2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Hurricanes vs. Devils 2nd-round preview

Rookie goalie Schmid leads New Jersey against Aho, potent Carolina offense in best-of-7 series

By Tom Gulitti

@TomGulittiNHL NHL.com Staff Writer

May 02, 2023

The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs features eight teams in four best-of-7 series, which start Tuesday.

Today, NHL.com previews the Eastern Conference Second Round between the Carolina Hurricanes and the New Jersey Devils.

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(1M) Carolina Hurricanes vs. (2M) New Jersey Devils

Hurricanes:52-21-9, 113 points; 4-2 to win first round against New York Islanders

Devils: 52-22-8, 112 points; 4-3 to win first round against New York Rangers

Season Series:CAR 2-2-0; NJD 2-1-1

Game 1: Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SNE, SNO, SNP, TVAS)

The New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes are not satisfied with being in the Eastern Conference Second Round after surviving hard-fought series in the first round.

The Devils outlasted their biggest rivals, the New York Rangers, in seven games after falling behind 2-0 in the best-of-7 series. The Hurricanes held off the New York Islanders in a physical series that lasted six games.

Carolina edged New Jersey by one point for first in the Metropolitan Division during the regular season.

"We know Carolina is a really good team," New Jersey forward Jack Hughes said. "We had a lot of good games with them during the season. ... We're a confident team now. We got one (series). We got those young legs, we got to keep playing, keep skating and playing our game."

The Hurricanes advanced despite missing three of their top six forwards because of injuries: Max Pacioretty (torn Achilles tendon), Andrei Svechnikov (torn ACL) and Teuvo Teravainen (broken hand). The Hurricanes were able to survive without them against the Islanders by getting contributions throughout their lineup, from Sebastian Aho (four goals) on the top line to Paul Stastny (three goals, including Game 6 in overtime) on the fourth line.

That will have to continue for them to get past the Devils.

"I don't know how many teams can lose three top players up front -- that's a whole line -- and then expect to win in the playoffs," Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "I mean, that's just really hard. But somehow we managed a way to do it. That says more about what's still left in the room. Obviously we did it, so there's no reason we can't keep doing it.

"There's definitely belief in what's left in that room and how we have to play. We feel we can do it."

This will be the fifth playoff series between the Hurricanes and the Devils (2001, 2002, 2006, 2009). Carolina won the previous three.

The Hurricanes are in the second round for the third straight season and seeking their first trip to the Eastern Conference Final since 2019. The Devils are in the second round for the first time since 2012, when they advanced to the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Los Angeles Kings.

Game breakers

Hurricanes:Aho led Carolina in goals for the sixth straight regular season with 36 and was its best player during the first round with a series-high seven points (four goals, three assists). When the Hurricanes needed a big play offensively, Aho usually made it. He set the tone in a 2-1 win in Game 1 with his power-play goal 3:47 into the first period and forced overtime in a 2-1 win in Game 6 with his tying goal 9:24 into the third period.

Devils:Hughes was a threat offensively throughout his first NHL playoff series, getting five points (three goals, two assists) in seven games. The forward, who turns 22 on May 14, showed he has another gear during the regular season when he set a Devils record with 99 points (43 goals, 56 assists). He should thrive in this series, in which playing with speed will be a focus for both teams.

Goaltending

Hurricanes: Antti Raanta and Frederik Andersen each likely will play in this series after each played in the first round. Raanta started the first five games and was 3-2 with a 2.59 goals-against average and .906 save percentage. Andersen, who didn't dress for Games 2-4 because of an illness and an undisclosed injury, made 33 saves in winning Game 6 against the Islanders.

Devils:Rookie Akira Schmid took over for Vitek Vanecek after New Jersey lost the first two games in the first round and went 4-1 with a 1.38 GAA., .951 save percentage and two shutouts. The 22-year-old rebounded from being pulled after allowing five goals on 29 shots in a 5-2 loss in Game 6 to stop all 31 shots he faced in a 4-0 win in Game 7, becoming the fifth rookie goalie in NHL history with a Game 7 shutout. Vanecek is 0-2 with a 4.43 GAA and .827 save percentage in the playoffs.

The crew talks Akira Schmid's great playoff stats

Numbers to know

Hurricanes:Carolina was 5-for-25 (20.0 percent) on the power play and an NHL-best 17-for-18 (94.4 percent) on the penalty kill in the first round. The Hurricanes were 13-for-13 on the penalty kill and scored four short-handed goals (two by Aho) against the Devils during the regular season. Carolina led the NHL during the regular season with a plus-1,530 differential in 5-on-5 shot attempts and was third in the League during the first round of the playoffs at plus-42.

Devils: New Jersey was 4-for-24 (16.7 percent) on the power play and 23-for-28 on the penalty kill (82.1 percent) in the first round. The Devils were 17-for-18 on the penalty kill (94.4 percent) in the last five games against the Rangers. Jesper Bratt led New Jersey with six points (four goals, two assists) against Carolina during the regular season. The Devils were fourth in the NHL during the regular season with a plus-656 differential in 5-on-5 shot attempts and were second in the first round of the playoffs at plus-54.

X-factors

Hurricanes: Martin Necas, who led Carolina with an NHL career-high 71 points (28 goals, 43 assists) during the regular season, can be a difference maker in this round after a quiet first round when he had three points (one goal, two assists). With the top forwards the Hurricanes are missing, the 24-year-old needs to return to his regular-season form and prove he can produce in the playoffs. He had five points (all assists) in 14 playoff games last season when Carolina lost in the second round.

Devils: Dougie Hamilton played three seasons for the Hurricanes before signing with the Devils in 2021 and knows them well. The defenseman's overtime goal in Game 3 against the Rangers turned the series around, but he can produce more offensively than his three points (one goal, two assists) in the series. He set NHL career-highs with 22 goals, 52 assists and 74 points during the regular season, including 28 points (eight goals, 20 assists) on the power play.

CAR@NYI, Gm4: Necas nets PPG on Noesen's superb dish

They said it

"We know what type of team they are. They play with a ton of pace and speed. I think it's going to be a very fast matchup because that's how we want to play too. They've got some high-skill players over there that we want to limit their time and space."-- Hurricanes forward Jordan Martinook

"Tough opponent. Great, great offensive team. So it's going to be another tough series, but we need to use our experience that we just gained in the second round."-- Devils forward Ondrej Palat

Will win if …

Hurricanes: Depth forwards such as Stastny, Stefan Noesen (two goals) and Jesper Fast (two goals) continue to produce, they slow the Devils speed by making them play in the defensive zone and Raanta and Andersen make enough saves to allow them to win some low-scoring games.

Devils: Schmid continues to play like a calm, seasoned veteran, they pressure the Hurricanes defensemen, and top forwards who didn't score much against the Rangers, such as Timo Meier (no goals), Nico Hischier (no goals), Bratt (one goal) and Tomas Tatar (one goal), heat up.