As fun as Thursday Night was for the Canes, yesterday was equally frustrating as once again the Canes give up a 3-0 lead to a team on the road. This time it was to the Washington Capitals as they couldn\u2019t match the desperation of a team fighting for its playoff life. There\u2019s little time to wallow in it, though, as the Canes get right back to it in snowy Raleigh against the LA Kings.<\/p>\n
The quick turnaround for Carolina shouldn\u2019t result it line changes\u2014there won\u2019t be a morning skate and the only change should be Brandon Bussi in net instead of Freddie Andersen. Both teams are coming off playing Saturday, with the Kings beating Philly in Overtime. Today is just one of three games on the schedule, because you know, when it\u2019s the first Sunday free of meaningful NFL football this season and before the Olympic Break you of course just schedule three games. Clearly the league wants to put the Stadium Series game in Tampa Center Stage, but not making a day long celebration out of it seems like a missed opportunity.<\/p>\n
The trip back to Raleigh last night had to be a tough one as Rod Brind\u2019Amour gave perhaps his harshest criticism of the team in his post game availability. He was right in that even though Carolina had a 3-0 lead, Washington had played with a desperation to where they were getting a ton of shots off. With only three games left before the team gets a three week break, you have to imagine Brind\u2019Amour wants to see that tightened up in order to have some good vibes to carry over.<\/p>\n
The assignment today won\u2019t be much easier, as LA is another team fighting for their playoff lives. They come in today outside of the playoff line, but just two points back of the second Wild Card, as well as two points back of third in the Pacific. Just like Utah and Washington, LA will be looking to get every point they can, especially since they get a couple days off before their last back-to-back Pacific clashes.<\/p>\n
In the middle of last month it appeared the Kings were out of it, a four game losing streak had them dropping down in the standings, but since then they\u2019ve righted the ship and have benefited from the fact that the Pacific is just a mess. They\u2019ve had a good road trip where they\u2019ve won three of four, and the only loss was against the red hot Buffalo Sabres.<\/p>\n
The player that the Canes have to be ready for is Adrian Kempe. He has points in six straight games, including a three point performance yesterday against Philly. He\u2019s their leading point producer, goal scorer, assist maker, and has the looks of someone fit for Hollywood. He\u2019ll be suiting up for Sweden next week for the Olympics, and he\u2019s going to try and carry this squad on his back till then.<\/p>\n
In net expect to see yet another former Hurricane in Anton Forsberg. He\u2019s won three of his last four, with the only loss coming after regulation. He backstopped the Kings to a win against Detroit earlier in the week, and his last performance with a save percentage under .900 was against Edmonton on January 10th.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re going to Lenovo today, it goes without saying to be careful. While the Raleigh area didn\u2019t get as much snow as expected, it\u2019s still going to take a while for all of this to disappear. Also be patient with everyone working around the arena as they had to do some work to get there and will be standing out in near zero wind chills to get you inside.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re going to stay cozy inside instead, here\u2019s how you can catch the action:<\/p>\n
TV: FanDuel Sports Network in the Carolinas. Mike Maniscalco will handle play-by-play alongside Tripp Tracy doing color. Hanna Yates and Shane Willis will provide off-ice reports as well as host pregame starting at 2:30 and postgame that will run for about 30 minutes after the conclusion. If you live outside the Carolinas the game has been picked up by the NHL Network. If you don\u2019t have access to the network, you\u2019ll likely want to take advantage of streaming services like Fubo that has it and cancel quickly.<\/p>\n