Alexander Nikishin hype train is full steam ahead for the Carolina Hurricanes

Alexander Nikishin hype train is full steam ahead for the Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes on the late night if he didn’t stay up. It was a 10 o’clock puck drop. Uh beat Anaheim 4-1 and it was it was a and Max, you can correct me if I’m wrong on this one. It was it was comfortable as as an NHL victory comes, right? Yeah, they they sort of distanced themselves uh down the stretch. Anaheim stayed in there for a good bit and they’ve they’ve definitely made some strides uh from being kind of a basement team. They they made a coaching change. the they’ve had some young guys start stepping up. So, they got a good team and they hung in for a while, but the Canes they they pulled away and I I would call it a pretty comfortable win. And and I I wasn’t saying that as a disrespect to Anaheim, but you’re you’re exactly right. They didn’t look like some of the the Anaheim teams of recent recent memory. Although, if if you know, if we’re going to insult Anaheim, I know what I’m insulting Anaheim about. I don’t even notice jerseys. I don’t really care as long as I can tell the two teams apart. Theirs are pretty bad. How the heck do you go from maybe it’s just nostalgia for me, but I always like the Mighty Ducks, like the ones they had kind of original and and and now they’re those orange monstrosities. What the heck was that? I feel like everybody universally would be on board with them just going back to the eggplant and teal. Yeah. Mighty duck, but they’re just like, “No, we’re going to keep the new colors. We’ll bring the design back, but we’re going to put this traffic cone orange on.” That was a weird one. So, it I didn’t mean it to insult uh Anaheim, but I just meant to say that like it was another game building off of what the Canes have done thus far, which is just, you know, they’re they’re I think it’s very much, you know, kind of idyllic Rod Brendmore hockey where they’re just making good decisions and playing hard and good decisions and playing hard and eventually in most of these games really outside of the the one that went to overtime, uh they’re just pulling away kind of steady and and winning the game. And it’s the entire depth of the roster. It’s uh obviously as you know if you follow the Canes and and many of you do. I’m I’m preaching to the choir here. Uh but like you know forwards backing and and constant pressure and and possessing the puck. It it just you know give it time just like Novacane always works. And then there’s there’s an added little bit this year which is there does seem to be a like a like an atmosphere of a few guys are ready to to you know get their closeup right a few guys uh which is which has been kind of the Kane’s knock right is they play great team hockey but the top guys right where’s their super and and and it’s it’s I think Kane’s fans are thirsting for that like otherworldly athletic performance or otherworldly skilled performance and and as a true believer in Sebasto, I think he has it within him, but but he’s been an 89 point score, not 104 point score, that kind of thing. Uh, with all that being said, I I do think there is a rushing to get the hype train going. And one, I can tell you right now, as much as I believe in it, as much as I think everybody wants to see it happen, it is going to become uncontrollable. And I’m talking about the Alexander Nikesian hype train. It is going to get going downhill with steam cranking out of the the smoke stack and coal being shoveled into the the whatever the little furnace and it is going to get to a point where none of us can stop it individually. Everyone loves that guy. Oh my goodness. When he scored the goal, the goal, his first goal, right? He scored his first career goal last night. Um, you would have thought he was like uh I don’t like Crash Davis or something like like he had been in the miners for 15 years and finally got called up and had told everyone in the the locker room if I score just one goal I can die a happy man. Like he went and scored a goal. Shane Gostaspir looked like his son just scored a goal. Like everybody was so jacked for that guy, which I think says something about how he is despite a pretty significant language barrier in that locker room. And I can tell you this, fans have already anointed that guy the next coming of whatever great defenseman is your favorite. Uh and they’ve been doing so for the last, you know, two and a half years since since he became the quote unquote best defenseman not in the NHL while being a player that the Canes held held his rights. Everyone loves that guy. And then he scored and he’s had, you know, I three that I can actually I’ll go four. Four moments offensively this season already that make you go whoa. And and that plus the physical skill set, plus the the appearance that everybody on the team loves him and the fans are excited about him. And even something as simple as like Jacob Slavven hasn’t been out there, which means he’s probably getting a little bit more more ice time. He’s probably getting a, you know, a little bit of a different role. There’s a lot that’s adding up to this thing is about to get going downhill. Cooking with with uh cooking with gas, grease, and gravy as broadcast would say. Yeah, it’s uh I’ve been highly anticipating him coming over for a long time like many fans as you mentioned. Um and I think he’s not only is he as advertised, but I think he is better. See? Yeah. It’s and you can’t help but think it. I’m not knocking you for it, but you can’t help but think it. And Rod uh Rod uh I think it’s kind of his mo. He sort of downplays it a little bit. Maybe try to take Yeah. He’s trying to take some pressure off of Nikeshan, I think, as a lot of people do have these very high expectations for him as a top prospect, but from what we’ve seen so far in the beginning of this season, and he he was serviceable in the the playoff action he got thrust into last year, he wasn’t a world beater or anything, but now that he’s had a full off seasonason and training camp and preseason to get into the system, familiarize himself with his teammates a little bit, he’s learning a little bit more English. He he knows a couple words and we we’ll get to that as well, but he looks every bit the part of this young defenseman who’s coming in and going to be an absolute weapon on the blue line for the Hurricanes for many years. And uh after this season, I would not be surprised if he is getting a hefty payday and the left side of the Hurricanes defense is locked up for the next seven years. Well, uh, I it’s interesting you brought up that it does as Rod does, and this is I’m not disagreeing. I actually think it’s good for the de the development. I do think Rod is is doing like, you know, if if there is this this train metaphor, I think he’s got like a like a rope tied to the front and he is on the side like tugof-war, right? He’s digging his his every muscle he has of the plenty muscles that Rod has are are straining to hold back the hype train because he knows that a young guy is going to have his moments. He knows he’s going to have his rookie mistakes. He knows there’s going to be stretches where he doesn’t have a point every game and and he doesn’t want that to be the expectation. And I actually think that that might be part of why we haven’t seen him a ton uh on the power play because if if he’s quarterbacking that second power play unit and you know hits a bomb, there goes the the neighborhood. I think the roof is blown off Lenovo Center when that happens. And I think we know putting that hype toothpaste back in that tube. I think it’s coming sooner rather than later. I think and obviously it depends on the output, but the the second unit has not you know scored a lot on the power play. I think there’s a good chance if that trend continues by the time they come back from this road trip, we might be seeing a little bit of power play. That’s of course assuming that he continues this fantastic pace that he’s on looking like he’s shown off he’s been in the league. Yeah, it looks like he’s been in the NHL for 5 years. Let’s hear what Rod said on the growth of Nikeshan and of course his first NHL goal last night. Well, you you definitely know the talent is there. Um and you know, we talk about all the time. this this NHL is really tough league to just throw get thrown in there and with you know he’s learned the language and um but I really I think that he’s just touching he’s kind of scratching the surface cuz there’s a lot of raw ability there and that was a big goal kind of put the game away that that’s the other part that I that I keep reminding myself is I think every new player there is a certain expectation of getting better but like a like a language barrier or just getting used to North America and he did go back to Russia for the offseason. That’s like not hockey related at all and might lead to better play, right? It might lead to uh you know as he gets used to that or as he he develops a little bit better, he can he can keep it rolling. It’s it’s impressive. Uh speaking of the language barrier, we have Alexander Nikish postgame after scoring his first NHL goal. Thank you. Um I think uh every everyday work block shot for check and uh um shoot and go. I mean does it not seem like every every English word he’s learned has been from like a Rod Brendmore postgame? Must be well you remember from their first conversation when he came over in last spring he’s like uh oh you know hockey. He’s like, “Ah, I know hockey.” And then he just displayed his glossery of knowledge right there. Uh, shots on goal, forch check, uh, everyday work. That’s a big one for Rod. Everyday work, block shots, forch check, shots on goal. That’s I mean, he doesn’t have to learn anything else. Everybody’s name. That’s it. That’s all That’s all he’s got to learn. Put him in the Hall of Fame. Boom. And he he wouldn’t even That would be his Hall of Fame speech. That’s the acceptance speech right there. Everyday work. I I don’t even want to try to do the accent block shot. Yeah, that’s that’s check uh shots on goal. There you go. If only if were that simple for everybody else. Alexander.

Tim Donnelly & Max Goren recap the Carolina Hurricanes’ 4-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks. Rookie defenseman Alexander Nikishin scored his first NHL goal in the win, and the hype train for the talented young Russian is truly full steam ahead for Canes fans.

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