Hurricanes’ improbable comeback nets a point against Winnipeg Jets despite OT loss
If you missed the Carolina Hurricanes’ game Monday at Winnipeg, or turned if off in the third period with the Jets leading, here’s what you missed:
The Canes pulled goalie Pyotr Kochetkov for a sixth attacker and Jaccob Slavin scored.
The Canes pulled Kochetkov again and Andrei Svechnikov scored.
The Canes pulled Kotchetkov again and Martin Necas scored.
Just like that a seemingly safe 3-0 lead for the Jets disappeared in the final five minutes of regulation. It was 3-3 and the game soon in overtime at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg.
The Canes did not complete the comeback by stealing away with both points, losing 4-3. Josh Morrissey scored on a breakaway at 2:10 of the overtime – Morrissey’s second goal of the game – as the Jets caught Carolina changing when Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis headed to the bench.
But if a 2-1 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild left the Canes frustrated on Saturday, and it did, the last-gasp rally Monday secured a well-appreciated point.
After watching the Canes lose a lead late in regulation against the Wild, coach Rod Brind’Amour used the word “crap” is describing their play. He walked back that comment Monday, saying he was a bit too emotional after the loss, and praised his guys for their fight.
“You never know,” Brind’Amour said. “I just love how we were out of that game in the third and then kind of just dug in and said, ‘Let’s go.’
“Give the guys credit for not giving up. We lost the specialty point at the end but the fact we were able to come back says a lot about our group and I’m proud of that. You don’t want to get down three (goals) but it was good that we didn’t give up.”
Brind’Amour isn’t a coach who overly relies on analytics but he did pull Kochetkov for a sixth attacker with 5:56 to play before a faceoff in the Winnipeg zone.
“You’ve got nothing to lose at that point,” Brind’Amour said. “When you’re not generating any offense in the third you’ve got nothing to lose.”
Slavin’s first goal of the season, from the left point, came with 4:48 left in regulation.
“We got that one and it gave us a little life,” Brind’Amour said.
Svechnikov, positioned in front of the net, then deflected a Brent Burns shot past goalie David Rittich with 3:08 left, his 13th goal of the season. It was 3-2.
Necas unloaded from near the blue line, scoring with 38.8 seconds left in the third and quickly being swarmed by his teammates on the ice.
It might have been the earliest Brind’Amour has pulled a goalie in a game, and it could have been even earlier, he said.
“We talked about it at the eight-minute timeout, about ‘Why don’t we just try something crazy?’” he said.
There were parts of the game Brind’Amour did not like. The Jets scored the three goals in regulation on breakaways and rushes up the ice, then in the OT. The Canes again misfired on the power play, going 0-2.
But the Canes killed off a 5-on-3 Winnipeg power play. And with Kochetkov pulled at the end and the Canes net empty, Slavin made a critical block on a shot by Kyle Connor with about a minute left in regulation.
The Canes (10-5-4) still have some work to do on their overtime execution. It was their third consecutive OT loss.
“We always fight to the last second and it was great how we stayed with it, and we had the momentum,” Necas said. “We’ve got to figure out a way to win in overtime. We’ve lost four or five times, which is kind of crazy with the skill we have.”
The Canes, who have played 12 of their first 19 games on the road, returned to Raleigh for a game Wednesday against the Arizona Coyotes. They play at Boston the day after Thanksgiving, then are back home to face the Calgary Flames on Saturday.
This story was originally published November 22, 2022 at 9:36 AM with the headline "Hurricanes’ improbable comeback nets a point against Winnipeg Jets despite OT loss."
