Martin Necas, refocused and refreshed, puts on a show in return to Hurricanes lineup
In the five games he missed since colliding with Dmitri Orlov in practice, Martin Necas had a chance to take a figurative deep breath. And a lot of actual deep breaths, for real, when assistant coach Jeff Daniels was skating him into the ice. His return, Necas said, was like starting the season anew.
With fresh legs and a refreshed attitude, Necas surged back into action for the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday, not a new player, just the same old one at his very best.
At one point, Necas was outshooting the Detroit Red Wings. He nearly outscored them. His rocket from the right circle went whizzing past Alex Lyon’s right ear on his fifth shot of the match, and he could have had a second if he hadn’t set up Sebastian Aho for the empty-net clincher instead. In his return to the ice, Necas was the best player on it in a 4-2 win, and by a wide margin.
“It feels like a new season,” Necas said. “So let’s make it a better one.”
It’s beyond obvious to say that this is what the Hurricanes need from Necas. He hadn’t scored since Dec. 15. His goal was only his 10th of the season. But this was Necas at his game-breaking best, carrying the puck, cutting to the middle, making plays, even backchecking? He zinged a shot at the empty-net off the crossbar … from inside his own blue line.
And even after it was settled, in the final minute, he made one of his trademark laps of the offensive zone, wheeling the puck around the perimeter of the Detroit defense, as if to show he could still do it.
The question, as always with Necas, is why he can’t play like this every night. But when he does, the Hurricanes are a different team. Just as they are when Sebastian Aho is carrying play. Just as they are when Andrei Svechnikov is healthy (and scoring, as he did Friday for the 10th time in 13 games since returning from an injury absence of his own.
For the Hurricanes to be successful, they have to play their game with intent — no breaks, no gaps — and count on their most skilled players to rise above the fray and finish the chances they create. Some nights, Necas gets tangled in that web, lost. Friday, he tore through it.
“That’ll do,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “You get a little rest, mentally and physically. This is a grind. He’d been off for a little while but he was a difference maker tonight. He was all over. I don’t know what else to tell you. That’s the play we need out of him. He hasn’t been playing poorly, I don’t think, at all. But what you saw tonight, that’s what he’s capable of doing. We’ve got to keep moving that forward.”
If that’s the formula for Necas, this was the formula for the Hurricanes as well. That’s as stifling a defensive game as the Hurricanes have played all season, limiting the Red Wings to 12 shots on goal and very little space. One goal went off Antti Raanta’s glove; the other was a power-play breakaway after an ill-advised short-handed attack fizzled.
Other than that, there wasn’t much as the Hurricanes won for the eighth time in 10 games. The Red Wings didn’t give up many great chances either, but the Hurricanes remained patient and waited for their individual skill to rise to the top. Necas did. The power play converted its only chance. That is the way.
“That’s right up there. I think it’s one of our better games,” Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal said. “We always focus on trying to give them nothing, that’s the biggest thing. Tonight was a huge game, especially in terms of not getting too squirrely either, staying with it, just focusing on that. Our power play ended up getting the extra juice for us and we get the points.
“I think that was the perfect scenario of how we want to play. Focus on giving them nothing, and eventually with the talent in the room we’re going to get chances to win games. It doesn’t work every night, but you’re going to give yourself the best chance.”
The Hurricanes gave the Red Wings almost nothing. Their talent eventually surfaced, Necas to the top, flying above everyone, hoping this new beginning is just the beginning.
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This story was originally published January 19, 2024 at 10:37 PM with the headline "Martin Necas, refocused and refreshed, puts on a show in return to Hurricanes lineup."
