Game Day Preview: Carolina Hurricanes @ Tampa Bay Lightning
Carolina Hurricanes (16-12-7) vs Tampa Bay Lightning (18-15-4)
The Carolina Hurricanes head to Amalie Arena tonight to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Hurricanes are one point behind the Lightning and will use this game as a springboard to try to jump the Lightning in the standings. The Hurricanes go carry a lot of confidence into Tampa Bay having dominated the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night for sixty minutes and beating Chicago last night.
This will be a hard-fought battle between the two conference rivals, as both teams sit just on the perimeter of the playoffs. The Hurricanes are within striking distance, and even though the Lightning is currently ahead of them, the Canes have games in hand. The last meeting between these two teams went the Hurricanes way in a 1-0 overtime win. Expect a tough low scoring affair tonight.
#Canes are five points behind philly with three games in hand #controltheirowndestiny #thecanesareactuallygood
— Cardiac Cane (@CardiacCane) December 31, 2016
Game Day By the Numbers
Hurricanes  |
Lightning  |
|
|---|---|---|
| Record | 16-12-7 | 18-15-4 |
| Last Result | 3-2 W vs PIT | 3-2 L vs TOR (OT) |
| Last 10 | 6-2-2 | 4-4-2 |
| FO% | 51.2% | 49.0% |
| ES CF% | 51.75% | 50.07% |
| GF/GP | 2.60 | 2.71 |
| PP% (Goals) | 20.2% (20) | 22.6% (30) |
| SH% (Goals) | 90.7% (5) | 79.2% (2) |
Who’s Hot
For the second game in a row, the Aho-Teravainen-Stempniak line connected for a dandy of a goal. This line is building some strong chemistry and has picked up the slack for some of the other lines that have slowed their scoring pace. This line needs to continue to play solid two-way hockey if the Canes want to make a push for the postseason.
[HIGHLIGHT] Stempniak buries a rebound, puts the #Canes ahead in the first period. #Redvolution #CHIvsCAR pic.twitter.com/gJ6lq66g5y
— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) December 31, 2016
Who’s Not
The Skinner-Rask-Ryan line is cooling off big time offensively. They are still dominating play in the offensive zone and being responsible defensively, however they seem to have lost their scoring touch. After the California road swing, this line broke out and was playing with a lot of confidence, but now they look snake bitten. I’m not worried and think they will bounce back. However, they need to find their offensive production again if the Canes are going to have any playoff aspirations.
Storylines
Elias Lindholm left the game last night with an undisclosed upper-body injury. We’re waiting to hear from the team about his condition. Follow our Cardiac Cane twitter account for any updates. If Lindholm can’t play then Nestrasil would likely slot in on the line with Staal and McGinn.
On the second leg of a back to back, we are still waiting to hear who will be in net for the Canes tonight. When asked last night Cam Ward said he was good to go, but the coaching staff will make that decision. I expect them to go back to Ward again as he’s been playing great hockey lately, but the Canes need to start managing his starts to keep him fresh all season.
The Hurricanes are 5-1-1 in their last seven games and are playing solid hockey. They will look to finish out 2016 with a strong effort and carry confidence into 2017.
Lineup
| Hurricanes |
||
|---|---|---|
| Forwards | ||
| Skinner | Rask | Ryan |
| McGinn | Staal | Lindholm |
| Aho | Teravainen | Stempniak |
| Nordstrom | McClement | Stalberg |
| Defense | ||
| Slavin/Pesce | ||
| Murphy/Hainsey | ||
| Hanifin/Tennyson | ||
| Goalies | ||
| Ward | ||
| Lack |
How To Watch
Amalie Arena: Puck Drop at 7:00 pm ET
Watch: Fox Sports Carolinas / Fox Sports Go app
Listen: 99.9 FM The Fan / WRALsportsfan.com
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