The Carolina Hurricanes had a miraculous three-goal comeback against the New York Islanders to take a 2-0 series lead in their first-round clash. Conceding the first three goals, it seemed as though the Hurricanes had little chance of making the game close after winning Game 1 in a tight 3-1 final. Regardless, they found a way.
While the Hurricanes got two goals back with 9:17 to go in the game, they still trailed 3-2 with just over two minutes left in the third period. In an empty-net situation, Sebastian Aho came up clutch with a redirection tally. Just nine seconds later, Jordan Martinook got Carolina their first lead of the game.
In a complete turn of events, the Islanders had to empty their net less than a minute after having Carolina do the same. Jake Guentzel got the insurance marker for the Hurricanes to make a final score of 5-3 and give his team a commanding two-game lead in the series.
22-year-old Seth Jarvis led the way for both sides with a goal and two assists for three points. Andrei Svechnikov, Aho, and Guentzel each had two points apiece.
In the game overall, the Hurricanes outshot the Islanders by a significant 39-12 margin. In the third period, it was 17-1 in favor of the home team. They only got better as the night went on, while the Islanders only got worse.
Islanders in Desperation Mode
If the Islanders could have won this game, it would have been wonderful for their hopes of winning the series overall. Now down 2-0, they need something big to change as they head back home to UBS Arena.
Perhaps that big change for New York could be in goal. Instead of having Ilya Sorokin play, who starts a $66 million contract extension in 2024-25, it has been backup Semyon Varlamov taking over. While he was solid in Game 1, he finished with 34 saves on 38 shots for a .895 save percentage (SV%) in this one.
Sorokin didn’t exactly have an otherworldly regular season with a .908 SV%, but he was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy in 2022-23. With the Islanders needing nothing short of the best, they might turn to him. They showed a bit of offense early in this one with three goals before the halfway point of the game, so combining great goaltending with just a little bit of offense could turn the tides.
The Hurricanes will visit the Islanders on Thursday, April 25 to resume their series for Game 3. While New York cannot be eliminated with a loss, they have no other choice but to win — they cannot afford to be in an elimination scenario for the rest of the series after it.
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