The Carolina Hurricanes and the Vegas Golden Knights have traded wins through the first three games of the series. On Saturday night, backed by a Mitch Marner hat trick and four points, Vegas took a 2-1 series lead with a win in double overtime. They led 4-0 in the game before a furious comeback in the third period by the Canes, only to come up one goal short on a bad bounce.
All eyes were on who would lead the Hurricanes out for warm-ups tonight, and Brandon Bussi earned that honor for the first time in his Stanley Cup Playoffs career. However, Frederik Andersen didn't dress for the contest, with Pyotr Kochetkov backing up Bussi. The rest of the lineup remained the same. There were no surprises in Vegas' alignment, including Carter Hart in the net.
As we've come to expect, it was a wild start. Logan Stankoven started the party, receiving a puck off the wall and backhanding it past Hart just 66 seconds in. Jackson Blake added to it after the Canes failed to convert on a power play, finishing a pass from Taylor Hall. Mark Stone buried a breakaway, but Jordan Staal scored at the top of the crease while a man up to restore the two-goal lead after 20.
Vegas has dominated the second period in all three games thus far. That trend continued tonight. William Karlsson pulled them within one early after Marner won a battle, allowing Rasmus Andersson to swoop around the net and find Karlsson. Late in the frame, Brett Howden continued his storybook postseason, snapping it past Bussi's ear on a 2-on-1 and tying the game after two periods.
You could tell that the captain was playing like a man possessed, doing everything in his power to tie this series. After his forced turnover led to a chance for Seth Jarvis, Staal took a pass from Ehlers as he fell on his stomach and got just enough of it to beat Hart, pushing the Canes back in front. This proved to be the game-winner, with Ehlers finding the empty net to tie the series with a 5-3 win.
Brandon Bussi is synonymous with winning
I won't sit here and pretend like Brandon Bussi had the game of his life tonight. Truthfully, he was just okay. There wasn't much he could do on the first two Vegas goals, but I wanted that third one back late in the second period. However, as he has done all season when called upon, Bussi made the big stops when the game was on the line. Not bad for his first NHL postseason start.
The stylish stops weren't in abundance. Instead, Bussi put himself in a good position, forcing Vegas to miss the net. When the puck did make it to him, especially in the third period, Bussi was there to shut it down. His best stop of the night was on Jack Eichel as he crashed toward the net at the backdoor. Eichel had another good chance with the goalie pulled that he put over the net.
Jordan Staal is playing like a machine in the Stanley Cup Final
In a series where consistent play from the forwards has been limited to a handful of players on each side, Jordan Staal has found ways to be the most impactful Hurricane almost every time he touches the ice. Tonight, that meant scoring two incredibly important goals, including the eventual game-winner from his stomach. In four games, Staal has five goals, scoring at least once in each contest.
His entire line was rolling. Along with Staal's pair, Nikolaj Ehlers recorded three points, setting up a goal in the first period, assisting on Staal's second, and scoring into the empty net. Seth Jarvis didn't record a point, but his effort to chase down the puck after he was denied is what led to the winning goal coming together. Jarvis is knocking on the door.
Additional Thoughts
I know that the water was muddied a little by how the Canes played after their quick start, but the Stankoven line looked like the group that had been dominating teams to open the night. Jackson Blake picked up a goal and an assist. Taylor Hall had a helper. Logan Stankoven scored his 11th goal, moving into sole possession of the second most in a single postseason in franchise history.
If the Hurricanes could figure out how to play in the second period, I would greatly appreciate it. They've been outscored by Vegas 9-1 during the middle frame in the series, putting themselves in a terrible spot almost every night. Their saving grace? They're on the right side of a 9-3 edge in the third period, a period that Vegas had been very good in through three rounds.
Up Next: The series was already set to return to Raleigh for Game 5 on Thursday night, and there's no doubt that the Canes have to be happier coming home tied 2-2 than down 3-1. This means the Stanley Cup won't make its first appearance in the series until Game 6 in Vegas on Sunday night. If the series isn't resolved by the end of the weekend, Game 7 would be in Raleigh next Wednesday.
