Devils vs Hurricanes Preview: Goals Could be Few and Far Between In Second Round Series
Rookie Goalie Schmid, A Revelation As Devils Rallied Past Rangers in First Round
Carolina Scored A Couple Days Rest After Eliminating New York Islanders
Among the eight remaining teams in the hunt for the Stanley Cup, Carolina ranks sixth and New Jersey eighth in scoring offense as you keep that in mind when it comes to looking at the Devils vs Hurricanes preview.
It could be an interesting series for New Jersey defenseman Dougie Hamilton as he spent three seasons in Carolina.
Carolina led all Metropolitan Division teams with 28 home wins during the regular season. New Jersey had a division-leading 28 road victories, so something will have to give with the first two games being played in Raleigh.
The goalie matchup features 22-year-old Akira Schmid, who had two shutouts in the five starts in the last season for New Jersey and 33-year-old Frederik Andersen, who didn’t play until Game 6 for Carolina against the Islanders.
Carolina forward Jack Drury is expected to be available for Game 1. The Hurricanes are without forwards Ondrej Kase, Max Pacioretty, Andrei Svechnikov and Teuvo Teravainen as well as defenseman Jake Gardiner. Pacioretty and Teravainen have played in a combined total of 149 career playoff games and that experience could be missed in this series.
When looking at the NHL game odds, the Hurricanes are priced at -120 to win the series opener.
The best series odds have New Jersey priced at +375 to win in six games followed by +450 odds for the Devils or Hurricanes to win the series in seven games.
The Devils’ odds to win the Stanley Cup title went from +1400 to +550 after eliminating the Rangers. Carolina (+700) is sixth in the championship odds.
Keep on reading for more about the New Jersey and Carolina teams. When looking at the NHL schedule, the series begins on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET at PNC Arena in Raleigh.
Offseason Moves Paying Off
A year after acquiring Ryan Graves and Dougie Hamilton to upgrade the defense, the New Jersey Devils went to work adding some experience up front.
Ondrej Palat, who won a pair of Stanley Cup titles with Tampa Bay and scored 27 playoff goals in leading the Lightning to three straight Eastern Conference titles, was signed as a free agent.
Erik Haula, a part of the Vegas Golden Knights’ run to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, was acquired from Boston for Pavel Zacha.
They combined for 22 goals in 129 games during the regular season. In the playoffs, they had six goals and five assists in the seven games against the Rangers. Keep that in mind when it comes to the Devils vs Hurricanes preview.
Defenseman John Marino was also picked up in the offseason to bright another option to the blueline. Marino’s value was never more evident than when he missed 18 games during the regular season.
That trio came into the season with 210 combined playoff games.
Leading the Charge
While some key forwards were suffering season-ending injuries for the Carolina Hurricanes, Sebastian Aho was quietly leading the Hurricanes with 36 goals during the regular season. That pushed his total in the regular season to 218 in 520 games. Only Eric Staal has scored more goals since the team moved from Hartford to Raleigh.
Some of his best work has been done in the postseason and that could be a factor when breaking down the Devils vs Hurricanes preview.
In 54 career playoff games Aho – has 53 points, so he knows how to raise the level of his play at this time of the year. Along with Jordan Staal, he is the only forward expected to play in the series who was a part of the 2019 team that reached the Eastern Conference Final.
Aho had five goals and seven assists while Staal finished with four goals and six assists during that 2019 postseason run. Staal was a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins team that won the Stanley Cup title in 2009.
Handicapping the Series
When looking at the NHL standings, only one point separated the teams during the regular season. Both teams finished with 39 regulation wins so buckle up because this series might take a while.
The visiting team has won three of the previous six matchups with just three of the last seven games being decided by one goal.
The teams haven’t met in the postseason since 2009 when Carolina advanced in seven games in the first round.
Neither team was particularly effective on the power play in the first-round series. They did get plenty of practice as Carolina was third (first among teams to advance) with 25 power-play opportunities with New Jersey right behind with 24. Carolina had the best penalty kill.
The Hurricanes allowed one goal on 18 power plays and had a short-handed goal as well. New Jersey had a pair of short-handed goals in the series with the Rangers.
Carolina ranked 14th and New Jersey was tied for 15th in hits per 60 minutes. They were among the playoff leaders in giveaways per 60 minutes. It will be worth watching to see if the teams are more physical in this series.
The Devils are 26-18 against the spread on the road while the Devils covered against the NHL betting lines in just 18 of 44 home games. Carolina is 49-25-7 when listed as the favorite by the NHL odds while the Devils are 16-9-2 as the underdog.
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