Carolina Hurricanes vs. Vegas Golden Knights: Lineups and Game Discussion

The Carolina Hurricanes (31-20-3, 65pts) are back at it tonight, playing their third of four-straight on the road.

After a disheartening loss to St. Louis and a bounce-back win over the Arizona Coyotes, the Canes are in Vegas tonight. The teams played each other a little over a week ago in Raleigh, where Vegas won 4-3 on a late goal.

Sebastian Aho (28, 29g) and Andrei Svechnikov (21, 22g) combined to score four goals in the win over the Coyotes. With Aho only one away from a thirty goal season, and the top line of Svech-Aho-Teuvo dialed in, the Canes could really use some balance from the rest of the lineup.

After Aho (49), Svechnikov (50), Teravainen (52), and the injured Dougie Hamilton (40), the Canes’ next highest point-getter is Ryan Dzingel with 29 on the year. Contributions from the 2nd and 3rd lines tonight will be necessary against a Vegas team that will have the last change.

In net, it’s time to face reality — James Reimer is having a better current run than Petr Mrazek. This means Reimer (13-6-1, .920 SV%, 2.51 GAA), not Mrazek, should be the first choice. Reimer has won five out of his last six starts, with the only loss coming in overtime to the Ducks. Meanwhile, Mrazek has lost six out of eight since the calendar switched to 2020.

The Canes’ expected lines:

Andrei Svechnikov - Sebastian Aho - Teuvo Teravainen
Nino Niederreiter - Jordan Staal - Warren Foegele
Brock McGinn - Erik Haula - Justin Williams
Jordan Martinook - Lucas Wallmark - Martin Necas

Jaccob Slavin - Trevor van Riemsdyk
Jake Gardiner - Brett Pesce
Haydn Fleury - Joel Edmundson

James Reimer
Petr Mrazek

Injuries and Scratches: Dougie Hamilton (IR leg), Ryan Dzingel (healthy)

The Vegas Golden Knights (28-21-7, 63pts) have found their stride. After losing six out of seven going into the All-Star break, they’ve won three out of four coming out of it.

Expect a physical game from the Golden Knights — similar to the recent matchup a little over a week ago. Forwards such as Stone, Pacioretty, and Reaves are big, athletic, and they enjoy playing a grinding game.

Marc-Andre Fleury (21-13-4, .907 SV%, 2.77 GAA) was unavailable for the January 31st matchup in Raleigh. He’s now back in action and should start tonight.

The Golden Knights’ expected lines:

Max Pacioretty - Chandler Stephenson - Mark Stone
Jonathan Marchessault - Paul Stastny - Reilly Smith
Will Carrier - Cody Eakin - Alex Tuch
Tomas Nosek - Nicolas Roy - Ryan Reaves

Brayden McNabb - Nate Schmidt
Nick Holden - Shea Theodore
Jon Merrill - Zach Whitecloud

Marc-Andre Fleury
Malcolm Subban

Injuries and Scratches: Cody Glass (lower-body), William Karlsson (upper-body)