The Carolina Hurricanes are now on the verge of elimination, after a 6-4 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 4 of their second round series yesterday.
The Lightning got off to a strong start and after quite a few chances, Brayden Point opened the scoring off a pass from Ondrej Palat, when the Hurricanes couldn’t clear the puck out of the zone. It was the only goal of the period and Carolina should’ve been thankful for that, considering they were outchanced through much of the frame.
The game really picked up in the second period though, with the teams exchanging a ridiculous eight goals in the period. The Hurricanes would tie the game early in the second period off a goal from Teuvo Teravainen, then took the lead under a minute later, as Jesper Fast tapped in a loose puck in front. The Lightning would respond a few minutes later, however, as Petr Mrazek bobbled a shot and the rebound got back to Steven Stamkos, who scored to even the game at 2-2.
Things were just getting started though, as Dougie Hamilton would get the Hurricanes their lead back, scoring on a point shot through traffic. Then just two minutes later, Jaccob Slavin increased the lead, with a goal from a bad angle that somehow beat Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Once again though, things took a turn. First, Nikita Kucherov beat Mrazek with a great shot on a power play while Mrazek was deep in his net, before Tyler Johnson scored on a long-range wrist shot to tie the game. Then with just 23 seconds to go, the Lightning scored their third power play goal of the game, as Steven Stamkos would convert on a pass in front to give Tampa Bay the lead once again. It was a period of hockey unlike most and the eight goals came on just 21 shots total.
In the third period, Nikita Kucherov would extend Tampa Bay’s lead on a 2-on-1 chance, going five-hole on Mrazek. The Hurricanes tried to climb back in the third period and did get some great chances but ultimately came up short.
There were a few storylines here, with the main one being the wild second period. The Hurricanes did a good job creating their own chances for goals but threw it all away, getting into penalty trouble and allowing Tampa Bay back into the game.
Then there was Petr Mrazek. I didn’t feel great about the team starting Mrazek in Game 3, but he played well and there wasn’t much of a debate that he deserved to start Game 4. But to then see him come out and play the way he did – surrendering weak goals, whether it was shots from distance or rebounds he couldn’t hold onto – was frustrating. Goaltending was a major issue for the Hurricanes last year and to see Mrazek fail again when it matters while the team’s star rookie goaltender is on the bench doesn’t sit well with me, even if Mrazek warranted the start based on his Game 3 performance. I’d assume we see Nedeljkovic back in net for Game 5.
So now the Hurricanes are in a predicament. Carolina needs to win their next three games against the defending Stanley Cup champions, or their season is over.
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Should the Hurricanes go back to Alex Nedeljkovic for Game 5?
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