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The Carolina Hurricanes failed to register a point Thursday after a five-game point streak. The ‘Canes desperately need a win to avoid falling behind in the wild card standings as a playoff spot within the division starts to slip early in the season.
Historically, teams in a playoff spot by American Thanksgiving have made the postseason more often than not, which makes this game big for both teams, who currently occupy the basement in their respective divisions. The Buffalo Sabres are coming off a 3-1 loss against Detroit on Friday evening. Buffalo is 3-5-2 in their last 10 games.
Vital Statistics
| Category | Hurricanes | Bruins |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Hurricanes | Bruins |
| Record | 8-6 | 11-5 |
| Goals/Game | 2.79 | 3.31 |
| Goals Against/Game | 2.71 | 2.06 |
| Shots/Game | 30.9 | 34.3 |
| Faceoff % | 49.1% | 53.3% |
| Power Play % (Rank) | 10.0% (14) | 31.9% (1) |
| Penalty Kill % (Rank) | 70.8% (14) | 85.7% (4) |
| ES Corsi For % | 55.61% | 51.66% |
| ES PDO | 101.2% | 101.0 |
| PIM/Game | 8:38 | 6:30 |
Goaltender #1
| Category | Petr Mrazek | Tuukka Rask |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Petr Mrazek | Tuukka Rask |
| Record | 5-5 | 11-5 |
| Save % | .894 | .939 |
| GAA | 2.73 | 1.96 |
Goaltender #2
| Category | Curtis McElhinney | Jaroslav Halak |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Curtis McElhinney | Jaroslav Halak |
| Record | 3-1 | 0-0 |
| Save % | .943 | N/A |
| GAA | 1.70 | N/A |
Game Notes
- The ‘Canes won the last match-up between the two teams in Buffalo: a 5-2 win on January 14th.
- The Sabres are 1-3-1 against Metropolitan Division opponents this season.
- Thursday night’s game against the Islanders was the ‘Canes first regulation loss of the season when leading after two periods.
- This is the first match-up of the season between the two teams. They will face off again in Buffalo on December 15th.
- Evander Kane is leading the way for the Sabres with 18 points. Kane saw his point streak snapped against Detroit. He had three goals and two assists combined in the previous four games.
Reading Assignments
- Our friends over at Raw Charge are doing a pre-Steve Yzerman draft pick generator and stumbled across an old friend of the ‘Canes: Shane Willis. [Raw Charge]
- The heroes and zeroes of overtime hockey featuring a certain under-performing ‘Canes center. [ESPN]
- Columbus Blue Jackets forward Cam Atkinson has re-signed in Ohio for the next seven years. [Washington Post]
- John Shannon discusses how Houston’s possible NHL bid shapes the future of relocation and expansion for the league. Of course the Hurricanes are mentioned. Did you expect anything less? [Sportsnet]