Center Logan Stankoven netted the opener and extended his postseason goal streak to five games, becoming the youngest player in NHL history to reach that mark.
For the first time in the postseason, the Carolina Hurricanes (54-22-7) went head-to-head with the Philadelphia Flyers (43-28-12) and laid it on quickly. Scoring two early goals in the first, the Canes pushed the Flyers out of the competition, taking game 1, 3-0.
Only 91 seconds into the game, Carolina built momentum off the face-off and moved the puck around the zone. Winger Jackson Blake collected the puck and found defenseman Mike Reilly at the top of the zone. Looking for a lane, Reilly fired the puck toward the net, where Stankoven redirected it for a goal, taking the early lead.
Keeping that energy rolling throughout the entirety of the game, Stankoven tallied the third goal in the second period off an assist from center Seth Jarvis and winger Andrei Svechnikov.
“[Stankoven] has been unbelievable this postseason,” Blake said. “He’s been unbelievable all year, but especially this postseason. He’s probably been the hottest guy in hockey right now. [Hall] too, just making those little plays, they make it easier on me….they’re working so hard and being junk yard dogs out there.”
The physicality between the two teams highlighted a true playoff atmosphere. The third period alone featured 12 penalties and four ejections, including Blake and winger Taylor Hall. From the jump, there were scrums at nearly every stoppage of play, finishing the night with 18 total penalties.
Throughout the chaos, goaltender Frederik Andersen stood strong between the posts, coming up with 19 saves and securing his second shutout of the postseason. He continues to prove why he earned head coach Rod Brind’Amour’s trust at the start of the playoffs.
“Steady,” Brind’Amour said. “Not a lot of work there for the first half of the game, but then a couple big saves to start the third, especially at the end…He’s been solid. You can’t overstate that, that’s a big deal.”
Just a few minutes after the first goal from Stankoven, Blake had a beauty of his own. Receiving the puck in the neutral zone, he weaved through the defenders and got a backhand shot off past goaltender Dan Vladar to double the lead.
“I’ve got to give a lot of credit to [Hall],” Blake said. “He made an outstanding play on the boards there, that’s not easy to do. I just had a little speed, and I saw that the guy on my left was a forward, so I just tried to beat him. I got a pretty lucky bounce back to my backhand.”
Remaining at home for Game 2, the Hurricanes will face off against the Flyers on Monday with a 7 p.m. puck drop.
