The 2023-24 season has ended for the Carolina Hurricanes. After rebounding from a 3-0 series deficit versus the New York Rangers in Round 2, they managed to force a Game 6 after clutch wins in Games 4 and 5. However, their luck ran out after losing 5-3 to be eliminated from the 2024 NHL Playoffs.
It is a loss that will sting for a while or at least until next season. A plethora of questions need to be answered this summer along with making some tough decisions about the roster. However, this will all come later, since it’s not been 24 hours since the Hurricanes’ season ended. Here’s a look at the Hurricanes’ final game, Game 6.
Hurricanes Up Through 40 Minutes
The Hurricanes led the way in the first two periods with three goals. A first-period goal by Martin Necas kicked off the game for Carolina after Jordan Martinook made a big play behind the net. He got the puck after a board battle behind the Rangers’ net and had the awareness to backhand a pass to Necas, who was crashing in on goaltender Igor Shesterkin. A perfect pass became a great shot that went into the net to put the Hurricanes up 1-0 in the first.
The second period saw more magic from Carolina with a second net-front goal. Seth Jarvis grabbed a loose rebound after a Sebastian Aho shot that went off Shesterkin on a power play that had struggled in the series. It was Jarvis’ fifth goal of the postseason, which led the team.
The backhand pass to Necas was not Martinook’s only big play of the game. While the Hurricanes were up 3-1 after an Aho goal, the Rangers had a chance to get one back when the puck slid through Frederik Andersen’s legs. The puck seemed destined to go in, but, while already on his stomach, Martinook slid toward the net with his stick out in front of him. In an act of desperation, he started to sweep his stick to try to get the puck. Thankfully, his momentum carried him far enough to get the puck off the goal line before it went into the net. The hockey world exploded after that last-second save to preserve the Hurricanes’ two-goal lead. Some analysts were already calling it the save of the postseason, and deservedly so.
Martinook has been clutch in the postseason for the Hurricanes, including last season when he scored 10 points versus the New Jersey Devils. He will become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) this offseason when his three-year, $5.4 million deal, signed in July 2021, expires. The hope is the Hurricanes bring him back because, while he doesn’t put up Aho numbers, he is a veteran leader and someone who players can lean on in the locker room. I think a three-year, $2.2 million annual average value (AAV) deal could be doable for both sides and give the Hurricanes some flexibility to re-sign other UFAs and restricted free agents (RFA) on the roster.
Carolina was 20 minutes away from forcing a Game 7 after being down 3-0 in the series. It should have been an epic comeback for the team after many thought they were done for after Game 3. Unfortunately, their luck ran out in the third period.
Blink and the Hurricanes Lead Was Gone
In the third, the Hurricanes were a few inches away from scoring a couple of goals, but the posts had something to say – Carolina hit the post four times in the first few minutes of the period. Those missed opportunities came back to haunt them and will haunt them throughout the offseason.
In the end, Chris Kreider scored a natural hat trick to steal Game 6 and the series from the Hurricanes. While Andersen let in a couple of goals that he will want back, the loss was not fully on him. Postgame, he told the media, “That definitely hurt, obviously. You don’t want to give them life. I thought I had it covered… Tough timing for that.”
It will be on his mind for the next couple of days, especially the first two Kreider goals bring the Rangers within one and then the game-tying goal.
When head coach Rod Brind’Amour was asked about the third period, he said, “That (second) goal was a tough one. It just can’t happen. We know that. You can’t give a team like that a goal, and I thought we gave them a couple. That’s really not good. Then the momentum changed a little, and we took a penalty. Their top guys took over in the third once they got that one (goal)… You’ve got to give them credit. Their top guys stepped up when they needed to.”
Brind’Amour said it perfectly. The Canes couldn’t afford to give the Rangers life, which they did, and New York made them pay. Now, they are moving on to the Eastern Conference Final.
Hurricanes Eyes on the Offseason
Management will now shift their focus toward the offseason. Exit interviews will happen in a few days, and after that will be the 2024 NHL Entry Draft at The Sphere in Las Vegas. The free agent market doesn’t open until July 1, so the Hurricanes will have time to figure out who they want to bring back and get the puck moving on what’s to come for next season. There will be tough decisions for general manager Don Waddell and his staff to make this offseason.
As always, The Hockey Writers will cover it all as the offseason for the Carolina Hurricanes officially starts now.
