RALEIGH — A night after losing in Nashville with their B lineup, the Hurricanes flexed their muscle at home Friday with an NHL dress rehearsal group, winning 4-1 in their preseason finale against the Predators.
Teuvo Teravainen, Seth Jarvis, Martin Necas and Michael Bunting scored for Carolina, and Frederik Andersen stopped 22 of 23 shots in the win.
Three observations
1. If you’re looking for an X-factor for the Hurricanes’ season, it’s probably Teravainen.
For @TheAthletic, here are three things that could help the Hurricanes get over the hump and win it all this season. ⤵️https://t.co/WYIpyB3Kk9
— Cory Lavalette (@corylav) October 6, 2023
If Friday’s game is any indication of what is to come from the 29-year-old Finn in the final year of his contract, things are looking up.
Teravainen opened the scoring against Nashville with a power play goal 5:34 into the game.
“It was actually the same exact play I broke my finger,” Teravainen said of the play. “I was thinking about it after; I’ve got a bad memories with that shot. Well, this time it went in, so maybe I’ll have better bounces this year.”
Shooters shoot pic.twitter.com/u6jbTJRvkG
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) October 6, 2023
Here's the play in question. JG Pageau chops at Teravainen, apparently breaking his hand. https://t.co/xNfiZJGiDP pic.twitter.com/sySLnWMnvC
— Kevin Michie (@KevinMichie) April 20, 2023
He added an assist on Necas’ third period goal and contributed to the Hurricanes’ 4-for-4 penalty kill.
Throughout the night, Teravainen was making all the small plays that make him so effective, and doing so with the decisiveness and confidence that seemed to be missing last season.
“That’s what we need,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said of Teravainen’s performance. “It’s no secret: He’s a super player for us, (plays in) every situation. So we’ve got to get him up to his abilities, and I thought tonight he was right on.”
Captain Jordan Staal concurred with his coach.
“I think he’s gonna have a great rebound year for us,” he said. “I’ve always loved playing with him. He’s a special player. He creates stuff out of nothing, and he’s an impact player that I think is gonna be big for us this year.”
2. While Bunting scored for the third time in as many preseason games and Dmitry Orlov dazzled — more on that below — it was the cohesiveness of a team that is largely intact from a year ago that shined through.
It particularly showed on the 5-on-3 penalty kill that started in the first period and carried over to the second. Carolina hasn’t really practiced playing against a two-man advantage in camp, but the trio of Staal, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei anchored the kill as they have done many times before.
“There’s a comfort there in a lot of the things that we’re doing with the guys that have been here, so yeah, you’re right,” Brind’Amour said. “That’s a good point. … But yeah, that’s important, right? Not just on that little area that you mentioned, but just in your overall game.”
Teravainen said the PK just comes as second nature.
“We don’t really change much,” he said. “We’ve played together for many years. … But it’s nice to get some reps in too.”
3. The Hurricanes finished the preseason 3-3-0, winning all three at home and losing on the road, but Friday was the first time Brind’Amour used his full complement of talent — minus the injured Andrei Svechnikov — in a game.
The result was predictable against an overmatched Nashville team — Carolina doubled up the Predators at 5-on-5 in shot attempts (67-34), scoring chances (36-17) and high-danger scoring chances (13-6), according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
Most encouraging were the goals that showed off the Hurricanes’ skill. Necas’ bar-in shot in the third was an absolute laser, and Bunting’s goal off a Jarvis feed was nearly identical to an earlier play that resulted in Bunting hitting the post.
Number to know
18:40 — Time on ice for Skjei, who led the Hurricanes. With seven defensemen playing, Brind’Amour and his staff spread the wealth with ice time. Jalen Chatfield played just 11:27, but the other six D played between 18:40 and 16:07. At forward, the high was 17:47 for Jesperi Kotkaniemi and the low was Jack Drury at 12:09.
Plus
Dmitry Orlov — Orlov picked up a primary assist on Teravainen’s goal, and then he got the biggest “oooooh” out of the home crowd with this move.
Here's that Orlov shake and bake pic.twitter.com/ruSxH7bTZ2
— Cory Lavalette (@corylav) October 6, 2023
Not too shabby.
Brind’Amour was asked if he knew Orlov could “break ankles like that.”
“You mean the way he shimmy-shakes? Yeah, we’ve seen it for many years,” the coach said with a smile.
Minus
Penalties — Carolina’s three penalties in 4:36 of game time, starting with Bunting’s abuse of officials minor at 18:42 of the first, took the wind out of the sails of the Hurricanes’ steamboat that was chugging along in the opening period.
“That’s always been that way,” Brind’Amour said when asked if the lesson for the night was about penalties taking the team out of its rhythm. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
It did, however, give the Hurricanes some penalty kill practice, including 81 seconds of 5-on-3 time, that showcased why the team has been the best at stopping opposing power plays since Brind’Amour took over. Still, it’s something Carolina would rather avoid.
“Yeah, it doesn’t help,” Staal said of the penalties. “And we’re gonna be on top of that as well throughout the year. Just staying out of the box is always a positive.”
They said it
“I don’t worry about that too much. I just try to see the puck, the save the puck.”
— Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen on if he noticed it was Nashville sniper Filip Forsberg bearing down on him when he made a second period shoulder save with Carolina ahead 2-1.
