3 Things to Watch: Canadiens at Hurricanes, Game 2 of Eastern Final
RALEIGH, N.C. — The Montreal Canadiens will try to take 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Final when they visit the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 2 at Lenovo Center on Saturday.
Montreal was at its best and Carolina struggled, especially early, in the Canadiens’ 6-2 win in Game 1 on Thursday. The Canadiens are expecting the Hurricanes to get back to the stingy defensive and forechecking game that helped them sweep their first two Stanley Cup Playoff series.
Montreal is 25-4 all-time when leading 1-0 in a best-of-7 conference final/semifinal and 24-5 in Game 2 in that scenario.
“I mean you just have to stay hungry,” Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said. “I think we have a hungry group. I don’t think we are where we are today without this kind of mindset. With that said, you can have the best mindset, you still have to go execute. The other team’s coming, too. They’re not just going to give it to you. You have to go earn it, no matter what just happened. We have an opportunity tonight and we intend to put our best foot forward and see where we land with that.”
The Hurricanes, meanwhile, didn’t take the ice on Friday. Instead, there was a lot of video review of Game 1 and probably some soul searching as they look to turn things around after their first loss of the postseason.
“Tough video, video that you have to have but no one really wants to sit in on,” Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis said. “It was good. It was all constructive. Just showing what we need to clean up on, what we went wrong on and what we need to get better at.”
The Hurricanes were 22-7-0 following a loss of any kind during the regular season, and their .759 points percentage was the highest in the NHL in that scenario. The Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers are 6-12 all-time in Game 2 following a loss in Game 1 during a best-of-7 series.
Teams that take a 2-0 series lead in the round before the Cup Final with each win coming on the road have a series record of 20-1.
