The most important stretch of the Carolina Hurricanes’ season started off on the right foot Tuesday night in PNC Arena, as the Canes kicked off their eight-game homestand with a comeback 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators.
Forward Sebastian Aho tied the game at 1-1 for the Hurricanes (23-19-8) in his first game since he sustained both a lower-body and head injury against the Calgary Flames on Jan. 14. Forward Victor Rask added a power-play goal to complete the comeback over the Senators (15-24-9).
“That’s as healthy as we’ve been all year,” head coach Bill Peters said. “I thought we started to skate better as the game went along. I thought we started to execute better. Then it was a huge goal to tie it up.”
Ottawa forward Jean-Gabriel Pageau tallied the only goal of the first two periods late in the second, but that was all the Sens could muster. Carolina goalie Cam Ward stopped 29 of 30 shots for the win, while Craig Anderson took the loss for Ottawa, saving 37 of 39.
“We fought really hard,” Ward said. “It was kind of one of those games that you were hoping for a bounce and we cashed in.”
Off the ice, the storyline of the night was the relocation of fans in an effort to fill the lower bowl of PNC Arena. The Hurricanes announced earlier in the day that all 300-level tickets would be eligible for upgrade into the lower bowl in an effort to boost the atmosphere of the game and enhance the fan experience, a major focus for new majority owner Tom Dundon.
While a few stragglers remained up in the rafters of the stadium, nearly all of the 11,448 fans took advantage and were close to the ice Tuesday night. While Aho and Peters were indifferent about the change in atmosphere, both Ward and forward Jeff Skinner said it created a buzz and was a step in the right direction.
“It makes it feel like it’s more full,” Ward said. “You want the fans to have a good experience and to be as close to the ice as possible and create that buzz. It looks like we’re making strides in trying to make the experience a lot better for the fans.”
A fairly uneventful first period was highlighted by each team ringing the post. The Sens hit the framework twice, as defenseman Thomas Chabot and forward Christopher DiDomenico both beat Ward but not the post. Skinner also hit iron, unleashing a backhand that caught just enough of Anderson’s shoulder to push the puck up into the crossbar and clear of danger.
The second period brought with it a much more entertaining brand of hockey, with the Senators breaking the scoreless tie with just over one minute to play in the middle frame. Pageau unleashed from the top of the circle, and the puck squirted between Ward’s arm and body and into the net after deflecting off the skate of Canes defenseman Jaccob Slavin.
Aho, who missed four games with his injuries, ripped one from the top of the circle just under two minutes into the final period, and a deflection off the stick of Chabot put the puck past Anderson to tie things up at 1-1.
“First period I was a little rusty and didn’t feel that good,” Aho said. “I was very excited. I’ve been waiting for this since I got hurt.”
Aho started the game playing with forwards Jordan Staal and Elias Lindholm, but Peters changed things up midway through the game, returning forward Teuvo Teravainen to a line with Staal and Aho, a grouping that has worked well for the Hurricanes all season.
“I thought we needed a little something,” Peters said. “Coming out of the [All-Star] break is always a little bit nerve-racking and scary. Timing and execution is never quite as good as it needs to be. I just thought we needed to have a little bit different look.”
The Canes took advantage of just their second power play of the night with just over eight minutes to play. With the power play winding down, Rask took a pass from forward Justin Williams at the top of the circle and slotted a hard wrister past Anderson and into the roof of the net for a 2-1 lead.
Carolina finished the game to open up the homestand with a much-needed win. The win puts the Hurricanes just two points back of the Philadelphia Flyers for the Eastern Conference’s second wild card berth, with their next seven games coming in PNC Arena, starting Thursday night against the Montreal Canadiens.
“I just thought we got better as the game went along,” Peters said. “I expect us to be better in practice tomorrow and then better Thursday against Montreal. I think we could do this. I really do.”
