In a highly anticipated game between two of the best teams in the NHL, the Carolina Hurricanes traveled through national borders to take on the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets proved they have the best record in the league for a reason in a 3-0 shutout of the Hurricanes.
The Hurricanes (32-18-4) came into the game looking to rebound after a 4-2 loss to the Kings, while the Jets (38-14-3) came in sitting in first place in the Central Division and looked to continue building on their momentum after winning six straight contests.
The shots were fairly even throughout, but the game ultimately came down to who could get the puck in the net and who could not. The star of the show on the Jets side was goalie Eric Comrie, who had 29 saves for a perfect save percentage. The same cannot be said about Hurricanes netminder Pyotr Kochetkov, who allowed three goals.
Winnipeg took advantage of its balanced play, scoring one goal in each period, all by different players. The first two of these goals came on the man advantage. Winnipeg currently has the top-rated power play in the NHL with a 33.8% success rate, and it showed in this game. Jets right wing Nino Niederreiter scored the first goal. This came during a power play at the end of the first period and was assisted by left wing Alex Iafallo and center Vladislav Namestnikov. This gave Winnipeg a 1-0 lead right before the end of the first period.
The second goal took place quickly after the start of the second, after a Carolina penalty. Winnipeg got another power play opportunity, and at 3:13 into the second, Jets defender Neal Pionk took the opportunity and scored, giving them a quick 2-0 lead. The final goal for Winnipeg was scored in the last five minutes of the game when center Rasmus Kupari scored, making it 3-0 and putting the game out of reach for Carolina.
Carolina has now played two games in February, both against teams with winning records, and it has scored just two goals in those matchups. Fans, coaches and players alike will look at these and wonder what happened to the offensive firepower. In this game, Carolina had only less than one shot than Winnipeg but couldn’t score. In their previous game against Los Angeles, the Canes outshot the Kings but lost by two goals. Accuracy in shooting has become a glaring weakness in this current squad, which is something it will need to fix sooner rather than later.
Before the Canes can get to a much needed Four Nations break, they will play two more games, including their third in a row against a team with a winning record in the Minnesota Wild. The Canes currently sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division with 68 points, and while they are now extremely behind Washington with 77 points, New Jersey is right behind them in third with 66 points, making each game right now much more important.
Carolina’s next game will be on Thursday when it takes a trip to Minnesota to play the Wild. The game is slated to start at 7:30 p.m.
