Hurricanes 'are right there' heading into Game 2 of Eastern 2nd Round | NHL.com

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By Shawn P. Roarke

@sroarke_nhl NHL.com Senior Director of Editorial

May 06, 2024

NEWARK, N.J. -- Learning to lose is a huge part of winning.

"Well, that's what you say when you lose," Carolina Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said, chuckling.

The Hurricanes trail in the Eastern Conference Second Round following a 4-3 loss to the New York Rangers in Game 1 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. Game 2 of the best-of-7 series is in New York on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS, CBC).

"It's part of the experience, so maybe that's the better [explanation]," Brind'Amour said Monday after Carolina skated at the New Jersey Devils' practice rink. "When you have been through it all, that certainly helps. You learn from everything."

Never is that more evident than in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, where the games usually come every second night and having a short memory is crucial when it comes to parking bad performances.

The Hurricanes weren't bad in Game 1, considering the Rangers were the best team in the League during the regular season and coming off a four-game sweep of the Washington Capitals in the first round.

But they know their special teams deserted them; they were on the penalty kill twice and they allowed a first-shift goal on each one. They had five power plays and did not score.

"Special teams; that's where the game was last night," Carolina defenseman Jaccob Slavin said. "We've got a really good penalty kill, but we didn't do it the right way last night. I mean, they've got a really good power play on the other side, too, so you have to respect that.

"At the same time, we have to do the job when we do take penalties, and we didn't do that job last night. That's the biggest difference in the game right there."

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Monday was spent working on those details, adjusting to the speed of New York's passing game on the power play. Each goal on the penalty kill was preceded by a series of crisp passes that blunted the Hurricanes' patented aggression.

The members of the power play, meanwhile, spent time talking about what they can do better with the man-advantage.

Carolina center Sebastian Aho said they need to be a bit quicker with the movement of the puck and do a better job of communicating.

That process, which started after the game Sunday, continued with a brisk 40-minute practice Monday and will carry over into meetings Tuesday morning.

It's not ignoring the struggle, but manufacturing positivity.

The Hurricanes know they have to win four of the next six games in this series and are aware teams that go up 1-0 when starting a best-of-7 series at home advance 75 percent of the time (361-120).

"It obviously stinks losing, you never want to lose a game," Carolina forward Stefan Noesen said. "The best part about it is it's a seven-game series and you have to win four."

The good teams never get too high after a win or loss in the postseason.

Fortunes change too fast.

In the first round, the Dallas Stars lost their first two games at home to the Vegas Golden Knights but won the series in seven games. The Boston Bruins took a 3-1 lead in their series against the Toronto Maple Leafs but needed overtime in Game 7 to advance.

The Hurricanes have played 69 playoff games since 2019, each under Brind'Amour. They have lost 33 of them, so they know what the deal is. They know how to process a loss.

"These guys have been building this playoff blueprint for years now," Noesen said. "If we play like we did last night, tighten a few things up, I like our chances."

Noesen has kicked around the NHL since making his debut with the Anaheim Ducks in 2015. Before joining the Hurricanes, he also played for the Devils, Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks and Toronto Maple Leafs.

He said he was struck almost immediately by the professional demeanor in Carolina's room.

"It's the efforts, the competing, doing the little things right," Noesen said. "It's sticking up for one another. All the little things add up at the end. As long as we are all on the same page and we take care of each other, usually good things happen."

That's what Brind'Amour expects Tuesday.

"It's one game," he said. "We know we are right there. We understand where we lost the game and we have to be better in some areas, but we did some really good things too that can't be overlooked.

"It's one game and we don't want it to bleed into two, so we have to be that much better tomorrow."