Power Play: Hurricanes lose OT heartbreaker to red-hot Senators
RALEIGH, N.C. -- In a hard-fought (literally, sometimes), intense battle, the Carolina Hurricanes (26-34-9) fell just short in overtime against the Ottawa Senators (34-24-11), 2-1. Goals were hard to come by, and for the most part, neither team gave up anything easily. After a fast start in the first and a slower second, the Hurricanes went into the third tied at 1-1 and kept it that way -- until the final 13 seconds of overtime, when Ottawa's Mark Stone snuck the game-winner by Anton Khudobin.
1. This game might have just been a preview of what's to come if the Hurricanes keep getting better
The building was almost full on St. Patrick's Day on a warm spring evening, and the crowd was as festive as the holiday itself. The Hurricanes got off to a lively start, out-shooting Ottawa 9-7 in the first and leading 1-0 after that period too.
The second was not what they wanted -- they were out-shot significantly and allowed the game-tying goal on the Ottawa power play -- but the third was much better and more hotly-contested, as was overtime.
"That's one of the most exciting overtimes I've ever been a part of. ... The overtime was up and down the ice," Hurricanes head coach Bill Peters said. "It was a hard-fought game. It was a good game. They played very well, they played very tight and I thought we played the same way."
The energy in the arena was unlike anything it's seen most of the season, and a few fights -- one early, and one late -- certainly didn't hurt in getting the crowd involved.
"I thought it was great. I thought the atmosphere in the building was outstanding. The fans were into it. It was loud," Peters said. "There was one fight and a couple different scrums. I thought it was a really intense hockey game. It was kind of like a playoff-style hockey game."
Goalie Anton Khudobin, who had a great game of his own in the loss, was inspired by how hard his teammates were playing.
"It's fun when you have a lot of energy and you see the energy guys are bringing. When it's a tough game, when you see a couple battles and a couple fights and stuff like that, it's just fun," Khudobin said.
2. The Hamburglar strikes again.
The Senators' goalie -- whose real name is Andrew Hammond -- was a virtual unknown just a few weeks ago. The Ottawa fans have embraced the red-hot Hamburglar, who is now 11-0-1 as a starter since replacing Craig Anderson after a hand injury. He's allowed two or fewer goals now for 12 straight games, which ties a 76-year-old NHL record for a goalie.
Hammond earned his nickname as a goaltender in college. He was a virtual unknown before getting his chance, and now it's gotten to the point where Senators fans are showing up to games dressed like the McDonald's character, and Hammond even received a lifetime card for free McDonald's. Not too shabby.
But for the Hurricanes, they were left lamenting what might have been. The Hurricanes didn't even take a shot until late in the second period, and they out-shot Ottawa in the other two periods by a combined 27-14. They were out-shot 16-6 in the second.
"He made a couple nice saves, I think," the Hurricanes' Jeff Skinner said. "But I don't think we got the shots we wanted to in the second. But he made some big saves for them when they needed him. We just couldn't sort of seem to find that second (goal)."
It has helped, as Skinner pointed out, how well the team in front of him is playing. But he made some ridiculous saves, robbing multiple Hurricanes of goals.
Khudobin knows what it's like to get the chance and show what you can do when a starter is hurt, too -- he did that last year when Cam Ward was injured. Now, he's an integral part of the team's goalkeeping.
But he, like most goaltenders, also understands that success can be fleeting.
"It's good for him. I'm pretty sure he has a lot of energy right now in his body I'm pretty sure and a lot of emotions," Khudobin said. "He waited for his chance and right now, he just showed them he can, but at the same time, it's just 10-11 games."
3. The Hurricanes aren't just going to lay down
Peters said he got a phone call earlier in the day before the game. The person on the other end asked him, "What are you guys trying to do down the stretch?" He looked aghast just recalling the question. "We're trying to win. We're going to play hard. We're going to compete," Peters recalled replying.
And that's exactly what has been happening. The Hurricanes were always a bit limited in terms of their personnel, and that's been especially true after they made a number of trades (good ones) to build for next season.
But their small group of defensemen (which might get smaller with what looked like a bad injury to John Michael-Liles) are playing major minutes, and everyone is giving everything that they have, more often than not.
The overtime win got Ottawa to within four points of Boston. Somewhat like the Hurricanes, they likely didn't think they'd be in this position but with the streak, here they are. And so every game matters for them -- a lot -- and it showed.
"I expect that and I knew they were going to come to try to make the playoffs. So I expect that," Khudobin said. "But (the Hurricanes) actually did a good job. They sealed out a lot of players so I could see the puck. Unfortunately, we didn't get the result though."
The Hurricanes have games left against some of the top teams in the league, including the Eastern-leading Canadiens on Thursday and hosting the Metropolitan-leading Rangers on Saturday. And they'll have games left against teams that are fighting for position, too.
But they don't care. They're going to play hard, and if the play spoiler, so be it. This is a chance for Peters to establish what he wants this team to become. What better chance to do it then down the stretch against teams fighting for their playoff lives, or at least playoff positioning?
That's what they showed against Ottawa, and it ha to be encouraging. They have no real reason to keep fighting this season, other than pride.
"It's good to see. I think guys are into it. A lot of emotion," Skinner said. "They're a team that's fighting for a spot and they were playing hard. It's nice for us to match that intensity."
Andrew Hammond -- The Hamburglar stopped 35 of the 36 shots he faced. In addition to leading this streak, according to Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen, he has a 1.35 goals-against average and a .956 save percentage during this streak. That's absurd.
Anton Khudobin -- The Hurricanes goalie entered the game 5-0-0 against Ottawa in his career, and he played incredibly well, stopping all but two of the 33 shots he faced (and the only even-strength goal he allowed came in the closing seconds of overtime).
Elias Lindholm -- It wasn't that long ago that the 20-year-old would too often be invisible. In this game, he not only scored the Hurricanes' only goal, but he also had four hits an attempted a team-high five shots.
