The years of trial and error for Rod Brind’Amour and his Hurricanes have finally paid off — Carolina will play in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since he raised the Cup as captain in 2006.
After three trips to the Eastern Conference Finals in the last seven seasons, the Hurricanes’ patented brand of tight forechecking and man-on-man defense not only cleared the hump, it has been merely invincible. They’ve lost one game in three rounds, becoming the first team to do so since the 1983 Edmonton Oilers.
That loss came after sweeping Ottawa and Montreal and waiting 11 days before facing Montreal, the longest layoff between series in over 100 years. The Hurricanes then woke up to outscore the Canadiens 17-5 in their last three games.
In prior playoff runs, Carolina’s tactical play has eventually plateaued. The system prioritized shot quantity over high-danger finishing, special teams were erratic and the lineup lacked true superstars to carry them. Now, they’re averaging over seven prime looks, Taylor Hall and Jackson Blake are potting over a point per game and the penalty kill has been impervious, extinguishing power plays at a 92.5 percent clip.
Carolina will face the Golden Knights as -156 favorites to win the Cup heading into Tuesday’s Game 1 in Raleigh.
The Golden Knights are making their third trip to the Final in their nine-year existence. You could say the John Tortorella effect couldn’t have come at a more auspicious time, boosting them to a 19-4-1 mark since he took over behind the bench on March 30.
Not one person who at least moderately follows hockey would have believed you if you told them the Avalanche would get swept by the Golden Knights — or anyone, for that matter. But Vegas’ experience was underestimated and this team is unusually balanced; 19 of the 20 Knights skaters that dressed in the Western Conference Final registered a point.
Tortorella implemented his renowned defensive discipline and Vegas neutralized Colorado’s once lethal transition game. Offensively, the Knights are greatly benefiting from the addition of Mitch Marner, who is flourishing with a non-toxic franchise by leading the playoffs with 21 points.
Meanwhile, Carter Hart has emerged as a legitimate No. 1 goaltender who can steal games, stopping 7.7 goals above expected.
On the other end of the rink is Frederik Andersen, who is playing the best hockey of his career. Andersen, who has 11.5 goals saved above expected, has been night and day since a mediocre regular season, authoring a franchise-record shutout streak in the last round of 160 minutes and 13 seconds.
When we break this down to the X’s and O’s, we’re looking at a marathon of territorial hockey. That may not make for the flashiest series, but it will reward the victor for playing the most disciplined and pure form of hockey possible.
Now that Carolina has crossed the psychological barrier that’s hindered them, they’re playing with nothing to lose in using their experience to meet expectations. Although Vegas is only three years removed from a Cup, the chips are falling into place all too conveniently to earn this one over the stoic Hurricanes.
Expect seven games of low scores and an overtime or two, but the Cup is destined to return to Raleigh.
THE PLAY: Hurricanes in 7 (+400, FanDuel)
Sean Treppedi handicaps the NFL, NHL, MLB and college football for the New York Post. He primarily focuses on picks that reflect market value while tracking trends to mitigate risk.
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