It was another hard-fought series for both teams as it went the distance to a seventh game. The home team had won every game in this series up until Game 7 in the Carolina Hurricanes vs New York Rangers series. The Rangers stormed into North Carolina to take on the Hurricanes and secured the Game 7 win by 6-2. After very low-scoring games throughout the series, this high-scoring affair was a surprise. The Rangers move on to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Hurricanes enter an offseason with many questions.
Carolina Hurricanes vs New York Rangers Recap
Special Teams
Special teams were a highlight within the series and a key factor, especially in Game 7. Early in the series, it was the Hurricanes who dominated the special teams play. Brendan Smith would score the game-winning goal shorthanded off a cross-ice pass from Sebastian Aho. In Game 5, Vincent Trocheck started the party with a shorthanded goal to give Carolina an early lead.
However, the Rangers’ power play became a problem. The best penalty kill in the postseason had no answers for the Rangers’ powerplay.
Throughout the series, the Rangers went 7/21 with the man advantage. The kill shots came in Game 7. The game’s first two goals came from the man advantage, and the Rangers never looked back. One of the best power-play units all season long showed why it was one of the best and was a significant reason they won the series.
Igor Shesterkin
The Prince is the heir to the king. The Rangers went from Henrik Lundqvist to Igor Shesterkin. The Vezina Trophy nominee that has been the backbone of the Rangers all season long came up large in this series. In this series, Shesterkin finished the series with a 1.72 goals against average and a .953 save percentage throughout the entire series. Shesterkin was huge, and his numbers reflect that.
The goaltending in this series for Carolina was good as well. Prior to sustaining a lower-body injury in Game 7, Raanta posted good numbers in the crease. Raanta would finish the series with a 2.17 goals against average and a .917 save percentage.
What Went Wrong In Carolina
Carolina was a dominant team on home ice. The “loudest building” in hockey provides the necessary motivation and boost in playoff hockey. Coming into Game 7, the Hurricanes were 7-0 on home ice and had a goal differential of +16. Coach Rod Brind’Amour used his matchups to his advantage and it paid off. They would uncharacteristically lose Game 7 6-2 and would finish with a 7-1 record on home ice.
Unfortunately, the downfall was Carolina could not win a game away from home. This series was scripted the same way for the Hurricanes as in the First Round. After winning the first two games on home ice, they failed to go on the road and take control. Instead of taking a commanding lead in the series, the Hurricanes found themselves heading home for a pivotal Game 5 evened up. They would drop Game 6 on the road as well. Carolina would finish the postseason 0-6 on the road with a -16 goal differential.
In addition, their powerplay was not very good. The Rangers adapted to their opponent and played strong defensively. The Hurricanes throughout the series went 2/16 with the man advantage. Even when Carolina scored, they couldn’t increase their advantage. The special teams’ battle was lost.
The Star Players
The players that played a factor in the First Round against the Boston Bruins were nowhere to be found in this series. Tony DeAngelo, who led the Hurricanes with eight points after the First Round only had two points. Vincent Trocheck registered one point in the series. Andrei Svechnikov scored one goal in the entire series. Star center Sebastian Aho had three points all series and all on home ice. Young gun Martin Necas had a three-point series but never found the back of the net. The Hurricanes needed more from their big guns, but they were held in check for the majority of the series.
What Went Right For The Rangers
Early on in the series, Carolina had shut down the Rangers’ entire top six. Coming into Game 7, Chris Kreider had 0 points and one shot on goal. Andrew Copp was pointless as well as Artemi Panarin. Mika Zibanejad had one goal.
However, Chris Kreider had a two-goal Game 7, and Andrew Copp had a multipoint game in Game 7. After being shut down the first two games, Mika Zibanejad caught fire and never looked back, finishing the series with eight points.
It proved to be the difference in a decisive Game 7.
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