The Carolina Hurricanes have found confidence in various ways at times this season, and that’s important to coach Rod Brind’Amour.
The Hurricanes will face a team riding its own form of confidence when the visiting Calgary Flames take the ice in Raleigh, N.C.
The Flames are coming off a 5-3 win at the Florida Panthers, rallying from a two-goal deficit Friday.
“Inside the room, we have more confidence in ourselves,” said Calgary defenseman Yan Kuznetsov. “Even if something doesn’t go our way, we are able to come back.”
The Hurricanes have split the first two games of a seven-game homestand, with Seth Jarvis’ hat trick being the highlight of Friday’s 5-1 victory against the Winnipeg Jets. Jarvis has a team-high 15 goals.
“Whenever he gets a chance around the net, it’s usually good things happen,” teammate Jordan Martinook said of Jarvis.
Jarvis said he’s understanding that the more times he shoots, the results are more likely to be encouraging.
“I’ve just been focused on shooting pucks more. I think putting the puck to the net,” Jarvis said. “I think my confidence hasn’t wavered. I still believe every shot should go in. It has been that way all season and hopefully that continues.”
Jarvis’ willingness to be assertive offensively is crucial to Carolina’s success.
“I think it’s him understanding,” Brind’Amour said. “He needs to score. He’s got a great shot, we know. You’ve got to be a little more selfish with the puck around the net.”
The Hurricanes, who racked up four goals in the final 8 1/2 minutes against the Jets, avoided what would have been a three-game losing streak for the first time this season.
“It alleviates a lot of stress,” Brind’Amour said. “We’ve been playing well. It’s easy to get discouraged when it’s not working. They stuck with it.”
Calgary has won four of its past five games, scoring at least five goals in three of those victories.
Flames coach Ryan Huska described some of Florida’s offense as resulting in silly goals against the Flames, so there are areas to shore up.
“Those things are always correctable,” Huska said. “So if there are certain guys or a certain line that are doing that, they can not play quite as much.”
The Flames liked how they handled the Panthers late in the game.
“We sustained some pushes in the third period,” Flames center Nazem Kadri said. “We knew they were going to compete.”
Now, Calgary will face the other 2025 Eastern Conference finalist in the next game.
The Flames like what they’re seeing from Kuznetsov, a rookie who notched his first NHL goal in the Florida game. While scoring isn’t likely what he’ll be most known for, well-rounded contributions are appreciated.
“With the exception of a couple plays in certain games, he has been very good,” Huska said. “He’s playing to the identity that we hoped he would become. He moves very well. He’s a big defenseman that closes quick on people and he’s a hard guy to play against.”
Calgary’s goalie situation could be in question. Devin Cooley has played in four games across the past 10 days, though he made 37 saves Friday. The Hurricanes have rotated up to three goalies, so it figures that it’s Frederik Andersen’s turn unless Pyotr Kochetkov (lower-body injury) is ready to rejoin the rotation.
–Field Level Media
