One day removed from clinching a playoff spot, the Carolina Hurricanes suffered a 2-1 loss to the New York Islanders in PNC Arena on Friday, April 8.
The Canes (46-18-8) looked flat in all aspects of the game as the Islanders (33-28-9) took advantage of Carolina’s struggling power play and its overall lack of tenacity. The Canes never really tested New York goalie Ilya Sorokin, and the Islanders came away with both points as a result.
“From my point of view, we were really gassed,” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “There was no energy in our legs. We had no speed to get in and get on them. They did a nice job with a lot of blocked shots.”
The Hurricanes’ inability to generate chances was especially obvious on the power play, which has struggled to get the job done in recent weeks. Neither team really got anything going while on the play, with both going 0 for 4 on the night, but Carolina’s reluctance to get into the dirty areas was all the more apparent when the Isles were keeping them out of the slot with one less skater.
“They’ve been terrible,” Brind’Amour said. “Let’s just be honest. The second unit has actually been pretty good. They get in every time and get some action, but our first group has got to get way better.”
Even at even strength, Carolina simply struggled to make much happen on offense. The Islanders eventually cracked the scoreboard in the second period with a goal from Jean-Gabriel Pageau, but the Canes floundered in contrast. During the middle period, the Hurricanes registered just one shot compared to New York’s eight.
Carolina did manage to engineer a sliver of hope in the dying moments of the game, however. With goaltender Frederik Andersen pulled off the ice for an extra skater, center Vincent Trocheck netted a game-tying goal with just 58.6 seconds left in the third.
That hope was quickly quashed as the Isles caught the Canes off guard and Kyle Palmieri slipped the puck past Andersen with just 14.1 seconds left in regulation. After coming so close to salvaging at least a point in OT, the result was a difficult pill for the Hurricanes to swallow.
“I don’t think we took a breath,” Trocheck said. “But it hurts whenever you get one back late and they score. It starts at the beginning of the game. It’s not just that last shift. We’ve got to start better.”
Much like the playoff-clinching win against Buffalo, Carolina’s newfound tendency of turning the puck over in bad spots also marred the Canes’ evening. The Hurricanes racked up 15 giveaways compared to just two by the Islanders, with many of the Canes’ turnovers coming in their own zone. The Hurricanes’ Inability to maintain possession allowed the Isles to generate counterattacks and keep Carolina behind the proverbial eight ball on several occasions.
With 10 games left in the regular season, time is running out for the Hurricanes to hit their stride and carry some momentum into the playoffs. Their next opportunity to return to form will come on Sunday, April 10 in a home game against the Anaheim Ducks. Puck drops at 6 p.m.
