Hurricanes 6, Leafs 5 (SO)
Goals by Tuomo Ruutu and Jussi Jokinen lifted the Canes to a 6-5 victory in a shootout — the Canes' third consecutive game decided in a shootout.
Erik Cole scored with 2.9 seconds left in the third period to tie the score 5-5 after the Canes pulled goalie Manny Legace for a sixth attacker.
Tim Gleason scored twice in the third — the defenseman's first two-goal game of his career -- as the Canes tied the score 4-4. Ian White's goal with 29.9 seconds left in the htthird pushed the Leafs ahead 5-4, but Cole scored on a rebound to tie it.
The Canes, trailing 3-0 after the first period, fought their way back into the game with second-period goals from Stephane Yelle and Matt Cullen to trail 3-2 after two.
Yelle picked up his first goal of the season with 3:13 left in the second, diving to knock a loose puck past goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. Cullen nearly scored with 2:37 left, the puck eluding Gustavsson but not crossing the goal line. But the Canes kept the puck deep in the zone and Cullen scored with 2:30 remaining off a Tuomo Ruutu centering pass.
Goals by Matt Stajan, Lee Stempniak and Mikhail Grabovski have given the Leafs a 3-0 lead after the first period.
The Leafs, who have lost their last four, needed just 61 seconds to grab a 1-0 lead. Stajan scored on a top-shelf shot past Manny Legace after Alexei Ponikarovsky knocked the puck away from Joe Corvo in front of the Canes goal.
The Leafs had given up the first goal in 17 of 19 games. Now it's 17 of 20.
Stempniak made it 2-0 at 14:21 on Stempniak's blistering shot from the circle.
The Canes' Andrew Alberts hit the post with the Leafs leading 1-0. Leafs goaltender Jonas Gustavsson took care of the rest.
About the blogger
A Raleigh native, Chip has worked at the N&O since 1979 and is in his second season as the Canes beat writer. He can be reached at chip.alexander@newsobserver.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @ice_chip.
Comments
Good game
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 10:45 — HockeydogAgree with most posts here, fun game to watch and the crowd was really supportive.
Corvo played hard to make up for his giveaway in the first period and the players on this team who have been the most effective once again rose up and got the team thru this one. But still I have to say:
October 9, 2009 was the last and only regulation win for this team so far this year.
If the Canes have to go to a shootout against the "other" worst team in the NHL to get 2 points, then how are they to beat a team that is even moderately higher in the standings? I recognize that these are baby steps to getting out of this horrible funk, but at the same time last nights performance hasn't made everything better. Rutherford has just as much work to do today as he did last night. Let's get one in regulation and start building on that.
Slow start
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 07:38 — esteban1949i would agree...but the end is all that maters huh ? and i would like to think or hope that as the rst of this season goes on that players like LaRose and Samsonov will get hotter and start putting the puck in the back of the net...and while i think of it...manny did a fair job but what got my tighty whities in a bunch was whewn manny was way way out of goal trying to take the angle away...the odds & % are never in the goalies favor...and yes...he was fantastic during the shoot out, yet the D squads let manny down as 2 other of the 5 goals the leafs got were from the pea poor play of the Defence ...And i am glad i wasn't in Corvo's head after the had the puck snatched from him for the leaf's first goal...hell i would have cried...that was a slick move the Juice put on the leaf's goalie...all but stopped and picke his own spot!! But Ruutu clearly beat him...Now that the leaf's are gone ( except in my yard still) it's time to look towards the Rats for tonite and the Bolts tomorrow..Now if we can get everybody health and back...might help a bit too...
have a good day eveyone...
Go Canes !!
OK Folks...
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 23:57 — gf101112Remember this... It was a great WIN!!! Our men need the positive little steps they can take into the next game to keep competing night in and night out! It's a long season!!! We'll be back in this in no time!!! The bounces are starting to come around!!! We're on a roll !!! Come on men. Strap it up!!! The worst times are over!!! We're on a roll!!! See you in Anaheim!!! Go Caniacs!!! Go TEAM!!! Great job Paul! So. Cal. Caniac.
Could Yogi be Right?
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 07:39 — SkylinerWell, it is a bit soon to say "hey folks, it ain't over till it's over" but we are on a "one game winning streak" and that's a darn site better than the other end of winning. And we'll all take a win any way we can get it, a skilled or ugly win carries equal value in the W-L column so let's trust this is the beginning of something good.
Wasn't it great to finally see some energy from the team, a flurry of activity and productive movement, instead of meaningless circling around just flipping the puck to no particular destination or person? I saw some determinde men on the ice last night. That told me the team can play when it wants to and has more in its tank than it has been giving.
Ruutu, Jokinen and Cullen looked like they were on a mission and determined to succeed. But then the Ws were same old, same old....Wallin, Ward...you know...and the coaches were right to sit Brind'Amour down. At age 39 he is an old 39, while Whitney is coming up on 38 and his skill remain intact....said with due respect to Rod, of course.
But I do like your enthusiasm gf101112 and will try to be more positive during games. But I'm afraid my wife's tolerance level for my game enthusiasm is ebbing a bit and whether in the RBC Center or watching on Center Ice she (who is this house is known as the General Manager) threatens to relegate me to Chateau Bow Wow if I don't tone it down a notch.
So good luck Hurricanes next time out. We're behind you.
I hope that appeases her. The dog house is unheated.
And 4 points out of 6,
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 09:23 — wxray1And 4 points out of 6, which is the rate they need to carry out for the rest of the season.
I've been pooh-poohing the possiblity of them begin able to pull out 4 out of 6, but who knows? If it happens, it will be a ride.
Was also at the game, and it was fun. The crowd was supportive. Yes, many people streamed out at the 0:30 goal, but many stayed too. Loved the way the in-house TV showed the people streaming back to watch OT. :-)
Back from the RBC -- Exciting Game
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 23:21 — abramsdougIt was one of the most exciting games I've seen at the RBC, including some of the playoff games I've seen at the RBC. It was not a classically beautiful game; but it had amazing swings of emotion.
I thought Corvo was almost ready to cry with his give away that led to a goal with one minute or gone in the first period. I admit I was furious with him at the time, but as the game went on it was absolutely clear he was trying as hard as he could to make up for that mistake. Brind'Amour was simply awful throughout the game; and apparently it finally reached the point that Maurice/Francis benched him or at least put him on the fourth line and let Yelle pound the net. It made all the difference in the world because the energy level and battle level didn't drop like a rock as soon as the third line hit the ice.
It's amazing to me how much a leader Sutter is at age 20. Ruutu, Sutter, and Gleason were the men of the team. They were leading the charge. Also, I think Jokinen is quietly asserting himself as a leader. It was fantastic to see Cole hit the clutch goal. Cullen was also skating very hard and had an excellent game. Whitney seemed to be talking to the team and encouraging them (I assume to keep their head in the game).
I am mystified that Wallin was allowed to be on the ice at the end of the third period. He and Aaron Ward are frighteningly slow and both are terrible at defending behind the net. It nearly cost the team the game because Wallin was dusted on the fifth goal.
The crowd was great in terms of energy and being supportive -- even when it was extremely ugly on the ice. People could easily have gotten on Corvo after he was schooled on one of the goals; but to the crowd's credit, they didn't turn on the Hurricanes. I saw that there were over 12,000 people in attendance, which wasn't bad all things considered. All in all, it was an ugly win and a beautiful game. Gleason's power play goal with the Sutter assist was awesome. In the end, unless Maurice/Francis put Brind'Amour on the fourth line, they will run and should run two lines much more than the third and fourth line. Dwyer didn't seem to do much either way. Kostopoulos really played well. I am hoping the third line will be Samsonov/Yelle/Kostopoulos. I have no clue why LaRose is unable to score, but it is getting to the point of being absurd given the opportunities he has had.
wallin
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 08:45 — FurbishLousewartWell in Wallin's defense, the ref was the sixth man for the Leafs. I loved that quote from Maurice, "When Wallin got picked by the ref on that last goal it's about all you can take as a man."
Paul Maurice and Manny Legace Coming to Defend the Defense
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 10:40 — abramsdougI thought Manny Legace showed a great deal of leadership taking full responsibility for all the goals scored against him -- he said something to the effect "I was awful and the team bailed me out." He did have moments of really poor decision-making and other times had some amazing stops. He is a master of goalkeeping in shootouts.
I am not always in agreement with Paul Maurice's coaching style; but I thought it showed class to stand up for Wallin on the fifth goal. I made a jpeg from the video of Wallin looking totally befuddled in front of the goal on that goal and he lost the battle for the puck at the boards at the onset of that play. I have begun a collection of similar jpegs where Wallin, Ward, and Brind'Amour are lost on the ice; but I readily acknowledge every player in the NHL from superstar to scrub makes mistakes in every game. Even so, I at least hope and expect that the seasoned veterans who may have lost speed and quickness will at least have retained their mental acuity. Slow veterans without their experience and wiles are frightening to watch in key situations. I thought it was crazy to have Wallin on the ice during the last two minutes of regulation.
Movin' on up
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 23:20 — Biff_BeersNever thought I'd be so excited about 29th place. The Canes are out of the cellar!
Leafs fans are whining that
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 23:10 — ctillLeafs fans are whining that the double minor was bogus because a Canes stick inflicted the cut. Has anyone seen the replay?
Justified
Fri, 11/20/2009 - 08:45 — Canes73It was, without a doubt, Yelle's stick that cut Kostopolous. I think in this case the Leafs actually have a reason to whine. As for the win...we couldn't have asked for a better way to come up with a win. A last second tying goal and a shoot-out win may be exactly what this team needs to regain their confidence.
Hmm
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 23:18 — procellaeI was actually thinking that at the game. Especially since I know a player wouldn't argue a high sticking call where that much blood is drawn unless sometime else happened. The TSN announcers on the highlights said it was a bogus call, and they have replay, so I am assuming they are probably correct. But bad calls are bad, and the Canes have had a fair share of them called against them this season (i.e. Samsonov's bogus calls earlier this season). Law of averages ;).
Slow start, good ending
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 22:58 — procellaeThe Canes came out flat for some reason, and I was expecting them to roll over and quit. It showed great character that they came back throughout the game. After the goal with 29 seconds left, they could have quit just like half the fans in the arena. But they didn't (thank God). I hope those people just learned a lesson on why you don't leave a Canes game early. ;)
What I liked about this game was their character to come back. Both Gleason and Ruutu were phenomenal. Oh, and not to mention Cole looked great after that hit on him in the 3rd. That's how he should play every game. Another positive is Brind'Amour. Not his play, of course, but the fact that he only got 10:09 minutes today. He was gone for so much in the third and overtime (in fact, I don't think he played for the last 15 minutes of that game) that I thought he was injured.
To what I didn't like about this game. Up until the Canes hit their stride in the late 2nd period, they could not pass at all. They started getting better as they went on, and after tieing the game at 4, their passing looked significantly improved.
However, they need good passing from the start, and the turnovers did cost them. While I personally like Legace more than Leighton, Legace did not have his best of games tonight (he is amazing in a shootout however). The defense definitely did not help him out though. They seemed to be saying, "Here, have a free shot at Legace." They need to be a lot more agressive on the puck carrier, especially on Ponikarovsky. Speaking of being agressive on the puck, part of the their start involved them not being agressive along the boards and continuously losing the puck. And the PP was horrendous tonight.
There is much to improve on for Saturday. Passing, the power play, their start, agression, etc. I am just glad that they managed to get 2 points out of this game. I feel like they stole it from the Leafs. They played bad and still got the 2 points, which is good.
TO Game
Thu, 11/19/2009 - 22:55 — garybdiverGlad to see Manny get his win. He was great in the SO. But these were not the best netminders in the league. It was nice to see the boys come back even if it was against the worst team in the NHL. And Roddy less than 11 minutes only 2 shifts in the third. Interesting.