Game 5 Recap: Canes Eliminated by Bruins

TORONTO - The Carolina Hurricanes were eliminated from the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs in a 2-1 loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 5 of the First Round.

Haydn Fleury got the Canes on the board first, but two power-play goals from the Bruins late in the second period were the difference.

Here are five takeaways from Game 5.

1. The End

The journey of the 2019-20 Carolina Hurricanes has come to an end.

It ended in a way - in Toronto, one of two neutral-site bubble locations that staged a 24-team postseason tournament in August - that no one could have imagined back when the journey first began in October.

It ended in a way that was, in some sense, familiar to last season - at the hands of the Bruins - yet, in other senses, very unfamiliar to last season. And that's the most encouraging part of the this entire journey.

"The maturity of our group from last year to this year, we've taken a huge step. We've closed the gap from the elite teams. I think we're closing in," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "As long as we learn what it takes to win, which I think we are and we have this series, I think it's going to help this group moving forward. Again, I'm just really proud of this team."

When the Canes were swept by the Bruins in the 2019 Eastern Conference Final, the end was just the beginning.

This end, even if it happened in the First Round, builds on that, more lessons learned to make this Canes group wiser and hungrier heading into the 2020-21 season.

"[The Bruins] know how to win, and they've been there. They had to learn some tough lessons, too, along the way," Brind'Amour said. "I think that's made them the team they are. I think that's what we're doing here. I really believe that."

2. The Game

Game 5 was hard-fought down to the final buzzer, and for a good stretch, it seemed as if the Canes, with their backs against the wall, might force a Game 6.

"I think we played at a level to beat them. I'm really proud of this team. They do it right. We responded, which is the best thing. We walk out of here, I think, with our heads high," Brind'Amour said. "The effort we put out there, especially tonight, I thought we were the better team. They got a couple funny bounces, and we couldn't get a break on the bounces."

For the third time in the series, the Canes opened the scoring. A couple of drop passes, first Jordan Martinook and then Sebastian Aho, set up Haydn Fleury with the puck along the near wall. Fleury skated to the top of the right circle and snapped a quick shot that beat Jaroslav Halak to the far side, off the post and in.

With the primary assist, Aho boosted his team-leading postseason point total to 12 points (3g, 9a) in eight games.

The Canes had two power play opportunities in the first 25 minutes of the game and were unable to convert on either to stretch their lead.

It was only a matter of time before Boston, who had the second-best power play in the regular season, was going to get a crack on the man advantage.

They got their first power-play opportunity with just over six minutes left to play in the second period, and they converted to tie the game when David Krejci banged in a rolling puck out in front.

With less than a minutes left in regulation, the Bruins got their second power play of the game - and in both cases, there was a legitimate argument to be made about missed calls at one end (Jordan Martinook had his stick broken in half, and Sebastian Aho was hauled down) leading to calls against, as fair as they were, at the other end.

In any case, through the course of the game, penalties will need to be killed, and the Canes didn't make it out of the period before Boston converted again.

With just 3.5 seconds left in the second period, Patrice Bergeron slipped a puck through Petr Mrazek from a tough angle to give the Bruins their first lead of the game, and that's where the score held.

"Their power play is one of the best in the league," Jaccob Slavin said. "I think for the most part as a kill we did a pretty good job this series. I think both their goals tonight were kind of power-play goals, but sometimes that's how the power play gets it done."

3. The Series

Unlike the sweep of a year ago, this series was much more competitive than the 4-1 result might suggest.

The Canes dropped Game 1 in double overtime. They were about 13 minutes away from evening the series in Game 3 before an uncharacteristic collapse. They battled in an elimination game down to the very last buzzer.

The series script could have just as easily been flipped.

"It was a tight series. I thought there was maybe one game we weren't at our best, but it's always going to be a tight against a good team like that," Jordan Staal said. "There are a lot of little things we could have done better. We got away from our game a few times. Give them credit. They did a good job of not letting us get to our game. … There were a lot of things that added up to that series loss."

"It's that process knowing and learning how to win," Brind'Amour said. "I think they were a little more patient with their game. When we got frazzled a little at times and got off our game, they just stayed with it. They hunkered down and blocked a lot of shots. They did what they do to be successful. We, at times, tried to do too much and got away from our game."

Tough lessons learned that will only make the Canes better when they return to the postseason once again.

"I thought we were pretty close," Staal said. "It's always those little things. … We had some spurts and looked like the team that could win the series at times."

4. Bubble Hockey

When COVID-19 plunged the world into a global health crisis, the hockey season and sports at large seemed trivial, at best. No one wanted to see seasons suddenly end, but there was something bigger, something more important on which to focus our collective efforts.

Months later, with the tireless work and planning of the NHL and NHLPA, bubble hockey was born in Toronto and Edmonton. Everyone involved with this one-of-a-kind postseason tournament was venturing into uncharted waters, learning as they went.

Once the puck dropped, though, everything else seemed to fade. Hockey was hockey, and playoff hockey was playoff hockey, even if the circumstances were wildly different.

This is an experience that will be talked about for years to come, and you can't help but wonder how differently it would have played out pre-pandemic.

But the simple fact that it happened - and it has happened with the upmost concern for the safety and well-being of everyone - is something to be remembered and appreciated.

"The reality of it is we're playing a game and real fortunate to be doing it. I think that came to the forefront when it got taken away. … For sure going through all this, you realize how fortunate we are that we get to do this job," Brind'Amour said. "We're going home right now to see our families, and we couldn't be happier to do that. I think everyone in the world realizes that and appreciates your family even more going through all this."

"[I'll remember] just the group of guys we have here. We're a tight-knit group," Slavin said. "This was obviously a first experience for everybody, so I think we'll just remember it all as a whole."

5. The Future

For the first time since 2001 and 2002, the Canes qualified for the playoffs in consecutive seasons.

In the shortened 2019-20 regular season, they were the ninth best team in the NHL and were pushing to climb even higher at the time of the pause. They ranked in the top 10 in both special teams categories. They're bursting at the seams with young talent that has only improved year to year. They have dedicated leadership in the locker room and behind the bench.

This team? This team is special, and though this part of the journey has come to an end, the story is only beginning.

"We want to win. We're saddened that we're not still playing. That's why we do this, but there's more to it," Brind'Amour said. "We want to be that organization that is continually talked about to have a chance to win and for our community to be proud of their team and how they play and how they represent. It means more. … I feel like our guys buy that and show that by the way they play."

"We've got some really good young players who want it and are going to grow and be even better," Staal said. "That's the exciting thing about the Carolina Hurricanes: the future is bright. There are lots of guys who bring it every night. That's what you want to see, and when you've got the talent to boot, it makes for some fun hockey."