RALEIGH — The Carolina Hurricanes played arguably their worst period of hockey in the first 20 minutes of Friday’s game against the visiting San Jose Sharks.
Heading out for the second period facing a two-goal deficit, Carolina could have easily conceded it wasn’t their night.
But that doesn’t seem to be the way of the 2018-19 Hurricanes.
Carolina scored three times in the second period and dominated the third and overtime, then capped it off with a 4-3 shootout win Friday in front of 12,311 at PNC Arena.
“I think we just knew what needs to be done,” Foegele said of the mood in the locker room after the lackluster first period. “Coach came in here and he was positive. We were sloppy. You just all look at each other and we just — we believe in each other. You just look at each other and you’re like, ‘Yeah, I know we can come back.’ And that’s what happened.”
After being outshot 11-8 in the first period, Carolina had 33 shots to San Jose’s 12 the rest of the way.
“Well, we’re not going to quit,” coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “I know that already about this group. No matter what happens, it was just a matter of we didn’t get to our game and San Jose did. And then I thought really after the first, really at the end of the first, we started kind of getting it going a little bit.
“I give the guys full marks. They bounced back.”
The Hurricanes (6-3-1) just missed scoring first, and the Sharks quickly seized control to make it 1-0.
After Hurricanes rookie Andrei Svechnikov forced an offensive zone turnover and created two prime scoring chances for linemate Jordan Martinook, the Sharks (5-3-2) immediately counterattacked with Antti Suomela scoring his first career NHL goal at 6:37 of the first.
Less than a half-minute later, a Teuvo Teravainen neutral zone turnover led to him taking a penalty, and the Sharks power play made Carolina pay.
A point shot by Brent Burns rattled around and went right to Timo Meier in front, and he deposited it in the net for a 2-0 Sharks lead just 8:16 into the game.
“We just talked after the first period in the dressing room that we don’t want to play like we did in the first period, and we showed character and came really hard in the second,” said goalie Petr Mrazek, who made 20 saves and stopped all three of the Sharks’ shootout attempts.
An early goal in the second period — defenseman Dougie Hamilton’s first with Carolina — seemed to shift momentum in the Hurricanes’ favor. But a second San Jose power play goal, this one by Tomas Hertl that was helped along by a failed clearing attempt, again pushed the Sharks ahead by two.
Carolina finally got the bounce it needed just past the game’s midway point — and it benefited the player who probably needed a break to go his way the most.
The Sharks turned the puck over in their own end, and after the puck bounced through the crease and out, Brock McGinn rifled it past Aaron Dell (38 saves) to pull Carolina within one at 10:07 of the second. Five minutes later, Teravainen got the equalizer.
“I don’t know if we felt that they were just going to roll over, but you can see the pressure they can put on you,” Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. “Once you lose that momentum it’s almost impossible to get back.”
McGinn’s goal was his first point of the season in his 10th game. He later scored the only shootout goal — both San Jose’s Joe Pavelski and Carolina’s Sebastian Aho hit the post — to give the Hurricanes the win.
“He’s been good all year. He’s been snakebitten a little bit,” Brind’Amour said of McGinn. “He just keeps plugging away. He scored the one, and then his game was good. We know we like him in the shootouts anyway, so he was on our list before the game. It was nice to see him get it.”
And the Hurricanes are all proving they “get it,” whether it be Foegele’s infectious doggedness on the puck, defenseman Justin Faulk’s second straight game making a sprawling desperation save in net, or plays like the highlight-reel one Martinook made in swiping away a breakaway opportunity.
“It’s the second-effort stuff that we’re doing really well right now,” Brind’Amour said. “The group’s kind of — it’s expected. It’s a real positive thing for a coach, for sure. We love it, and I think the guys in the room are pushing each other to play that way.”
Notes: Jordan Staal won 17 of 22 faceoffs, and the Hurricanes were 43-27 overall. … Jaccob Slavin was credited with six takeaways. … Hamilton had five shots on goal and 13 shot attempts. … Nicolas Roy, playing his first game with Carolina this season and second in the NHL, played 7:32. … Aho pushed his point streak to 10 games to start the season. … The Hurricanes are now 3-0 when wearing their new third sweaters.
