Hurricanes focusing on playing 5-on-5 in Game 6 vs. Bruins

By Kacy Hintz, WRAL sports anchor/reporter

The proof is in the pudding.

When the Carolina Hurricanes stay out of the penalty box, not many teams can keep up with them.

That includes the Boston Bruins who the Canes can eliminate with a win Thursday night in Game 6.

The Hurricanes players have said repeatedly they are the better team in the series and at their best when playing five-on-five.

"You can't really say you can control every outcome every single game, but when we're disciplined, and we're playing our game to the best of our ability, we can play with anyone," said forward Max Domi. "That's the confidence you got to have."

It's not just confidence. It shows in the numbers. The Hurricanes have outscored the Bruins 12-6 when playing at even strength this series.

"We know what to expect from us, and we have trust in what we do," said forward Jesper Fast. "So the games in Boston, we just have to stay away from the (penalty) box, which gives us a better chance to win the game."

After committing nine penalties in Game 4 Sunday in Boston, the Hurricanes carried the physical action in a cleaner performance in Game 5 in Raleigh with only three trips to the penalty box. Toeing that line again Thursday night in Boston will be key. "I know that's something we can all clean up. We did a great job of that last game." Domi said. "When we're desperate, we're a tough team to beat. We have just got to stay out of the box."

The Hurricanes can clinch the series on the road Thursday if they replicate their Game 5 performance when they dominated the Bruins, 5-1. "If we just play like we did the last game, I think we played really strong," said defenseman Brady Skjei. "We got a lot of pucks to the net, which created some chaos and we played strong defensively so we have to keep doing that."