The star of the game for the Hurricanes was goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic. Despite the final score, the Hurricanes got outplayed for a good portion of the first two periods. Nedeljkovic was forced to make two or three breakaway saves throughout the game and countless other chances where Detroit’s forwards were left alone in front. He stopped 33 of 35 shots in the win and now holds a .927 save percentage through seven games this season.
I’ve said it before but Carolina’s offense (and yesterday, goaltending) has been hiding some of the team's defensive issues. Half of the defense group has been poor in their own zone this year and there needs to be a solution at some point soon.
On the bright side, Carolina’s offense is still clicking. Andrei Svechnikov’s shot on Carolina’s first goal was just excellent and the team’s power play remains one of the league’s best. Martin Necas is also continuing to develop offensively and getting more and more comfortable firing the puck.
Looping back to goaltending to end off though, it’s really impressive what Nedeljkovic has been able to do so far. It’ll be interesting to see if he’s able to sustain this play because the way he’s performing, he could be the best solution to fix Carolina’s issues in net.
***NOTE: We've launched a HockeyBuzz Hurricanes Twitter account! For anyone interested, you can follow @HB_Canes for updates on articles, Hurricanes news, etc.***
Who has been Carolina's best forward so far this year?
Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»