Gameday: Hurricanes at Lightning

TAMPA BAY - Happy New Year!
This is the gameday hub, where you can find all the latest news and information related to tonight's New Year's Eve tilt featuring the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning in one handy location. Make this a regular stop throughout the day, as we update it with notes, photos and more as puck drop draws near.
In a back-to-back situation with travel, the Hurricanes will not hold a morning skate. We'll likely chat with head coach Bill Peters around midway and pass along pertinent lineup updates, quotes and more then.
Last updated: 6:30 p.m.

BLUE CROSS AND BLUE SHIELD OF NORTH CAROLINA TOOLS TO VICTORY
6:30 p.m.
Tonight's Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina three Tools to Victory.:
1. Back to Back
The Hurricanes are 5-1-0 in the second halves of back-to-back games this season. More of that tonight after last night's 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at home.
2. Staal's Line
Andrej Nestrasil replaces Elias Lindholm on Jordan Staal's line tonight, an opportunity for Nestrasil to draw back into the lineup and prove that he's capable of competing on a nightly basis.
3. Win Special Teams
The Hurricanes have the league's best penalty kill, and the Lightning have a top-five power play. Whoever wins the special teams battle tonight will likely be victorious.
ALVES TO SERVE AS BACK-UP
5:45 p.m.
Hurricanes equipment manager Jorge Alves will serve as the team's back-up goaltender tonight, after signing a professional tryout contract this afternoon. Eddie Lack is a bit under the weather, and Cam Ward will get the nod in the net.
All the details of this completely awesome development can be found
here
. We'll have more lineup news for you the closer we get to puck drop.
QUICK HITS: ON THE CALL, NED SCORES & MORE
2:40 p.m.
Our chat with head coach Bill Peters has been pushed back to later this afternoon, so I don't have any Hurricanes lineup notes or anything of the sort to pass along right now.
But I do have a few other nuggets before tonight's New Year's Eve match-up between the Hurricanes and Lightning.
→ I'll likely be joining Mike Maniscalco on the pregame show tonight (6:30 p.m., FOX Sports Carolinas), so adjust your viewing schedules accordingly.
→ Speaking of the broadcast, John Forslund is in Toronto preparing to deliver the play-by-play in the Centennial Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs tomorrow on NBC (3 p.m.). Filling in for him on the call tonight in Tampa will be Sean Baligian.
→ I don't want to put too much hype behind this one, but this is a big game in Tampa Bay tonight. The Lightning, who have played two more games than Carolina, lead the Hurricanes by a point in the standings. The Hurricanes could leap-frog the Bolts and pull within striking distance of the second wild card spot with a New Year's Eve victory.
→ Finally, from down on the farm, check this out: it's Canes' goaltending prospect Alex Nedeljkovic sniping a goal from his own crease. No big deal.

Stay tuned for more here this afternoon!
CANES USHER IN 2017 AGAINST BOLTS
6:00 a.m.
As the clock ticks toward the New Year, the Carolina Hurricanes have the opportunity to end 2016 on a high note as they challenge the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second half of a back-to-back set.
The Hurricanes extended their home point streak to 11 games (10-0-1) with a 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks, who came into the game with the best record in the Western Conference. Up 2-1 heading into the final 20 minutes of regulation, the Hurricanes extended their lead to two goals as Jay McClement hammered home what ultimately proved to be the game-deciding tally. Cam Ward made 27 saves and earned first-star honors in his 13th win of the season.
"The guys did a good job and found a way to get it done," head coach Bill Peters said. "I liked our start. They had a push back, as good teams do, and then a huge goal by J-Mac ends up being the game-winner."
"I thought it was a great atmosphere. It was almost like a playoff-type feel," Ward said. "It was a lot of fun to be able to hang on and get the win."
Elias Lindholm, who left the game with an upper-body injury, and Lee Stempniak also tallied for the Hurricanes, goals that occurred 65 seconds apart and were both via rebounds.
"We put in an excellent first period, dictated the play and capitalized on our opportunities. Good teams find a way to push, and I thought they did in the second period," Ward said. "We competed right until the end."
The Hurricanes, who are 5-1-0 in the latter half of back-to-back sets, will now play their final game of 2016 against the Lightning, who lead Carolina by just a point in the tightly-packed Eastern Conference standings. The Bolts are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games, having dropped a 3-2 overtime decision against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.
Tonight marks the second of three meetings between these old Southeast Division rivals. They first faced off nearly four weeks ago in Raleigh, when Phil Di Giuseppe scored the game-winning goal in overtime and Ward made his jersey number's equal in saves in a 1-0 shutout win. That victory was the sixth in a row for the Hurricanes at home, part of the foundation that is the team's current 11-game point streak.
"We're enjoying it and having fun. It's exciting to come to the rink and play," Ward said after Friday night's win. "We just want to build off this and continue it going forward."
Will the Hurricanes go back to Ward in net tonight? Peters didn't commit to it just yet after the game, but Ward said he'd be ready.
"Yeah, man. I love playing," he said. "Whatever coach says, I'll do."
A few other lineup questions persist: will Lindholm be healthy enough to play? If not, Andrej Nestrasil is waiting in the wings. Will Ryan Murphy and Klas Dahlbeck pair again, or will Matt Tennyson, a healthy scratch on Friday, get back into the lineup?
"It's a competitive environment," Peters said. "If you're not a competitive person, you're not going to be able to survive in our program."
CANESPR NOTES: The Hurricanes killed off their one and only penalty against Chicago on Friday night. Their penalty killing success remains tops in the NHL at 90.7 percent. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay has the league's third-best power play at a 22.6 percent success rate. … The Canes' 1-0 win over Tampa Bay on Dec. 4 was the first shutout they've had against the Lightning since a 0-0 tie in Raleigh on Nov. 23, 2003.
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