Hurricanes counting on top line in Game 2 of Cup Final

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Sebastian Aho's change in tone indicated all you need to know about the urgency the Carolina Hurricanes center and linemates Andrei Svechnikov and Seth Jarvis now feel.

After another underwhelming offensive night in a 5-4 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday, the Hurricanes top line has reached the point when its long-awaited breakthrough is overdue.

"A game like last night, you got to find the way to score one there," Aho said Wednesday. "Obviously it's a different story (if they scored). It's not about work ethic or trying harder, but it doesn't matter at the same time. You've got to figure out how to produce in that game and help the team that way and it's on us to figure it out."

Time is of the essence for Aho and the Hurricanes heading into Game 2 at Lenovo Center on Thursday (8 p.m. ET; ABC, SN, TVAS, CBC) because they don't want to hit the road for Game 3 trailing 2-0 in the best-of-7 series. Vegas has won seven consecutive games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, dating to the second round, and another victory would only add to its confidence.

So, Carolina needs to be better in a lot of areas in Game 2 than it was in Game 1. The sporadic production of Svechnikov (three goals, four assists), Aho (four goals, three assists) and Jarvis (three goals, five assists) has been a storyline for the Hurricanes throughout their 14 playoff games (12-2).

But because the Hurricanes were winning, they and coach Rod Brind'Amour mostly stressed the positives in their play, such as the numerous scoring chances they've created and how they played well defensively in tough matchups against opponents' top lines.

They always knew a time would come, however, when they would need to carry their share of the load offensively. That time has arrived.

It was clear Brind'Amour's patience with that line was running thin after Game 1 when he said, "Your best guys have got to get on the score sheet. That's going to have to happen if we want to get where we want to be."

Brind'Amour said Wednesday spending more time in the offensive zone would be a good place for Svechnikov, Aho and Jarvis to start.

"They're too much one and done, and not even one, and it's not a lot of time," Brind'Amour said. "So, they've got to get a little more offensive-zone time. Kind of like that last shift they had. That was one of the shifts you could say, 'OK, there you go. That's how it needs to look.'"

Jarvis had two of his three shots on goal for the game during the shift that Brind'Amour referenced. Aho set up Jarvis for the second one, which was a shot from the right circle that Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart snagged with his catching glove to keep the score tied 4-4 with 3:45 remaining in the third period.

Tomas Hertl scored the winning goal for Vegas 21 seconds later.

"I've said in the past, the chances are there," Jarvis said. "We've had our looks and we just have to capitalize more now than ever. So, we can't dwell on the past. We can't dwell on the stuff we missed. It's about the next shift and next shot."

The problem is Svechnikov and Aho each had only one shot on goal in Game 1. Jarvis twice passed up open shots to try to set up his linemates, but neither resulted in a shot.

Being more aggressive and having more of a shooting mentality could help.

"Obviously, it's fast, it's high-paced, so you're not making every perfect play every time," Aho said. "You're just going to play the game. But I think we can be a little bit smarter with the puck, for sure. That's the main thing. I think we have to get to our game where we can use our strengths."

The opportunities to do that, and generate more chances and offensive-zone time, were evident when the Hurricanes reviewed the video of Game 1 on Wednesday.

"I know that we can be a little bit smarter with how we get some more O-zone time and get those chances there," Aho said. "And obviously, yeah, when you have a chance to shoot, you have to shoot. At the same time, you just got to play the game the right way and trust that you're going to have that chance."

Trusting their games served Aho, Svechnikov and Jarvis well during the regular season. Aho led Carolina with 80 points (27 goals, 53 assists) in 79 games. Svechnikov was third with 70 points (31 goals, 39 assists) in 79 games and Jarvis was fourth with 66 points (team-leading 32 goals, 34 assists) in 71 games.

The goals haven't come as easily on the playoffs, though. It took until Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Montreal Canadiens for the trio to produce its first 5-on-5 goal as a line.

"Obviously, when it goes your way, it's never easy, but it may be easier," Aho said. "There's also a part that we almost sometimes try to do too much. Instead of just letting the game happen and play the game, let the game come to you in a way. …

"So, I think it's just go out there tomorrow with the highest confidence possible to just kind of play the game and trust that it'll happen."