With a playoff berth clinched, the Carolina Hurricanes did not have to worry about the results of Tuesday night’s games. Despite this security, the Canes dropped the ball against the Blue Jackets and lost 6-3 in Columbus, Ohio.
Carolina (52-23-7) looked to finish out the regular season on a high note against the worst team in the Metropolitan Division, but Columbus (27-43-12) had the last laugh. The Blue Jackets’ young roster capitalized on the Canes’ mistakes throughout 60 minutes of play. Despite the loss, left wing Teuvo Teravainen led the red-and-black with two goals and capped off his regular season with 25 goals.
Both teams played neck and neck throughout the first frame, shooting rapidly; Carolina had five shots on goal in one minute but could not get past Blue Jackets netminder Jet Greaves. However, it was Columbus who got on the board first with a goal from rookie center Luca Del Bel Belluz, scoring his first NHL goal on his first-ever shot in the major leagues.
It wasn’t more than two minutes later that Columbus sounded the goal horn once again: defenseman Zach Werenski gave the Blue Jackets a solid 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the game. Carolina needed to respond quickly to stay in the game.
Center Jesperi Kotkaniemi gave the Canes some much-needed momentum, scoring his 12th goal of the season with 12 minutes left in the first period. Down 2-1, things started to look up for Carolina. With eight failed shots in the span of a minute halfway through the period, it was clear that the Hurricanes were trying hard to tie the game back up. They got their wish answered with two minutes left in the period when Teravainen scored his first goal of the game to bring the game to an even 2-2.
Answering a minute later, Columbus got its third goal of the period courtesy of center James Malatesta playing in only his 11th career game. Despite having one of the deepest veteran defenses in the league, the Canes could not keep up with the young energy Columbus fed them all game.
Each team scored a goal in the second, causing Carolina to head into the final frame down 4-3. Teravainen’s second goal of the night tied the score at 3-3, but two minutes later Columbus responded with another goal.
Even though the Hurricanes finished the third frame with 15 shots on goal compared to the Blue Jackets’ four, the Canes crumbled quickly and could not come back. The Blue Jackets took a 5-3 lead less than a minute into the last period with a goal from left wing Alexander Nylander. After fighting hard for the final 20 minutes of play, the Carolina goalie was pulled, allowing the Blue Jackets to score one final goal to make the score 6-3.
The Canes are set to play the New York Islanders in the first round of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs. Gamedays and times have yet to be determined.
