Gold: Canes hoping to Max out in final game of homestand
Posted March 24, 2022 11:01 a.m. EDT
Updated March 25, 2022 4:08 a.m. EDT
After taking on water for the previous four games – on the scoreboard, anyway – the Carolina Hurricanes took care of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night and got to exhale a bit.
After dropping four straight and seeing their Metropolitan Division lead shrink from 8 to 3 points in the last week and a half, the Canes scored a pair of power play goals and Sebastian Aho potted his first 5-on-5 marker in six weeks in the win.
Now, all they have to do is back it up Thursday night against the Dallas Stars.
Dallas took the first meeting between the two teams on Nov. 30 thanks to a Roope Hintz hat trick and one of Joe Pavelski’s 24 goals on the year. The Hurricanes had tons of chances, but could not solve Braden Holtby who steered away 39 of Carolina’s 40 shots in a 4-1 win.
The Hurricanes played that game down three defensive starters. Brett Pesce, Tony DeAngelo and Ethan Bear were all in the league’s COVID-19 protocol, leaving Carolina with just four NHL defensemen. For the most part, Carolina is back to full strength and with the addition of deadline acquisition Max Domi should be ready for the Stars heavy, albeit speedy line up.
The Stars have won three of their last four games, and are coming off a 5-3 victory over Edmonton. Hintz has scored three times in the last two games and Dallas’ offense has been rolling of late. They’ve scored at least four goals in seven of their last 11 games (7-4-0).
A season ago, these teams were division rivals and the Canes dominated. Carolina went 6-1-1 and outscored Dallas by 10 during division-only play. The previous season, the Stars beat the Canes in both meetings, so it’s been a bit of a see saw rivalry.
Freddie Andersen will make his third straight start. Domi will draw into the line up for the first time and Steven Lorentz will be the healthy extra. Here’s how it will look.
- Teravainen-Aho-Jarvis
- Svechnikov-Trocheck-Necas
- Niederreiter-Staal-Fast
- Domi-Kotkaniemi-Stepan
- Slavin-DeAngelo
- Skjei-Pesce
- Cole-Bear
- Andersen
Thursday night's game is on ESPN, so it will be radio only for the local broadcast. Coverage will begin at 6:30 p.m. with Storm Watch starring Alec Campbell. Opening faceoff just after 7 p.m. with Mike Maniscalco and Tripp Tracy. Don’t forget to follow the Canes Corner Podcast so you can receive the #MorningAfter edition that drops after every Hurricanes game.
