The Nashville Predators and Carolina Hurricanes have combined to play eight games since the All-Star break.
There has been just one victory in the bunch.
The teams will try to collect a much-needed prize when they meet Friday night at Raleigh, N.C.
Carolina has points in three of five games since the break. The Hurricanes are 1-2-2, including Wednesday night’s 3-2 overtime loss to the visiting Florida Panthers.
“We were in position to win the game, so we weren’t taking chances,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said, referring to the team putting only two third-period shots on goal. “You learn from every loss, or every game you learn.
“You’ve got to keep playing. You can’t try to kind of hang on. It never works. We don’t play that way anyway. That’s not our style.”
Nashville has lost all three games since returning to action, the last two by three-goal deficits.
“I like to think that we’re a good team,” Predators defenseman Mark Borowiecki said. “I think we are a very good team and I know we’re going to come out of this.”
Carolina had the best winning percentage in the Metropolitan Division at .723 (32-11-4) heading into play Thursday. The Predators are in the mix for a playoff berth in the Western Conference.
The Hurricanes never trailed against Florida on Wednesday until the Panthers produced the winning tally just 16 seconds into overtime. Carolina gave up the game-tying goal with 49 seconds remaining in regulation.
“There was definitely some good,” Carolina captain Jordan Staal said. “We have to do a better job of playing with the lead.”
The Predators uncovered some positives in their most-recent outing, a 4-1 setback to the visiting Washington Capitals on Tuesday night.
“I think all the things that lead to a winning recipe night-in and night-out, and getting more of the identity we want to play with, (were evident),” Nashville coach John Hynes said.
Still, Nashville is the NHL’s most-penalized team. Washington went on four power plays in Tuesday’s game, converting one.
“I think at this point, it’s just important to not get too down on ourselves and take the positives out of that game, take some of the negatives, too, and just try to grow,” Borowiecki said.
The Hurricanes will want to build on the good aspects of their last game. They’ll also be paying attention to their power play that was 0-for-2 against the Capitals.
“We can take the positive things we did,” center Sebastian Aho said. “The power play, we’ll watch some video and try to be better there.”
Anthony DeAngelo has continued to be a key source of offense in his first season with the Hurricanes. With another goal Wednesday night, he has 39 points, marking the second-most for a defenseman in franchise history through 40 games. It’s a figure topped only by Mark Howe’s 47 in 1980-81 for the Hartford Whalers.
The Hurricanes won 3-2 in the second game of the regular season at Nashville. Other than for a preseason game in October, the Predators haven’t visited Carolina since losing in the first round of last year’s playoffs.
This is the second of two rescheduled home games for the Hurricanes. All the other make-up or rescheduled games this month for Carolina have been or will be on the road.
–Field Level Media