Close but no Cigar: Devils 4, Hurricanes 2
by Bob Wage on Dec 10, 2009 12:06 AM EST
51 comments
The Carolina Hurricanes fell behind 3-0, made a game of it at 3-2, but could not get over the hump as they lost to the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night, 4-2. The team looked very good at times and held control of the puck nearly the entire first part of the third period as they tried desperately to tie the score, but the effort was not good enough.
The Devils out-shot the visitors in the game 30-23 and took control at the end of the contest after Aaron Ward was called for a key penalty with about five minutes left. Defenseman Andy Greene scored twice and Zach Parise had two assists to lead the home team to victory.
The Hurricanes had a bit of a slow start and were out-shot in the opening period 10-7 as the Devils took a 2-0 lead. Patrik Elias picked up the game's first tally when he shoveled a puck toward the net and it went in off of Aaron Ward's skate.
A few minutes later, Andy Greene took advantage of a screen and fired one in from the outside which Cam Ward did not see and made it 2-0 before the first intermission.
The Devils out-shot the Canes again in the second, 13-9. Andy Greene scored his second goal of the game after he recovered from an Andrew Alberts check. Alberts knocked the blueliner down, but Greene got right back up and beat Alberts and the rest of the defense to the net.
The Canes came alive when Brandon Sutter scored a bouncing goal which hit a Jersey defenseman and found it's way past Martin Brodeur. Less then two minutes later, Tuomo Ruutu would score another one for the visitors as he took a pass from Jussi Jokinen and blistered a shot in the top corner of the net. Joni Pitkanen led Jokinen with the initial pass, setting up the play.
Ruutu's goal was a powerplay tally, giving the team three powerplay goals in the last three games.
The Hurricanes would dominate play at times in the game, but could not solve Brodeur the rest of the way. While they played well, they were unable to get more than nine shots on goal in any period. The Devils would add an empty-netter to complete the scoring with just one click left on the clock.
The last place team simply can not fall behind 3-0 and expect to beat a division leading New Jersey team which has been playing very well of late, but it was a hard fought game and much better than many others the team played earlier in the year.
Next up will be a game against the Eastern Conference leading Washington Capitals at the Verizon Center on Friday night.
Game Notes:
- The Canes were only credited with one hit for the entire game. It was not the hardest hitting game of the year, but the official scorer must have been napping.
- The most agonizing "non shot" of the game was when Erik Cole had a rolling puck on the side of an open net very late in the game and waited instead shooting. Eventually, he tried passing to the front of the net but the team lost control and a golden opportunity was lost.
- Eric Staal led the team with four shots on goal and came close to denting the scoresheet but had a frustrating night on defense and finished with a (-2).
- Tuomo Ruutu looked like he had more zip tonight than at any point this year. Could he finally be approaching 100%?
- Joni Pitkanen had two assists but also finished with a (-2).
- Chad LaRose made a nice play as he knocked a puck from the front of the net when it was tipped in the air and Cam Ward lost track of it.
- Cam Ward understandably started out a little shaky, but made some solid saves down the stretch to keep his team in it. None of his goals allowed could be considered "soft" but he had a gaping "5-hole" on the Aaron Ward deflection.
- Speaking of Aaron Ward, his plus/minus (-15) is not far away from Brind'Amour's (-19) and that penalty he took late in the game was brutal. If they can healthy scratch the captain...?
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ONE hit?! REALLY? nooooo way.
Wards penalty could have cost the Canes the game… or at least overtime.
Ruutu was great.
Sutter played well, but had a few mistakes.
Cole should have shot.
Cam was chasing the puck and letting some wild rebounds go… but he played respectable considering the injury and time off. Once he gets more comfortable he will be fine.
by packpigskinfan25 on Dec 10, 2009 12:29 AM EST reply actions
Wards goal (in the wrong net) did cost the ’Canes the game…..
by Mateos_Canes_Lamp on Dec 10, 2009 10:08 AM EST up reply actions
very true...
but that is a bad break. Not the best positioning, but not horrible either. If his skate was a couple of degrees off either way it would not have been a goal.
I reread my comment, and want to kind of clear something up- I dont think Cam was bad at all. He played great. He was rusty which is completely expected.
by packpigskinfan25 on Dec 10, 2009 4:11 PM EST up reply actions
Impressions of the night
Started slowly and awkwardly, skated for a while and had ’em pinned down for significant amounts of time while doing so, stood around for a while, hit three posts, took way too many penalties at all the wrong times, watched Jersey ride three goals all the way to the end.
Cam looked great and the first two goals were not on him (redirected & screened). World of difference with him in goal.
Painfully obvious just how shallow and undermanned our defense is at the moment. We need major reinforcement there with the freed up dollars from the veteran exodus.
Forwards were a mixed bunch. Ruutu and Cole are a force when both are rolling. Cullens line is fabulous. Couple of players were damn near invisible.
Sutter made me proud that I have his jersey in Santa’s bag. Not tonight, Marty. We’re not the answer to your trivia question.
The Finn-to-Finn-to-Finn goal was worth the price of admission. It was an entertaining game, and that’s what counts.
On to Washington.
Samsonov was out with an injury – leg I believe. Odd it isn’t a “lower body concern”.
by FuquayCaniac on Dec 10, 2009 5:54 AM EST up reply actions
Brind'Amour = $3,000,000 for 8 minutes of invisibility
Brind’Amour = $3,000,000 for 8 minutes of invisibility. After being healthy scratched and being the subject of national press attention for his pathetic performances last year and this year, one would think there would be a Brind’Amour hitting the ice on fire — angry, energetic, and motivated. All I saw was 8 minutes of invisible nondescript play. There are probably fifty AHL forwards who would vastly exceed the performance I saw. For $3,000,000.00 of salary and $3,600,000 of cap hit. he is by far the most overpaid and underproducing NHL player I know.
To Brindy’s credit I actually heard his name being called while he was out on the ice this time, and not in a negative way. He wasn’t completely invisible. It wasn’t a great game and it didn’t make me think that all of the sudden he can be the pre-acl Brindy, but it wasn’t the worst game I’ve seen from him by a long shot this season.
5 seconds left.
Do you believe in miracles?
YES!!
time to sit him again. Brindy in line-up= loss. sad, sad truth
by 3yrsnoplayoffs? on Dec 10, 2009 7:36 AM EST up reply actions
Aaron Ward = Fail
So he f***ed up on the first goal of the game, that flukey one where he tried to break up a pass and it ended up going into the net, then he took that late penalty. THE GUY SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!! BRINDAMOUR SUCKS!!!!!! This organization HAS GOT TO GET SERIOUS and get rid of both! Otherwise it sends a message that no matter how bad you stink it up on the ice you’re safe.
Aaron Ward and Brind-Amour deserve to be healthy scratches
I agree with the concise explanation by Capt. Stinky. Aaron Ward and Brind-Amour deserve to be healthy scratches. They represent $6,100,000.00 of cap hit and $5,5000.00 of salary. On the ice, Aaron Ward finds more ways to give up goals than any other player on the ice. Brind’Amour, too, has shown so little this year that I think any forward on the Albany Rats would be an improvement.
This season is now a full-fledge failure in terms of reaching the playoffs. At minimum, the fans deserve to have the excitement of watching young players like Carson, Rodney, Harrison, Boychuk, Tlusty, Bowman, McBain, and Samson come up for some games in rotation and show their abilities. Similarly, A. Ward and Brind’Amour need to watch from the press box for the rest of the year. They have retired mentally. Let them retire physically as well. It’s perfect for A. Ward because he wants to be a hockey commentator. Sitting in the press box will help him with his future career.
There’s not a lot the team can do. No one will take Ward even though he is on a one year deal, and no one will take Brindy and his contract. I like your idea of getting the young guys in the line up, but I don’t want them up at the expense of ruining, or even slowing, their development.
You said it yourself, this season is over. There’s nothing left to focus on now but the future, so we better not ruin that too.
5 seconds left.
Do you believe in miracles?
YES!!
Bringing Up the Albany Rats
I completely agree that the point of bringing up the Albany Rats is to assist rather than detract from their development as NHL players. I would bring up a couple of Albany Rats at at time and give them a chance to develop some chemistry with their teammates for next year. Sutter has proven he deserves to be with the Hurricanes. I think given the opportunity Boychuk and Tlusty will show they should stick this season as well.
Defensively, Carson and Harrison have been quite solid. I see nothing to be gained this year by continuing to play Brind’Amour. It isn’t helping next year’s team and isn’t helping this year’s team - other than assisting in the drive for Taylor Hall. Similarly, to the extent the Hurricanes can afford to sit Aaron Ward and Wallin, they should. I can’t envision either Wallin or Aaron Ward being re-signed for next year; and therefore, they aren’t working toward the goal of developing next year’s team. I’d bring up Rodney and see how the defensive pairing fared with Carson, Harrison, and Rodney in the lineup.
15 seconds left in the game, a must need face off win, If Brindy is good at anything anymore it’s the faceoffs, why did he not take that? Surely if you are gonna play him, even if its low TOI, you utilize him when most needed….also A. Ward he does stink, but the penalty unfortunately was taken because of exhaustion, it was all he could do to remain on his feet , IMHO…..
Brindy didn’t take it because 17 seconds isn’t long enough for him to win the draw and get off the ice.
5 seconds left.
Do you believe in miracles?
YES!!
No Playoffs
It is good to see the team at least competing. We need to have a relative amount of success to keep our vets with value at the trade deadline. I am focused on seeing guys like Sutter and Carson doing well along with the core: Cam, Staal, Ruutu, Pitk. I am hoping that guys like Bowman, Boychuk, and Samson get call ups and experience. I look forward to the possibilty of landing Taylor Hall in the draft. This team can still be fun to watch. I am just tempering expectations and frankly think that ending up 9th or 10th in the East would be tragic and ill advised.
I agree completely. This season needs to be the quest for Taylor Hall and the excitement of watching Sutter and the young kids from Albany. It is also a chance for the core players such as Staal, Ruutu, Jokinen, Pitkanen, Gleason, Sutter, Cam Ward, etc. to get a chance to play with the new players during NHL games.
A 30th finish for the season and the Taylor Hall prize is the best result for this year.
And for my holiday request list, I have healthy scratching A.Ward and Brind’Amour for the rest of the season.
Someone needs to pull a Nancy Kerigan on A. Ward
Just kidding, but I am continually frustrated by his play. This prolly compounded by the fact that I thought he would be a good addition this year. As for Brindy…again I was wrong in thinking that he would be able to contribute positively this year.
If players are going to make mistakes they may as well be young players that will learn from and grow out of these mistakes.
"He has all the virtues I dislike, and none of the vices I admire." -Sir Winston Churchill
I think Sutter’s first goal woke up Brodeur from his winter nap and woke the team up too. At least the devils didn’t shut us out.
yeah, we don’t need to be noted too helping him acheive one of his outstanding records!
by 3yrsnoplayoffs? on Dec 10, 2009 7:38 AM EST up reply actions
I disagree on the Cole shot. He was trying to settle it down, and by the time he did, Brodeur had the ice surface covered. In that close, there was no way he gets the puck up over Marty’s pads, either. I think we all forget how the angles and the looks are all very different at ice level.
Yeah
I was screaming at him through the TV at first too, but on the replay, you could see that the puck was bouncing around really awkwardly.
Still wish he woulda tried wacking at it anyways just in case he got a lucky bounce, but it’s not as awful as it looked the first time around.
by Raccoon Fink on Dec 10, 2009 8:25 AM EST up reply actions
Cole wanted to pass to the front of the net. Nobody was there ! Pulled the goalie, seconds to go, puck down low, and nobody crashed the net .
by drifterscape on Dec 10, 2009 10:13 AM EST up reply actions
Time to be Patient….
We have entered a rebuilding period, one year earlier than originally planned. And that isn’t necessarily bad. Unfortunately, the Hurricanes currently have their hands tied for various reasons including the salary cap and contract clauses, so the transisition can’t happen overnight.
On defense, A.Ward, Wallin and Corvo can all be UFAs at the end of the year.
Last night, out of that group, only A.Ward was on the ice.
Looking at the forwards… Whitney, Cullen and Walker can all be UFAs. Leighton will also become an UFA.
I have to laugh when I read how fans insist that we trade "our overpriced, underperforming" veterans. Does anyone actually believe that another club would be interested in trading for Brind’Amour at $3million for the next two years?
I’m anticipating Cullen and Whitney being traded by the deadline to a playoff team looking to make a run and we call up a couple of River Rats at that time to play out the season. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see LaRose traded.
That should set us up pretty good for next year…
Agreed Cullen and Whitney are out best tradable assets.
Plus, both these players could re-sign with us in the summer. Then again, I wouldn’t be surprised if neither was traded. JR will not “jump” at the chance to trade these two players, he will need a sweet deal to make a trade. I would demand that Brindy be included in any trade, that would effectively kill any trade.
"He has all the virtues I dislike, and none of the vices I admire." -Sir Winston Churchill
I just remembered I had a dream last night that Whitney was re-signed to a new contract. In the dream I remember thinking “huh, he was rumored to be trade-bait, but now they’ve locked him down for awhile again. Cool.” Strange.
They better keep Ray!
Ray Whitney by far is one of the best players on the team right now and probably will be for at least a few more years. Unlike Brind’amour, I think Ray would retire when he knew it was time. I’d rather see us keep Ray than anybody else on the team at this point.
Rod’s contract is over after next season. So really just 1 1/2 seasons left.
A TRUE CANIAC......YES I AM........
by canescup on Dec 10, 2009 1:15 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Teams making playoff runs typically just want a veteran “gun for hire”. Whitney and Cullen are perfect because it’s only temporary contract until the end of the season. Again…no team wants Brind’Amour at $3mil on the salary cap for the next two years.
With that said, I have a lot of respect for Brind’Amour as does his teamates and the Hurricanes orgainzation. How do you eliminate the salary from the payroll next year? He will never be traded!
Buying out Brind'Amour
I think the least draconian impact of Brind’Amour’s salary is to buy him out next year. I may be wrong, but I think the Hurricanes pay 2/3rds of his salary ($3,000,000 salary = $2,000,000 buy out) over a two year period or $1,000,000.00 a year. I think if they buy Brind’Amour out, his $3,600,000 cap hit is taken off the books even though he is over 35; but again I could be mistaken about that.
Buying out Brind'Amour
I went to www.nhlnumbers.com. It indicates that buyouts are counted against the cap, if I am reading the chart correctly:
http://www.nhlnumbers.com/overview.php?team=CAR&season=0910
I can’t get the chart to copy; but it shows the buyouts of Kaberle and Hamilton as part of the cap hit.
Ward
Im happy to see Ward back in the net. I think he played an overall solid game. One that could be asked of a guy coming back off of an injury and not playing in over a month. No question he can be a difference maker going forward. I would say that none of the goals were his fault which is a good sign of things to come!
That goal that Andy Greene scored...
…you know, the one where he got up after being leveled by Alberts & drove to the net?
THAT is what the ’Canes need.
For the sake of our fragile sanity, please get rid of Aaron Ward!! I have never seen such a horrible performance by one single person that literally costs us games. It blows my mind that he still gets to set a foot on the ice. I’d rather play with 4 Ds than have him out there. Seriously, SERIOUSLY, why is he not being scratched???
I love playing the Devils
If for nothing more that to hear Oduya’s name all game.
“Johnny Oduya!!” Yes I does.
Go Canes!
We’ve always referred to Jay Pandolfo as “The Great Pandolfo” because doesn’t that just sound like a magician’s name?
by Iggy Reilly on Dec 10, 2009 10:41 AM EST up reply actions
amazed that aaron ward gets so much playing time
he is always almost in the ENTIRE game. i mean i think he tries but he makes so many mistakes. yet he is never benched. guess our D is THAT bad? so we should have tried to resign seidelman (name?) that went to florida. wasn’t he rather good on D? jesus. our game i thought looked rather decent last night. that last goal was a freaking joke and didn’t have to happen and the first one was a fluke so to me it was a tied game. i know. i’m trying to justify the score. but we didn’t get our asses beat by any means.
Dennis Seidenberg?
Yes he is a much better D-man in my book also.
by camwardsaysno on Dec 10, 2009 2:58 PM EST up reply actions
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