After losing 5-1 to the New York Islanders on Friday, April 21, the Carolina Hurricanes bounced back in game four of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs — defeating the Islanders 5-2.
The Canes (52-21-9) take a 3-1 series lead as they travel back to Raleigh for game five, while the Islanders (42-31-9) look to battle back and keep their playoff hopes alive. The stars of game four were all on Carolina’s roster, as goaltender Antti Raanta notched his first postseason win on the road, and center Sebastian Aho set a franchise record for postseason goals with a staggering 20.
The first period was highlighted with a power play goal from Carolina center Seth Jarvis, which eventually became his first of the game before going on to score another in the third period. Even though the Canes held the lead after the first frame, the Islanders led in shots on goal 9-7.
This lead wouldn’t last long for New York, though, as the Canes became trigger-happy in the second frame and eventually led in both shots on goal and on the scoreboard. Center Martin Necas scored his first goal of the postseason on another power play goal, making it 2-0. The lead was solidified by a goal from Aho, his 20th postseason goal of his career, as he etched his name into franchise history.
Heading into the third frame with a 3-0 lead, many fans would expect the Canes to lay off and focus on defense, but that was not the case. Not even two minutes into the third period, Jarvis scored his second goal of the game — which would eventually lead to some line changes from the Islander’s bench.
New York managed to score two goals in the third frame, with the first coming after 43 minutes of play. Defenseman Adam Pelch and center Bo Horvat were the lone goal-scorers for the Islanders, as the team could not keep up with Raanta.
Despite being one of Carolina’s biggest assets, the netminder has an Achilles heel when it comes to playing away games in the postseason. Before today, Raanta had never won an away postseason game, a streak the goalie is surely happy to end. He stopped 27 of the 29 shots he faced, putting up an impressive save percentage of .931.
The Canes weren’t done scoring after Jarvis’ third period goal — left wing Mackenzie MacEachern notched the final goal for the Canes to make the game 5-2. The 29 year-old played his first game with the Canes today, and was a call-up for the matinee game in New York. This was his first career postseason goal.
Game five is an important one for the Hurricanes, as they could potentially clinch the series at home and move onto the next round. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 25.
