staal boarded Chris Wagner 49 seconds into the third period and yielded a power play for the Bruins.
Late on the ensuing skater advantage, Marchand unloaded on a shot and generated a rebound for Johansson (3) to settle in the slot and bury the loose puck after elevating it over Mrazek’s pads to tie the game, 2-2, with a power play goal at 2:26 of the third period.
Marchand (9) and Krejci (7) had the assists on the goal. With the secondary assist on Johansson’s goal, Krejci is now two points away from 100 career Stanley Cup Playoff points.
Less than a minute after allowing a power play goal against, the Hurricanes took another penalty when former Bruins defender, Dougie Hamilton, roughed former Carolina forward, Joakim Nordstrom, at 2:41.
Just 13 seconds into the ensuing power play, after winning an offensive zone face-off, Jake DeBrusk worked the puck from the wall to Marchand across the slot, whereby Marchand found Bergeron (6) acting as the bumper in front of the net for the one-timer past Mrazek.
Marchand (10) and DeBrusk (4) tallied the assists on Bergeron’s power play goal at 2:54 of the third period and the B’s amassed two power play goals in a span of 28 seconds to lead, 3-2, with plenty of time left in the final frame.
Hurricanes head coach, Rod Brind’Amour used his timeout after Bergeron’s goal to put his players at ease and motivate them to get back on the scoreboard, but the Canes couldn’t muster the confidence– especially after Hamilton went back to the penalty box for interference at 5:29.
Though the Bruins didn’t score on the resulting power play, they did maintain solid puck possession on the skater advantage.
As the clock continued to tick away Carolina pulled their goaltender with 2:38 remaining in regulation to try to knot things up.
Shortly after Mrazek got to the bench, the Bruins cleared the puck from their own blue line as Brandon Carlo got a double deflection off of Niederreiter then his own teammate in Coyle as the puck trickled with enough momentum into the open goal frame for the empty net goal.
Coyle (6) was credited with the marker as Boston went ahead, 4-2, at 17:47. Carlo (2) and Kuraly (2) had the assists on Coyle’s goal.
Wagner (1) got a breakaway 11 seconds later, deked and slipped the puck through Mrazek’s five-hole to give the B’s a three-goal lead, 5-2, at 17:58 of the third period.
The Hurricanes only allowed five goals in four games against the New York Islanders in the Second Round, but they allowed five goals against in Game 1 against Boston as time expired in the series opener.
The Bruins had won, 5-2, and grabbed the 1-0 series lead on Thursday.
Carolina finished the night leading in shots on goal (31-28), giveaways (11-7), hits (27-25) and face-off win% (53-48), while Boston led in blocked shots (11-10) after the dust settled.
Both teams found some success on the power play in Game 1 as the Canes went 1/3 and the B’s went 2/5 on the skater advantage.
The Bruins lead the series, 1-0, and host Game 2 Sunday afternoon at TD Garden. Puck drop is expected for a little after 3 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can tune to NBC to catch the action. Fans in Canada can follow along on CBC, SN or TVAS.
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2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference Final Preview
If you didn’t learn your lesson from the First Round to the Second Round, hopefully you’ve learned it by now, because their is no “Third Chance Bracket”.
Yes, it’s time for the Conference Finals in the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs, ladies and gentlemen, and this year in the Eastern Conference it’s an old Adams Division rivalry matchup.
A2 Boston Bruins (49-24-9, 107 points) vs EWC1 Carolina Hurricanes (46-29-7, 99 points)
The Boston Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games in the First Round for the second year in-a-row, then went on to defeat John Tortorella and his pesky Columbus Blue Jackets in six games in the Second Round after turning more than a few heads during the regular season for their resolve during periods of injury.
The Carolina Hurricanes didn’t beat the Washington Capitals at any point in the regular season, but forced the defending Stanley Cup champions to a decisive Game 7– and won– to punch their ticket to the Second Round, then the Canes swept the New York Islanders.
Don Cherry labeled the Hurricanes as a “bunch of jerks” for their post-win celebrations in the regular season. People from Massachusetts are sometimes referred to as “Massholes”– especially when they get talking about their sports teams.
For the first time since 2009, Carolina made the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That same postseason, these two organizations collided in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
It was just the second time the Hurricanes went head-to-head in the playoffs with Boston since relocating from Hartford, where the Whalers went 0-2 in their postseason series lifetime against the B’s in the days of the Adams Division.
The Bruins eliminated the Canes in six games in 1999.
Ten years later, Carolina eliminated the B’s on road ice– in overtime– in a Game 7. Scott Walker scored the infamous goal after sucker punching former Hurricane defender, Aaron Ward earlier in the series.
Though this will only be the fifth time both clubs have met each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, these teams don’t like each other.
Marcus Johansson suffered a lung contusion after Micheal Ferland delivered a check days after Johansson was acquired by the Bruins at the trade deadline in March.
If that wasn’t “old time hockey” enough for you, Carolina was wearing their throwback Whalers sweaters at TD Garden that evening.
The Bruins came back from a two-goal deficit to win in overtime in that game.
Earlier in the season, the Hurricanes donned their Hartford Whalers throwbacks for “Whalers Night” at PNC Arena on Dec. 23rd and both clubs swapped goals until Carolina came out on top– for once in a Hartford sweater– in a whale’s tale of a regular season battle.
Though the Bruins hold a 3-1 advantage in all-time series matchups with the Hurricanes (including their two meetings while still in Hartford), this isn’t your father’s Whalers/Hurricanes.
Rod Brind’Amour is back (remember him?)– this time as the head coach of the team he won the Stanley Cup with in 2006.
When Brind’Amour makes a lineup change, though it may be rare, it’s deliberate. Hell, Greg McKegg had the series clinching goal in the Second Round.
Boston head coach, Bruce Cassidy, will have to keep adapting throughout each game– let alone the series– as he traditionally has since taking over behind the bench for the B’s in Feb. 2017.
Boston has been looking for the right amount of scoring touch for the last few seasons and General Manager, Don Sweeney, made sure to add without subtracting for this season’s deep run.
Third line center, Charlie Coyle, has proven to fit in just fine with the Bruins’ brass and Johansson even had a goal in Game 6 against Columbus.
Neither of those players were on the roster at the beginning of February, but by the end of it, Sweeney had dealt Ryan Donato and a draft pick to the Minnesota Wild for Coyle, as well as draft picks to the New Jersey Devils for Johansson to assure himself of some much needed– coveted even– depth in the bottom-six.
Secondary scoring hasn’t been a problem in this postseason run for the Bruins.
Coyle is tied for 4th on the roster in points this postseason with 5-3–8 totals in 13 games, while Johansson has chipped in two goals and three assists (five points) in 11 games played.
Former Hurricane, Joakim Nordstrom, and Dublin, Ohio native, Sean Kuraly, each have a pair of goals in 12 and nine games played, respectively.
Leading the way in the top-six forwards, Brad Marchand has 5-8–13 totals in 13 games played. His teammate on the first line, David Pastrnak is starting to get his hot hands back and enters the Eastern Conference Final with six goals and five assists (11 points) in 13 games.
Usual playoff performers, David Krejci (4-6–10 totals in 13 games) and Patrice Bergeron (5-3–8 totals in 13 games) are right where you’d expect them to be at this time of the year.
Krejci is three points shy of 100 career Stanley Cup Playoff points (all with the Bruins) and had the game-winning, series clinching, goal at Nationwide Arena in Monday’s, 3-0, shutout over the Blue Jackets.
Speaking of shutouts, Boston goaltender, Tuukka Rask is on fire lately. Rask is 8-5 with a 2.02 goals against average and .938 save percentage in 13 games played this postseason.
He also just tied Tiny Thompson and Tim Thomas for the 2nd most postseason shutouts in Bruins franchise history with his 6th career Stanley Cup Playoff shutout against Columbus in Game 6.
Gerry Cheevers holds the franchise record with eight postseason shutouts in his time wearing a black-and-gold sweater.
Though the B’s will be without Charlie McAvoy for Game 1 (McAvoy will be serving a one-game suspension for an illegal hit to the head against Josh Anderson in Game 6 against Columbus), Torey Krug (1-7–8 totals) still knows how to move the puck around– especially on Boston’s special teams opportunities.
In addition, the postseason emergence of workhorse, Brandon Carlo, on the blue line has solidified an already stable, experienced, defense with 42-year-old captain, Zdeno Chara (a plus-nine rating through 13 games) leading from his own zone.
But Carolina has a workhorse of their own– with more offensive skill than Carlo. Jaccob Slavin has 11 assists from the point this postseason in 11 games.
No other defenders have had as many assists as Slavin in Whalers/Hurricanes postseason history.
Slavin also leads his team in scoring, while forwards, Teuvo Teravainen, Warren Foegele, Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho and are tied for 2nd place on the roster in postseason scoring– each player has nine points through 11 games of Carolina’s 2019 Stanley Cup Playoff run.
Teravainen leads his team in goals with six so far this postseason, but newcomer Foegele is hot on his tail with five goals and a team-best 31.3 shooting percentage.
Hurricanes General Manager, Don Waddell, didn’t need to add much during the season, but it certainly helped that he was able to flip Victor Rask for Nino Niederreiter, who’s been a versatile addition up-and-down the lineup when Brind’Amour has called his name.
Bringing back a little familiarity in July 2017 didn’t hurt either, as “Mr. Game 7” himself and pending-UFA, Justin Williams, not only reached 100 career playoff points in Game 4 against the Islanders, but has helped lift Carolina over their playoff opponents with 3-3–6 totals in 11 games.
On defense, former Bruin Dougie Hamilton has three goals and four assists (seven points) in 11 games with the Canes this postseason. He leads his fellow defenders in goals, but trails Slavin in points thus far.
Though Carolina looks to be a top-heavy team on paper, their entire lineup was able to beat the defending Stanley Cup champions in the First Round and limit New York to five goals in four games in the Second Round.
Nobody prevents goals against as a last resort more than a goaltender and the Hurricanes have gotten everything they’ve needed and more from their goaltending duo of Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney this season.
Mrazek (5-3, 2.22 GAA, .913 SV% in nine games played this postseason) got the Canes past the Capitals in the First Round and went down with a lower body injury in Game 2 against the Isles last round.
That’s where McElhinney (3-0, 1.56 GAA, .947 SV% in three games played this postseason) stepped up and got the job done in relief in Game 2 against New York and as the oldest goaltender to make his first career start in Stanley Cup Playoff history at the age of 35 in Game 3 on home ice against the Islanders.
Brind’Amour doesn’t want to rush Mrazek if he is not 100% and could very well keep going with the upper hand of McElhinney for the time being against Boston to start the series.
The Bruins led the season series 2-1-0, however, regular season success only means so much for the playoffs. Home ice is a great thing, sure, but the Stanley Cup Playoffs are an entirely different animal when it comes to predictions based on season performance.
When the Hurricanes beat the Bruins, 5-3, on Dec. 23rd in Carolina, Boston went on to lose to New Jersey on Dec. 27th in regulation.
The B’s did not lose consecutive games in regulation until they lost three games in-a-row on the road from March 10-14th (4-2 loss to PIT on March 10th, 7-4, loss to CBJ on March 12th and a, 4-3, loss to WPG on March 14th).
Since Jan. 1st, Boston went 28-10-5 to finish off the regular season, while the Hurricanes went 31-11-2 from Jan. 1st until the dawn of the postseason.
Both teams have been hot since the turn of the calendar year. There’s no reason why either of them don’t deserve to have made it this far in the Eastern Conference.
Unfortunately, one of them will have to lose in order for the other to compete for the Stanley Cup.
Boston is poised to utilize their roster that’s full of playoff experience, while Carolina is certain to try to continue to their underdog story.
That said, the Bruins are taking the series in six games and heading back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2013.
Regular season outcomes:
4-3 F/OT BOS at TD Garden on March 5th, 5-3 CAR at PNC Arena on Dec. 23rd, 3-2 BOS at PNC Arena on Oct. 30th
Schedule:
5/9- Game 1 CAR @ BOS 8 PM ET on NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS
5/12- Game 2 CAR @ BOS 3 PM ET on NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS
5/14- Game 3 BOS @ CAR 8 PM ET on NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS
5/16- Game 4 BOS @ CAR 8 PM ET on NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS
5/18- Game 5 CAR @ BOS 7:15 PM ET on NBC, CBC, SN, TVAS*
5/20- Game 6 BOS @ CAR 8 PM ET on NBCSN, CBC, SN1, TVAS*
5/22- Game 7 CAR @ BOS 8 PM ET on NBCSN, CBC, SN360, TVAS*
*If necessary
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Krejci and DeBrusk’s chemistry shines in B’s, 4-3, OT win
An incredible pass from Jake DeBrusk to David Krejci harpooned the Carolina Hurricanes’ chances of emerging victorious– clad in Hartford Whalers throwback sweaters– at TD Garden on Tuesday as the Boston Bruins won, 4-3, in overtime.
Jaroslav Halak (18-9-4 record, 2.31 goals against average, .924 save percentage in 33 games played) made 34 saves on 37 shots against for a .919 SV% in the overtime win for the Bruins.
Carolina goaltender, Curtis McElhinney (17-7-2, 2.31 GAA, .921 SV% in 26 GP) stopped 34 out of 38 shots faced for an .895 SV% in the overtime loss.
Sebastian Aho had two goals for the Hurricanes, while Justin Williams also had a goal for Carolina.
Chris Wagner, DeBrusk, Patrice Bergeron and Krejci had goals for the B’s.
Boston improved to 40-17-9 (89 points) and remained 2nd in the Atlantic Division standings, while the Hurricanes fell to 36-23-7 (79 points), but remained 3rd in the Metropolitan Division.
Carolina is tied in points with the Pittsburgh Penguins, but leads in regulation-plus-overtime wins (35-34 this season over Pittsburgh).
The Bruins have only dropped three games in regulation since the start of 2019 and have not lost in regulation since Jan. 19th. In fact, since Jan. 1st, the Bruins are 19-3-5 (Carolina is 20-6-2 in that same span).
The B’s are 4-0-0 on their current six-game homestand and 2-0-0 in the month of March. They’re also 8-0-0 in their last eight home games dating back to Feb. 5th.
Kevan Miller remains out of the lineup and is now week-to-week with an upper body injury, while David Pastrnak (left thumb) started skating with a stick in his hands at practice. Pastrnak is closer to a return, but still not yet available for the Bruins.
Sean Kuraly (concussion protocol), in the meantime, is progressing well and should take part in Wednesday’s practice before likely returning to action Thursday night against the Florida Panthers for Boston.
Those updates were provided by B’s head coach, Bruce Cassidy, prior to Tuesday night’s matchup with the Hurricanes.
Cassidy made no adjustments to his lineup from Saturday night against the New Jersey Devils as Miller (upper body), Pastrnak (left thumb) and Kuraly (concussion protocol) remained out of the lineup due to injury and Steven Kampfer was the only healthy scratch.
Things started to look like an old Adams Division rivalry matchup when Carolina forward Micheal Ferland laid out a massive hit on Bruins winger Marcus Johansson.
Johansson was leveled by the clean hit and nursing his shoulder as he struggled to get up and was helped off the ice by Boston’s athletic trainer, Don DelNegro, about three minutes into the game.
Less than a minute later, David Backes stood up for his fallen teammate and fought Ferland. Both received five-minute major penalties for fighting at 3:53 and Ferland actually left the game with an upper body injury as a result of the fight.
It was Backes’ 3rd fighting major in 54 games this season– including three fights in his last four games.
Things did not settle down after the fisticuffs, however, as both teams exchanged pleasantries during play and after the whistle throughout the remainder of the first period.
Calvin de Haan intentionally fired a shot off of Aho (28) in front of the goal, seeking a deflection and gave the Hurricanes the first lead of the night, 1-0.
Aho’s goal was assisted by de Haan (12) and Trevor van Riemsdyk (11) at 6:30 of the first period.
Having misread the numbers on the back of a Hurricanes sweater, John Moore took out his frustrations less than a minute later on Brock McGinn with a cross check that was penalized at 7:02.
Carolina went on their first power play of the night, but it was short lived after Williams hooked Brandon Carlo at 7:44 of the opening frame.
The soon-to-be abbreviated power play for Boston after Moore’s minor was set to expire didn’t come to fruition as Charlie McAvoy tripped up Warren Foegele during the 4-on-4 action at 8:27.
The Canes still couldn’t convert on the resulting skater advantage and didn’t take full advantage of Boston’s bench minor for too many men on the ice at 13:49.
After 20 minutes of play, the Hurricanes led, 1-0, on the scoreboard, while the Bruins led, 12-11, in shots on goal.
Entering the first intermission, Boston held the advantage in blocked shots (5-3) and giveaways (6-5), while Carolina led in takeaways (6-4) and hits (13-8). Both teams were even in face-off win percentage (50-50), while the Hurricanes were 0/3 on the power play.
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsClassic. pic.twitter.com/B2Mzxx7cEo
— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) March 6, 2019Aho (29) had a breakaway about 70 seconds into the second period and pulled Halak far enough out of the crease to expose his five-hole, thereby slipping the puck through the goaltender to give Carolina a two goal lead at 1:10 of the middle frame.
Nino Niederreiter (24) and Justin Faulk (18) tallied the assists on the goal as Aho picked up his eighth point in his last six games.
Prior to trailing, 2-0, on Tuesday, the last time the Bruins trailed by multiple goals in a game this season was on Jan. 16th.
Moments after the Canes scored, Bergeron tripped up Jaccob Slavin and was assessed a minor infraction at 3:50 of the second period.
Jordan Staal followed up with a slashing penalty of his own against Bergeron at 9:43 and the Bruins went on the power play for the first time of the night. They did not convert on the ensuing skater advantage.
Boston did respond in the vulnerable minute after special teams play, however, as Carlo threw the puck on goal to generate a rebound while Wagner (10) collected the garbage in the low slot to but the B’s on the board and cut the lead in half, 2-1.
Carlo (6) had the only assist on the goal at 12:28 of the second period.
Wagner now has four goals in his last nine games for Boston.
Late in the period, Krejci moved the puck through the neutral zone and forced a rebound for DeBrusk (22) to bury behind McElhinney and tie the game, 2-2, at 18:12.
Krejci (41) had the only assist on DeBrusk’s goal.
Through two periods of play, the game was tied, 2-2, while the Bruins led in shots on goal (27-21). Boston also led in blocked shots (9-6), while Carolina led in giveaways (14-11), hits (21-13) and face-off win% (52-48).
Both teams had nine takeaways aside, while the Hurricanes were 0/4 on the power play and the Bruins were 0/1.
The Bruins were again penalized for too many men on the ice at 2:14 of the third period.
While shorthanded, Brad Marchand led a two-on-one with Bergeron, whereby Marchand sent a quick pass over to the 15-year NHL veteran for the one-timer goal from one knee.
Bergeron (23) had given Boston their first lead of the night, 3-2, at 2:45 of the third period while shorthanded. The goal was Boston’s fourth shorthanded goal this season (two for Bergeron and two for Marchand).
Marchand (50) had the only assist on the effort and reached the 50-assist plateau for the 2nd consecutive season.
As for Bergeron, the goal was his 794th career point with the Bruins, putting him in sole command of 6th all-time in Bruins franchise history in points ahead of Wayne Cashman (793 points with Boston).
Next on the list to reach for Bergeron is 5th place, Bobby Orr, who had 888 career points in the spoked-B.
Past the midpoint of the final frame of regulation, Williams (19) sent a shot from the face-off circle to left of Halak past the Bruins goaltender as Halak was deep in the crease and certainly not square enough to the shooter.
Jordan Martinook (6) and Brett Pesce (14) had the assists on Williams’ game-tying goal at 12:17.
At the end of regulation, the game remained tied, 3-3, with shots on goal even at 36-36.
Hurricanes head coach, Rod Brind’Amour sent out Teuvo Teravainen, Staal and Slavin to begin the overtime period, while Cassidy matched Carolina with Charlie oyle, Wagner and Moore.
Almost two minutes into the 3-on-3 overtime period, DeBrusk shook off a Canes defender, then worked a spin move pass over to Krejci as No. 46 in black-and-gold was crashing the slot– catching McElhinney in desperation.
Krejci (16) deked and pocketed the puck in the empty twine with McElhinney fully out of position to give Boston the overtime victory, 4-3.
DeBrusk (12) had the only assist on the goal at 1:46 of overtime.
At the final horn, the Bruins won the game and finished the night leading in shots on goal (38-37), blocked shots (14-9) and giveaways (16-15). Carolina led the night in hits (28-24) and face-off win% (52-49).
The Hurricanes finished the night 0/5 on the power play, while Boston went 0/1.
Boston improved to 8-6 on the season in overtime and Carolina fell to 4-5 in games that end before a shootout– but past regulation– this season.
The Hurricanes’ five-game winning streak was snapped and the club fell to 27-6-3 when scoring first this season as Boston overcame a two-goal deficit to win in overtime.
The Bruins improved to 13-2-4 when tied after two periods this season.
Boston continues their six-game homestand on Thursday against the Florida Panthers. Boston wraps up their homestand with a Saturday night matchup against the Ottawa Senators before traveling to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins Sunday night at PPG Paints Arena.
The B’s take on the Columbus Blue Jackets next Tuesday (March 12th) and Winnipeg Jets next Thursday (March 14th) before returning home to face Columbus on March 16th.
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DTFR Podcast #145- We Plan To Be Good In 2021-25
Evgeni Malkin did a bad thing, the 2019 NWHL All-Star Game broke attendance records and more trades happened in the NHL. Patrice Bergeron reached 1,000 games and David Pastrnak is injured for the Boston Bruins leaving Nick in a glass case of emotion.
Plus, Eugene Melnyk plans to spend money, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a new alternate sweater, Randy Carlyle was fired and Scott Niedermayer will have his number retired (again) this week. Finally, Connor has a new segment.
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Stitcher and/or on Spotify. Support the show on Patreon.
Down the Frozen River 
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