Hurricanes’ top line needs 5-on-5 production in Game 2 of East Final

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The narrative in the Stanley Cup Playoffs can change quickly from round to round.

"That's playoff hockey," Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho said. "That's how it goes."

For example, it didn't matter through the first two rounds that the Hurricanes’ top line of Aho, Seth Jarvis and Andrei Svechnikov did not produce a 5-on-5 goal together. Carolina won all eight games, sweeping the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers. It didn't need offense from Aho, Svechnikov and Jarvis because the three were winning their matchups defensively and the Hurricanes did not allow more than two goals in any game.

But the narrative has since changed entering Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Montreal Canadiens at Lenovo Center on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Jarvis scored a 5-on-5 goal just 33 seconds into a 6-2 loss in Game 1 on Thursday, with Aho and Svechnikov getting the assists. There was no time to feel relief, because they stayed on for the ensuring center-ice face-off and 27 seconds later they were burned by Montreal's top line of Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki and Juraj Slafkovsky, which had similar 5-on-5 offensive struggles through two rounds.

Caufield tied it one minute into the game courtesy of a defensive breakdown. In the third period, Slafkovsky beat Svechnikov in a 1-on-1 battle to give the Canadiens a 5-2 lead, with assists going to Suzuki and Caufield.

Indeed, their 5-on-5 production will matter in this series, especially if Suzuki, Caufield and Slafkovsky are generating the way they did in helping give Montreal a 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.

"Listen, we're trying to win a hockey game tonight, that's the main goal and that's the only goal, honestly," Aho said after the morning skate Saturday. "You want to be at your best for sure and we know we have better in us, and we've got to find it right now. We've got to have a good game tonight and go from there."

The Hurricanes are content to play even in the top-line matchup if they can win the other key matchups, including getting offense from their second line of Taylor Hall, Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven, the line that carried the production through the first two rounds.

That line did not get on the score sheet Thursday. Blake and Stankoven were each minus-3.

Carolina also must defend better as a team in Game 2. Lapses in that area hurt the Hurricanes the most in Game 1, which is why coach Rod Brind'Amour won't add to the pressure the top line is already feeling by publicly saying they need to deliver more offensively to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

He'd rather see them defend first, and certainly better than they did Thursday.

"Well, if we defend like we did, then yes (they're going to need to score more)," Brind'Amour said. "If we're going to go and give four or five breakaways, we have to score five or six goals. But if we can eliminate those, then no, we don't have to (have the top line score more).

“It depends on how the game is going and how we're playing."

That's good in theory, but Aho, Svechnikov and Jarvis are proud producers and expect more from themselves.

Aho led Carolina in the regular season with 80 points (27 goals, 53 assists) in 79 games. Svechnikov was third with 70 (31 goals, 39 assists) in 79 games. Jarvis was fourth with 66 points (32 goals, 34 assists) in 71 games.

They were first (Jarvis), second (Svechnikov) and third (Aho) on the team in goals.

"I've worked my whole life to be in the NHL, and I want to be an effective player," Jarvis said. "I hold myself to a high standard just because I know how much work I put in and what I expect of myself. That goes for the other two guys too; we work so hard, so for us not to be holding up our end of the bargain, it hurts a little bit."

They can make the pain go away by producing in Game 2.

"It's playoff hockey, so nobody is really dominating," Aho said. "It's hard, it's tight and it should be. But I think it comes down to execution, the little plays.

“It's not much -- here and there is a play that can be executed better that keeps the momentum, and when you have a chance you've got to put that in."