By AIDAN JENSEN
As strong as the Carolina Hurricanes have played at home in the Stanley Cup playoffs in recent years, they’ve struggled winning away from PNC Arena.
They conquered that demon on Sunday night, however, taking a 5-2 Game 4 from the New York Islanders and finding themselves one win away from the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
This win also broke an 8-game road-losing streak, dating back to June 3, 2021.
Why was Sunday’s game so different from the Canes’ (3-1) previous road postseason blunders?
The physicality was there.
For an area Carolina struggled in during the 5-1 Game 3 loss Friday night, those watching wouldn’t have been able to tell on Sunday. The Canes outhit the Islanders (1-3) 42-32, with Jesse Puljujarvi, Stefan Noesen, Jordan Martinook and AHL callup Mackenzie MacEachern tying for the team-lead with five hits apiece.
Multiple players stepped up, not just the stars.
Top-line winger Seth Jarvis scored two goals – a 5-on-3 powerplay goal to open the scoring just four minutes into the game, then another a minute into the third period that pushed Carolina’s lead to 4-0.
MacEachern, in his first NHL game, made it 5-1 Canes when he muscled a wrist shot from between the circles.
Martin Necas, who’s had his fair share of postseason struggles, took a pass across the goal crease and converted on the powerplay to make it 2-0 Carolina.
Sebastian Aho, who led the Canes with 36 regular-season goals, scored his second of the postseason and added two assists.
Antti Raanta proved to be Carolina’s top option in goal yet again, saving 27 of 29 shots faced.
With a 3-1 series lead, the Canes return home Tuesday night with a golden chance to advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
They are 17-3 in Raleigh during the Stanley Cup playoffs, dating back to the 2018-2019 season. Carolina won a couple of nail-biters at home already in this series – a 2-1 victory in Game 1, then a come-from-behind, 4-3 overtime thriller in Game 2.
While there’s no guarantee the Canes win Tuesday night, it presents them the best opportunity to advance.
What better place to do so than in front of the “Loudest House in the NHL?”
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