The Carolina Hurricanes struggled through a rare bad outing on Tuesday night against the Predators. But they are still rocking and rolling.
Even the best teams will put up forgettable performances. That was the case when the Hurricanes skated into Nashville and lost 4-1 to the Predators. It wasn’t for a lack of effort; the Hurricanes put up 30 shots on goal compared to Nashville’s 20.
Carolina has continued a trend that has lasted all season: After 17 games, they remain first in the NHL in average shots for and against per game. Per EdgeHalla, the Hurricanes are edging out the second-place New Jersey Devils with 32.9 shots for compared to Jersey’s 32.7.
Carolina’s willingness to take shots at the net is one reason they rank third in the NHL with 64 goals scored. That is good for 3.76 goals per game.
The Hurricanes are also edging out the Dallas Stars in shots against per game for the league lead. Dallas has allowed 22.5 shots per contest, while Carolina has allowed 22.3. Allowing just 20 against Nashville on Tuesday night surely helped the cause.
Carolina’s Incredible Shots For vs. Shots Against Ratio Has Paid Dividends
It is still early in the season, but this trend continues what drove the Hurricanes to hoisting the Stanley Cup in June. Across 82 games, Carolina finished second in the league behind only the Colorado Avalanche with 2,637 shots for, or 32.1 shots per game.
Their 1,962 shots against was the lowest in the NHL. That translates to 23.93 shots allowed per contest. The Hurricanes were the only team in the NHL to allow under 2,000 shots. The Vegas Golden Knights came close, but they allowed approximately 2,000 shots.
This isn’t to say Carolina will repeat as Stanley Cup Champions because of their shots-for-vs. shots-against ratio. That would be far-fetched so early in the season. But it shows just how effective the Hurricanes are when they take frequent shots at the net and allow so few of them.
The Hurricanes Must Keep Playing Their Brand Of Hockey
A mediocre Predators team tripped up the Hurricanes and delivered Carolina its third regulation loss this season. But that doesn’t mean the Hurricanes need to reinvent the wheel after one bad outing.
This is also a team that found a way to lose against the rebuilding Calgary Flames before it went on to win five of its next six games, losing only in a shootout against the mighty Edmonton Oilers.
The Hurricanes also posted shutout wins against the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets in that span. If there are two things the Hurricanes can’t do, it’s to play down to their competition. They face a solid New York Islanders team before squaring off with the Chicago Blackhawks and a double-header in Finland against the Seattle Kraken.
None of the above match the Hurricanes. Given Carolina’s ability to overwhelm opponents with their high-octane approach while stopping scoring chances, they have an outstanding chance to rebound. That will, however, require them to keep playing their brand of hockey.
They will get that chance on Thursday night during their showdown against the Islanders.
Hurricanes Accomplished Something No Other Team Has Matched