As the see-saw nature of the Carolina Hurricanes’ season continues, the team has hit another low point. The Canes are currently in the midst of their NHL-mandated five-day bye week, and consecutive blowout losses to the Washington Capitals and Dallas Stars before the break dealt a blow to Carolina’s playoff hopes.
As of this writing, the Canes are 6 points back of the Toronto Maple Leafs for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, with six additional teams to climb over to get there. There is hope, however. When the Canes return from their bye week, they will have multiple games in hand on all the teams they are chasing, and will have at least one head-to-head matchup with each.
The biggest reason for optimism comes from Carolina’s five-game homestand right after the break. The Canes are 17-6-1 on home ice this season and have played extremely well in their own building. Carolina will likely need to win at least four of the five games to stay in the hunt.
What’s on the table for this potentially season-saving stretch? Let’s take a look.
Friday, Feb. 17 Colorado Avalanche- The Canes will be welcomed back from their bye week by the NHL’s worst team. Colorado sits dead last in the overall standings with just 15 wins in 53 games played. The Avs have been a sieve defensively this year, surrendering 181 markers for a -74 goal differential. The team does have some talented forwards in Matt Duchene, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog, but this is one the Canes need to win and should if they play their game. In addition, Colorado will be on a back-to-back set with travel, playing the Sabres in Buffalo the night before. With five days’ rest, this is a game Carolina must win if it is serious about being a playoff contender. This will be the Canes’ first game against the Avalanche this season.
Sunday, Feb. 19- Toronto Maple Leafs– Perhaps the NHL’s biggest surprise this year, the Maple Leafs are having a very good season and look like a strong playoff contender, currently occupying the East’s final wild card spot. Toronto is led by likely rookie of the year and 2016 first-overall draft pick Auston Matthews, the Leafs have high-scoring attack with 165 goals. Matthews actually does not lead rookies in scoring, but is second to teammate Mitch Marner, another talented forward the Canes will look to shut down.
The team has gotten some strong netminding from goalie Frederik Andersen, but at only plus four in goal differential, defense has been an issue for the Leafs this year, and a weakness the Canes will look to exploit. Obviously, this is a key game and represents a huge four-point swing for the Canes and the team they are trying to catch for a playoff spot. The Canes will need 2 points in regulation here to stay in the race. This will be the team’s second straight against an opponent facing a back to back, as the Leafs play in Toronto Saturday night. Carolina beat the Leafs 2-1 in mid-November for a rare road win in the teams’ first meeting of the year.
Tuesday, Feb. 21 Pittsburgh Penguins- No one needs to be reminded of what happened when this Metropolitan division foe last visited PNC Arena. The Penguins blasted the Canes 7-1 in what was the team’s worst performance in years. The defending Stanley Cup champions are an outstanding team from top to bottom. With two superstars up front in best player of this generation Sidney Crosby and Russian forward Evgeni Malkin, a solid defensive group anchored by minute-muncher Kris Letang and a strong goalie platoon of rookie Matt Murray and veteran Marc-Andre Fleury, it’s hard to find a flaw in this group. By far the toughest game on the homestand, the Canes would probably be happy with merely scraping out an overtime-loss point from this one. Both teams will have a day off prior to the game. In addition to the aforementioned shellacking, the Canes dropped a hard-luck decision in Pittsburgh in December, falling 3-2 despite firing over 40 shots on goal.
Friday Feb. 24 Ottawa Senators- Ottawa is having a very good season, sitting second in the Atlantic division and looking like a playoff team. The Sens are led by Erik Karlsson, one of the best offensive defensemen in the NHL, along with solid scoring forwards Mark Stone, Kyle Turris and Mike Hoffman. The team has also had a surprise performance in net from reclamation project Mike Condon, with normal starter Craig Anderson taking a leave of absence to be with his wife who is battling cancer. Ottawa has a deep forward group; the Canes will need to be on their toes defensively in this one. Both teams have two days off between their last game and this one. This is the final meeting between Carolina and Ottawa this season, the Canes dropped two games in Canada’s capital in November.
Sunday Feb. 26 Calgary Flames- A game against the team that represented Carolina’s first victory of the season all the way back in October could be one that gives the Canes some life once again. The Flames are on the Western Conference’s playoff bubble, 1 point out of a wild-card spot at the time of this writing. Led as usual by young studs Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan up front and strong defenseman like Mark Giordano and TJ Brodie, the Flames are always a dangerous opponent. This will be an important game for the Canes, putting a final stamp on the homestand. It is also the team’s last game before the Feb. 28 trade deadline, and the final results of the homestand could go a long way in determining general manager Ron Francis’ direction. Both teams have a day off prior to this one. As mentioned before, the Canes beat the Flames in Calgary in October for their first victory of the season and lone win on a season-opening six-game road trip.
The NHL schedule has gifted the Carolina Hurricanes a chance to get back into the playoff chase. With a strong home record, two games against teams facing a back-to-back with travel and some chances to pick up points against Eastern Conference opponents, this is a golden opportunity to stay in the race. Win four or five of these games, and it could set up an interesting final month and change for Carolina. Anything less than that, and the road to a playoff berth for the first time since 2009 looks even longer.
