Steady Freddie & Dangerous Depth Carry Canes In Game 4

RALEIGH, N.C. - With yet another win on home ice on Monday, the Carolina Hurricanes now hold a 3-1 series lead and are just one victory away from eliminating the Washington Capitals.

The prevailing theory ahead of the best-of-seven set was that it would be a long one, and if Washington wants its season to continue, it will be. But Carolina has earned its advantage, not necessarily through singular starring performances - Frederik Andersen notwithstanding, we'll get to him - but through production from everywhere in the lineup.

Some nights, it'll take a small handful of players dragging everyone into the fight. But to win the Stanley Cup, it'll take more than that.

It'll take nights like Monday, which saw 12 of the team's 18 skaters find the scoresheet, continuing to showcase the buy-in Rod Brind'Amour has received from his entire roster as they responded to each Washington surge.

“There’s no panic when things don’t go our way. Tonight, they’re closing the gap, we just keep playing," said the Canes' coach. "Our older guys have been through this, or even our not-so-old guys have been through it for a few years, so there’s a little bit of maturity there.”

Freddie's On Fire...

It's become almost a broken record at this point, but the latest victory would not have been possible without some early, timely saves from Frederik Andersen.

Last night, he was tasked with five high-danger chances in the first period, again keeping Washington off the board before his team eventually swung momentum in their direction with the inaugural first-period goal of the series.

Although the Canes feel as if they're still asking too much of their backstop, at least to start games, the saves that they've been getting have brought a boost to the troops.

“It’s so apparent, the confidence he’s giving us. We can play a lot more aggressive [when he's playing like that]," Sean Walker identified post-game. "Mistakes are going to happen, but he’s been bailing us out tons. Just going out there every night, knowing that he’s back there, he’s playing unbelievable, really, it’s really a comforting feeling for us back there. We don’t want to rely on him as much as we have [and there are] some Grade-As that we’re giving up, but those are things we’re going to look at. But again, he’s playing really well and it’s giving us a great chance every night.”

Allowing his team to get the first goal of the night in the last two outings, perhaps equally as impressive, Andersen has remained locked in thereafter, even when the Canes have applied their patented pressure on Washington, forcing the man they call "Zilla" to go long stretches without seeing a shot.

"It's not easy to stay ready sometimes when there's maybe a big lull in the game, or you're not getting a ton of action. He's done a nice job of always seemingly staying ready," Rod Brind'Amour said on Tuesday. "You still have those high-quality chances, like early in the game last night, there were a couple there. To me, that's such a huge part of it, because now all of a sudden, you're able to settle us down and allow us to keep playing. You have to be a pro about it, and to me, that's what he's done really well for us, being steady."

Walker's Stock Continues To Rise...

While Walker was complimentary of Andersen last night, several others within the locker room praised Walker just as much.

"Coming out party" may not be the proper application for the first-year Hurricane's playoffs thus far, because if you ask Brind'Amour, he's been impressive all year, but following up a remarkable defensive performance in Game 3 with more back end brilliance and a a multi-point effort in Game 4, there's no shortage of buzz surrounding Walker at the moment.

“He’s skating well. He’s got skill offensively and defensively. He plays hard. He’s the perfect fit for this organization and for us he’s played great all season," Dmitry Orlov shared.

Most of the season, Walker has been attached to the hip of Shayne Gostisbehere at five-on-five, but for a second consecutive game the right-handed shot spent some third-period time with Jaccob Slavin, a spot occupied by Brent Burns for most of the past two seasons. Brind'Amour was quick to say that the occurrence was because the team wanted Slavin out there more, but throughout the small sample size, Slavin and Walker look strong next to one another.

"Walks has just been solid. I think his game has gone up another level, so he’s earned that ice time and the trust from the group. Clearly, that goal tonight is an indicator of what he’s capable of. I know his numbers maybe weren’t great this year (statistically), but you watched him all year. He had a lot of good opportunities, and he’s capable of doing that," Brind'Amour said post-game.

It can take time to acclimate to new surroundings, but with his first career playoff points now under his belt, it's clear that Walker - and other fellow newcomers to this year's club - is finding his footing in Raleigh.

“It’s amazing...All over the board, we had guys stepping up," said Seth Jarvis, who also scored on Monday. "That’s why you bring those guys in, and to make the impact they had tonight was amazing.”

Nikishin Sighting...

Before last night's action got underway, fans were caught by surprise when defenseman Alexander Nikishin took to the ice for warmups. His first time on the ice with the team pregame it's another step closer to his eventual debut, and the latest advancement in his journey.

Brind'Amour was asked if the decision to have him on the ice was due to somebody being a game-time decision, and the head coach shot that down, instead insisting that it was just to keep the defenseman as close to the flow of playing as possible.

"We were just kind of giving him the routine," Brind'Amour said. "There's probably a good chance we'll have to use him at some point, but that was really the reasoning."

Also pressed if Nikishin is the next man up on the blue line, Brind'Amour wouldn't commit to that either, alluding to the fact that the team has other fresh bodies, such as Scott Morrow, Ty Smith, and Riley Stillman, ready to go, but he did say that it's possible.

"We've got a couple of options. We've had looks at other guys, so we know and there's a comfort in knowing what you're getting, versus not really sure," the head coach continued. "It would be a tough situation to plop a kid in there who hasn't played a game over here with these stakes. But I just think we're trying to give him every step of the way. Hopefully, we don't have to make those decisions, but if we do, we'll figure it out."

Speaking of the blue line, Brind'Amour said Jalen Chatfield, who got roughed up in Game 3 and "tweaked something" at the end of Game 4, is expected to be fine for Thursday's Game 5 in D.C.