The Carolina Hurricanes took the second point from the Colorado Avalanche, coming out on top 5-4 in its first shootout of the season.
The Canes (6-1-0) and the Avalanche (5-0-3) went head-to-head in their respective retro jerseys for the first time in NHL history, with Carolina sporting Hartford Whalers jerseys, while Colorado rocked the Quebec Nordiques threads.
The Canes got ahead early, but couldn’t hold back the advances of the Avalanche. Colorado came back after being down three with a trifecta of unanswered goals in the final two regulation periods. Goaltender Frederik Andersen made an impressive 44 saves, the most he has made in a Canes uniform, saving the game for Carolina. Even after blowing the lead, the Canes hung on until the end.
Center Seth Jarvis was selected to be the first skater in the shootout, and he lived up to the expectations. He used the same move from earlier in the game and pulled goaltender Trent Miner off his line, and slipped it past him to score the game-winning goal — the only goal of the shootout.
Half an hour prior, tying the game and taking it into overtime, winger Valeri Nichushkin scored his second goal of the night and only goal on the power play. He positioned himself perfectly in front of the net, where he was able to get his stick on a deflected puck, bouncing it past Andersen.
Center Martin Necas, a recognizable name for Caniacs, scored his first goal against his former team of eight years. After Colorado fought for the puck and gained possession near the goal, the puck found its way onto the stick of Necas. Even with a defender on his back, he fired it into the back of the net from a sharp angle near the red line.
Later on, in the shootout, Necas got another chance to score on his former teammate. This time, Andersen read him well enough to get his glove out in time to catch the puck, robbing him of another point.
Both top teams in the league with winning records weren’t willing to step down to the other. Putting everything on the line and drawing out 17 total penalties, both wingers, William Carrier and Eric Robinson, were caught in the fire and left the game early due to injuries. With defenseman Jaccob Slavin already out, this left three rookies to fill big shoes.
Before leaving the game early, Robinson scored just over four minutes after the first whistle blew. Center Jesperi Kotkaniemi threaded a precise pass along the boards, giving Robinson a boost into the offensive zone, where he buried a shot from out wide to give his team the early lead.
Nine Canes players recorded at least one point in the first period, including goals from centers Sebastian Aho and Logan Stankoven. After a tremendous first period, the Canes offense went dormant — but it woke up in time to secure the win and gathered another victory on the long road trip.
The Carolina Hurricanes will travel to Dallas and take on the Stars on Saturday, the 25th, with an 8 p.m. puck drop.
