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Hurricanes wallop Devils 5-1 in first game of series

By Peter Hassett

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May 3, 2023 9:37 pm

The Carolina Hurricanes throttled the New Jersey Devils in the first game of the second round. It was a thorough throttling. (Note: I’m covering the Devils this postseason. It’s no longer a bit. This is my calling)

It was all Hurricanes in the first. Brett Pesce kicked it off with a goal right after an offensive-zone faceoff win. Five minutes later, Seth Jarvis made it 2-0 on a breakaway.

The Canes kept pushing early in the second period with an easy one for Jesperi Kotkaniemi that we’ll talk about below. New Jersey showed signs of life as Nate Bastian got a lucky puck along the blue line and carried it in for an easy goal.

Ten minutes into the third period, Brady Skjei made it 4-1 with a one-timer from the faceoff dot. Jesper Fast got the empty-netter, and it was done.

Canes win 5-1. Canes lead the series 1-0.

  • The Devils’ first period was dismal. They had no high-danger chances and controlled just 7.3 percent of the expected goals. Carolina’s league-best aggressive defense smothered New Jersey, and they punished every mistake.
  • Speaking of mistakes, defender Ryan Graves was on the ice for both first-period Canes goals, and mostly at fault for the Jarvis one with an unwise pass. Lindy Ruff wasn’t having it and benched Graves until deep into the second period.
  • This… was not a trip, right? Was this a dive?

  • Rookie loffs phenom Akira Schmid had a comedown, giving up three goals on eleven shots before earning the hook. But I don’t think he really earned it — by the time he was pulled the Devils still had just one shot on goal.
  • Coming in on relief, Vitek Vanecek was fine, stopping nine of ten shots. He was particularly good on the penalty kill. Also good on the penalty kill: the post, who stopped two shots (Aho’s and Jarvis’) on one second-period Canes power-play.
  • Timo Meier didn’t play after taking a powerful hit to the head in game seven of the last series. I’m not going to speculate, but that was a really big, like excessively big hit – and it went into the place on his body where his brain is kept.
  • Just before the Kotkaniemi goal, Devils defender Jonas Siegenthaler lost his helmet. He was allowed to stay in the play while he was directly engaged, but once the puck left the boards he had to skate to the bench, which was precisely when Kotkaniemi scored. Those are the rules, but man, the rules suck sometimes.
  • I couldn’t get a picture of it, but what’s the deal with Rod Brind’Amour’s tie? It was pink with polka dots. Please don’t tell me it’s some heartwarming story about a sick kid – just tell me, like, “yeah, he’s a known tie pervert, absolute neckwear freak.”

I was wondering how the best breakout in the league (New Jersey’s) would fare against the best forecheck in the league (Carolina’s). I have my answer: Carolina wins. They cowed the Devils in the first period to a degree with which I’d be unfamiliar if I hadn’t seen the Devils do the same thing in the first period of the first game of the first round.

If a playoff series is a chess match – and I’m not convinced it is – Brind’Amour’s opening gambit was a success. His is a well-coached team, executing a coherent plan every shift, no matter who is on the ice. Lindy Ruffs needs to counter; he can’t just rely on overwhelming talent – which is what I worry he did last round.

Headline photo: @MichaelSmithNC

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