3 Takeaways From Hurricanes 4-3 OT Win Over the Canucks

Fresh off of a victory in Seattle, the Carolina Hurricanes came into this game on a three-game winning streak on their Western road trip. They’ve shown to be a confident group getting contributions throughout their lineup, and were looking to end their road trip with a win.

They did just that — a 4-3 OT victory over the Vancouver Canucks. This was a game that the Hurricanes largely controlled, despite giving away a point in the third period. They played their signature swarming, relentless style, which overwhelmed a Canucks team that had won four straight games coming into the match. Of course, there are a few key things to talk about from the game, so let’s get right into it.

Martin Nečas’ Breakout Continues

Through eight games, Martin Nečas is already sitting at 11 points — four goals and seven assists. It’s no secret that his talent has always been there, the biggest hurdle for both he and the team has been unlocking it on a consistent basis. So far this season, he’s shown up in a big way in just about every game so far. And I know it’s early, it’s still only October — but he’s looking like he’s taken his game to another level. Just look at the goal he scored in the first period:

Stay hot, Marty Necas ???? pic.twitter.com/0d8z9TITJI

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) October 29, 2024

On that goal, he showed all of his elite traits — his blazing speed through the center of the ice, the ability to control the pass and use his edges to allow him to clear any type of interference from the defender, as well as his deceptively quick release. He’s showing the same level of confidence that made him so effective in the 2022-23 season, and he’s being rewarded for his committed play. He then set up the overtime winner, using his blazing speed to carry the puck into the zone and drew all three Canucks players toward him. He then laid off the puck for Gostisbehere, who found Aho sitting by himself in front of the net. Cheat code. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour has clearly decided to lean on Nečas more — he’s playing 18 minutes a night and has consistently been the driving force of his line. There’s a strong case to be made that he’s been the best forward on this team through the first eight games. Let’s hope it continues — we all know what he’s capable of.

Depth Pieces Continue to Contribute

It’s started to seem that on a nightly basis, the Hurricanes are getting positive offensive contributions from guys who aren’t necessarily relied on to provide it. On the road trip so far, they’ve gotten goals from Eric Robinson and Jack Drury, and last night Will Carrier scored his first goal for the club since signing a six-year deal through free agency in the summer. It’s great to see him finally get rewarded for his play — he’s brought an element of heaviness along the wall that the Hurricanes have lacked for a while, and has underrated speed and hockey sense. He honestly reminds me a bit of Nino Niederreiter, just with less offensive skill. But he’s a quality player.

Another big contributor has been Jack Roslovic, who was a bit of a divisive signing over the summer. It was easy to wonder how his playing style would fit in the Hurricanes’ defensive system, but so far it’s paid off for both him and the team. He’s shown over his career that he can be a solid secondary piece and play effective hockey kind of “third-wheeling” alongside two top guys, and he’s done a nice job riding shotgun on the top line with Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov. With a goal in the second period to give the group a two-goal lead, he’s up to four goals in his first eight games as a Hurricane.

Frederik Andersen Injury Looms Large

After sustaining an injury on Saturday night on the road in Seattle, Spencer Martin was recalled to be the Hurricanes’ backup goaltender momentarily while Freddie Andersen awaits diagnosis. Fortunately for the team, the injury doesn’t appear to be super serious and it was likely that Pyotr Kochetkov would have started this game anyway — which he did. The Andersen injury, though, for multiple reasons, is a bit concerning — especially considering his lengthy injury history.

In the Canucks game, Kochetkov’s performance was a bit of a mixed bag. He lost his feet on his first goal conceded after a wrap-around feed from J.T. Miller left him confused. He was also lost in his crease for another Canucks goal just minutes later, but an offside in the build-up saved him on that one. After the rough first period, he settled in super nicely in the second, making a couple of fantastic saves on Pius Suter — one being a bit of a double-save on a breakaway attempt. He then made a sprawling pad save on Jake DeBrusk late in the game to maintain the team’s 3-2 lead. Unfortunately, he followed that up with an extremely ill-advised diving poke check that he was not successful on, and it led to Suter tying the game with two minutes left. He just cannot be doing that at such a critical juncture of the game, especially when the team had a one-goal lead and were in control.

But that’s the name of Kochetkov’s game – it’s high-risk. You love it when it works, and you hate it when it doesn’t. He made a huge save just moments later on Miller to keep the game tied and force OT. On the night, he allowed three goals on 28 shots. He’s shown to be a great goaltender when he’s on his game, but he’s still searching for some real consistency at age 25.

Red-Hot Hurricanes Heading Home

Last night’s win wrapped up a six-game road trip for the team, and they managed to secure 10 of a possible 12 points on the 10-day excursion. Usually, the rule of thumb is to go .500 on these long away trips, so the Hurricanes deserve a lot of credit for their returns. They played some great hockey on the road and managed to find their A-game, so they head home with a ton of confidence and a 6-2-0 record through eight games to start the season. Next up for the team is a four-game homestand starting on Thursday night against the Boston Bruins, followed by divisional matchups with the Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins as we roll into November.