{"id":555945,"date":"2026-04-19T11:10:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T11:10:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555945\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T11:10:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T11:10:23","slug":"hurricanes-take-fight-to-senators-in-physical-game-1-win-to-open-nhl-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555945\/","title":{"rendered":"Hurricanes take fight to Senators in physical Game 1 win to open NHL playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The puck went down, the gloves came off and the Stanley Cup playoffs began with a bang Saturday.<\/p>\n

It took only seconds for the Carolina Hurricanes\u2019 Jordan Staal and Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators to face off after the opening draw and start throwing punches. It was captain versus captain, and Staal got the better of it, getting off three right-hand strikes before the two players fell to the ice, Staal on top.<\/p>\n

The Canes got the better of the Senators in Game 1 of the opening-round playoff series, too. With goaltender Frederik Andersen turning back every Ottawa shot and the Hurricanes tight checking and winning the physical battle \u2014 from the Staal fight and throughout the game \u2014 Carolina came away with a 2-0 victory at Lenovo Center.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an intense game, obviously,\u201d Staal said.<\/p>\n

To which Canes coach Rod Brind\u2019Amour added: \u201cThere was not a lot of room and everybody fighting for everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall each had a goal and assist for the Canes, but Andersen had the towel-waving crowd on its feet and chanting \u201cFred-die! Fred-die!\u2019 several times in the game. Those chants were never louder than in the closing minutes, with the Senators on the power play and pulling goalie Linus Ullmark for a sixth attacker.<\/p>\n

The Senators got off three shots on goal and the Canes blocked another five Sens shots in the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds of the game \u2014 two of the blocks by Canes winger Seth Jarvis.<\/p>\n

The biggest of Andersen\u2019s 22 stops came at 3:54 of the third period, Carolina ahead 1-0 and the Senators on a power play. The goalie gloved a shot by Drake Batherson during a scramble in front of the net, but the initial ruling was a good goal as the Sens celebrated.<\/p>\n

\"Carolina<\/p>\n

Carolina Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen (31) stops a scoring attempt by Ottawa right wing Drake Batherson (19) in the third period on Saturday, April 18, 2026 during the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.<\/p>\n

Not for long.<\/p>\n

With Canes fans howling after seeing replays on the board, the play was reviewed, and the goal disallowed as it was ruled the puck did not cross the goal line.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a game-changer,\u201d Brind\u2019Amour said.<\/p>\n

Andersen said he had a \u201cpretty good idea\u201d he had stopped the puck but also added, \u201cYou never know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many Canes fans were guessing which goalie Brind\u2019Amour would start in Game 1 \u2014 Andersen or Brandon Bussi, who beat the Senators twice in his sensational first year in the NHL.<\/p>\n

Brind\u2019Amour gave Andersen the nod because of his 85 games of playoff experience, and Andersen responded by becoming the first goalie in franchise history to have a shutout in the team\u2019s postseason opener.<\/p>\n

\"Ottawa<\/p>\n

Ottawa left wing Brady Tkachuk and Carolina Hurricanes center Jordan Staal (11) tumble to the ice during a fight in the first period on Saturday, April 18, 2026 during the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C. <\/p>\n

(Robert Willett\/rwillett@newsobserver.com)Staal-Tkachuk fight opens the game<\/p>\n

No one expected the game to begin with the two guys wearing a \u201cC\u201d to go at it. Staal said it was a first for him in the NHL \u2014 gloves off after the opening draw. But Tkachuk wanted to go, he said, and the two went at it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s two big dudes,\u201d Hall said of the forwards, both 6-foot-4 and more than 220 pounds.<\/p>\n

Or as Brind\u2019Amour put it, \u201cTwo grown men going at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stankoven said he sensed before the opening faceoff that something was afoot. He also liked what he saw after the puck went down.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought it was great,\u201d Stankoven said. \u201cIt was a great way to get the crowd into it, and I thought \u2018Jordo\u2019 did a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Carolina<\/p>\n

Carolina Hurricanes center Logan Stankoven (22) celebrates with Alexander Nikishin (21) after scoring to take a 1-0 lead over the Ottawa Senators in the second period on Saturday, April 18, 2026 during the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.<\/p>\n

(Robert Willett\/rwillett@newsobserver.com)\u2018Kids and the Hall\u2019 strike again \u2014 twice<\/p>\n

After a scoreless first period not lacking hard-hitting action, Stankoven\u2019s line gave the Canes the lead early in the second period. After defenseman Alexander Nikishin made a nice play to keep the puck in the zone, Hall made a touch pass to Jackson Blake, who dropped off a pass to Stankoven in the slot for the shot.<\/p>\n

Stankoven didn\u2019t get all of the puck, but got enough to beat Ullmark to the glove side for the 1-0 lead. The center, at 5-8 the shortest player on the ice, scored twice a year ago in the Canes\u2019 playoff opener against New Jersey, and appeared to have a second one Saturday in the third period.<\/p>\n

Ullmark got a piece of a Nikishin shot, the puck falling near the post as Stankoven, Hall and Blake all converged, all whacking at it. Stankoven was initially credited with the goal, but it was later ruled the puck glanced off Hall\u2019s skate — the assists to Stankoven and Blake, who had two.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know I had scored until I was named the third star of the game,\u201d Hall said, smiling.<\/p>\n

\"Ottawa<\/p>\n

Ottawa Senators goalie Liunus Ullmark (left) deflects a shot by Carolina Hurricanes right wing Jackson Blake in the third period on Saturday, April 18, 2026 during the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.<\/p>\n

Finding the power<\/p>\n

One shortcoming for the Canes was the inability to take advantage of their power plays against a team that struggled on the penalty kill in the regular season. Carolina twice had a 5-on-3 advantage, but the Senators battled to clear the puck and Ullmark did his job.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth goalies played great,\u201d Brind\u2019Amour said. \u201cBoth rose to the occasion and kept their team in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two teams were credited with 96 hits. The Canes had 57, getting a game-high eight from power forward Andrei Svechnikov, seven from Jordan Martinook and six from Stankoven.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s playoff hockey,\u201d Brind\u2019Amour said. \u201cIt\u2019s the first round, and everybody has all the energy in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Canes and Senators will go at it in Game 2 on Monday before the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series shifts to Ottawa for two games. Ottawa defenseman Artem Zub left Saturday\u2019s game with an injury after a collision with Jarvis, and Sens coach Travis Green did not have an update on Zub\u2019s status or availability.<\/p>\n

\u201cCarolina does a real good job of playing their game,\u201d Green said. \u201cI don\u2019t think the series is ever going to look like there\u2019s a ton of space out there. It\u2019s going to look very similar every night. They\u2019re going to forecheck hard and we\u2019re going to forecheck hard. There\u2019s going to be a lot of hits.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The puck went down, the gloves came off and the Stanley Cup playoffs began with a bang Saturday.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":555946,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5107],"tags":[28,1742,1473,536,19349,194,29,5176,1744,1239,5,195,510,1448,1284,539,520,576,4,25,1177,1110,2865],"class_list":{"0":"post-555945","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-carolina-hurricanes","8":"tag-alexander-nikishin","9":"tag-andrei-svechnikov","10":"tag-artem-zub","11":"tag-brady-tkachuk","12":"tag-brandon-bussi","13":"tag-carolina","14":"tag-carolina-hurricanes","15":"tag-carolinahurricanes","16":"tag-drake-batherson","17":"tag-frederik-andersen","18":"tag-hockey","19":"tag-hurricanes","20":"tag-jackson-blake","21":"tag-jordan-martinook","22":"tag-jordan-staal","23":"tag-linus-ullmark","24":"tag-logan-stankoven","25":"tag-new-jersey","26":"tag-nhl","27":"tag-ottawa-senators","28":"tag-seth-jarvis","29":"tag-taylor-hall","30":"tag-the-canes"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116431070145038330","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555945","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555945"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555945\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/555946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555945"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555945"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555945"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}