How the Carolina Hurricanes are beating the Montreal Canadiens at the matchup game – The Athletic
MONTREAL — Carolina Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov ended Game 3 of the Eastern Conference final, giving his team a 3-2 overtime victory and 2-1 series lead over the Montreal Canadiens.
It was a huge win for the Hurricanes, and the way they got there — a crunch-time goal from their first line — made it even bigger. If Carolina is to keep control against Montreal and beyond, it’ll need more of the same from Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis, who’d largely been kept in check in the first 10 games of the postseason.
The run-up to the game winner, though, was crucial, too, and an indication of how the Hurricanes had thrived without production from their most talented players. With 6:54 remaining in the period, Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour sent his fourth line — center Mark Jankowski and wingers William Carrier and Eric Robinson — out for an offensive-zone faceoff on their fifth overtime shift. Jankowski won the draw; Robinson eventually put a shot attempt on Canadiens goalie Jakub Dobeš; Jankowski and Carrier logged hits against Montreal defensemen Lane Hutson and Noah Dobson, respectively. About 10 seconds after they headed to the bench, the game was over, and the Hurricanes had their first lead in a conference final since 2006.
Jankowski, Carrier and Robinson have emerged as a fairly rare commodity; a physical, play-driving fourth line that logs high-leverage minutes in postseason games.
“I think they can play against anybody,” Brind’Amour said Tuesday. “It certainly helps our overall group. It helps me, being able to sit back there and just go, ‘OK, go ahead,’ when they’re playing at this level.”
In 73:01 postseason minutes with Jankowski-Carrier-Robinson on the ice, the Hurricanes hold a 76-57 edge in attempts, a 26-24 edge in shots and an expected goal share of 57 percent while outscoring opponents 3-1. They’ve done their best work against Montreal (27-16 in shot attempts, 3-0 in goals, 6-3 in high-danger chances, 57 percent expected goal share), but they were effective in the first two rounds as well, playing the Ottawa Senators to a draw, then driving plenty of zone time and scoring chances against the Philadelphia Flyers.
All three represent wins for Carolina’s front office. Jankowski was a 2012 first-round pick by the Calgary Flames who’d gone on to play for three organizations in five years and was acquired at the 2025 trade deadline from Nashville for a fifth-round pick. Robinson spent time in the American Hockey League the season before signing a one-year, $950,000 contract in the summer of 2024. Carrier was a known bottom-six commodity for the Vegas Golden Knights, but the specifics of the deal he signed with Carolina in 2024 — tons of term (six years), not a ton of money ($12.6 million) — were outside the box.
The overtime shift Monday embodies what Brind’Amour asks of his forwards: Dominate the puck, stress the opponent at all times, believe that the goals will follow. If one line doesn’t score, it can still make it easier for the next.
“It’s huge,” Jankowski said. “It puts a lot of confidence in us that the coaching staff believes in us to be able to go out there and have some good shifts, string some good shifts together (and gain) some momentum for our team. We’re feeding off it. We appreciate that confidence that the coaching staff is giving us, and we’re trying to run with it and trying to do everything we can to help the team, whether that’s a big hit one way (or) creating a scoring chance the other way.”
Canadiens must figure out tough matchups
On the flip side, one of the tough aspects of the Canadiens’ results through three games is that the vast majority of their lineup hasn’t gotten much traction. Some of Montreal’s top players — such as Hutson — are spending so much of their time in their own end, as evidenced by lopsided scoring-chance and expected goals (xG) numbers for the series.
The Hurricanes, meanwhile, are getting more and more confident rolling all four lines, no matter who else is out there — which is a key advantage when playing on the road.
Here’s how all four lines stack up for both teams entering Game 4 on Wednesday, using results for the centers on each line. Lines are ranked by five-on-five ice time in the series.
Canadiens xG share
Line 1: Nick Suzuki: 64.1 percent
Line 2: Jake Evans: 29.3 percent
Line 3: Phillip Danault: 29.4 percent
Line 4: Joe Veleno: 24.4 percent
Hurricanes xG share
Line 1: Logan Stankoven: 59.7 percent
Line 2: Sebastian Aho: 54.3 percent
Line 3: Jordan Staal: 76.9 percent
Line 4: Mark Jankowski: 59.7 percent
The silver lining for Montreal is that its top line is finding a way to make an impact territorially, including impressive totals for high-danger chances. The tough news: Basically no one else is anywhere close.
The Hurricanes have had especially great results with Staal, Jordan Martinook and Game 2 hero Nikolaj Ehlers out there, as they’re thriving while taking some of the heavy defensive lifting. It’s been very noticeable how active (and physical) Staal and Martinook, in particular, have been on the forecheck and through the neutral zone in snuffing out almost every attempted Montreal breakout.
While Brind’Amour attempted to get that trio up against the Canadiens’ top line in Carolina, that wasn’t the case in Game 3, as with last change Montreal coach Martin St. Louis was able to largely avoid them. Of the 23:25 Suzuki played at even strength in that game, just 4:28 of it was against Staal.
The remaining challenge is that Suzuki and linemates Cole Caufield and Juraj Slavkovský are still getting a heavy dose of defenseman Jaccob Slavin, who is doing a nice job limiting the damage after a tough outing in Game 1.
All of this presents other problems for Montreal, however. Whom exactly should the Canadiens want out against Staal’s line, given everyone has struggled against it? And whom do they worry about more defensively between Stankoven’s and Aho’s lines, which could have some renewed mojo after scoring the Game 3 winner?
The Canadiens’ plan in Game 4 has to involve playing some of these matchups closer to a draw than it’s been, as Carolina has been putting far too much pressure on Hutson, Dobeš, their depth D and what should be a heavily sheltered fourth line that St. Louis is clearly reticent to use. Perhaps that means simply shifting to more of a grinding, dump-and-chase style when the Suzuki line isn’t on the ice, given Brind’Amour’s Game 2 adjustments toward a high F3 lock have meant getting any room — or odd-man rushes — through the neutral zone appears unlikely the rest of the series.
Overall, in addition to Carolina getting more from its fourth line, there’s a real mismatch in this series between the middle-six forward groups. That’s not going to be an easy riddle for Montreal to solve given the talent gap and the fatigue factor of having played six additional games in the first two rounds — especially when the series shifts back to Raleigh, N.C., for Game 5, where Brind’Amour will regain last change.
The unflappable Mr. Andersen?
Brind’Amour was asked early in his availability about goaltender Frederik Andersen and how he had expressed excitement about playing in this series, in the third round, in a hockey-mad city such as Montreal.
Brind’Amour raised his eyebrows a bit at the notion of Andersen being fired up.
“I just saw him walking out of here,” the coach said in the media room. “He didn’t look too excited. That might be you guys (in the media causing that), though.”
That’s Andersen, Brind’Amour went on to explain. Not a big talker. Calm and earnest. There’s a reason he’s earned the nickname Steady Freddy over the years.
While some have pointed to the Big Dane as the Canes’ one tangible weakness through three games, it’s also fair to note how challenging it can be to play goal when you’re sometimes going 10 to 15 minutes without facing a shot on net, the way he has in this series.
After facing just 46 shots through three games in this series, Andersen is averaging the lightest workload in the NHL playoffs at 20.2 shots against per 60 minutes played. Among goalies who made at least 30 appearances during the regular season, Andersen was tied for third-lowest in that statistic (24.2 per 60), and Canes backup Brandon Bussi was ahead of him.
Andersen has an .804 save percentage in the series after posting a .950 in going 8-0 through the first two rounds. His coach hardly seems worried about him, however.
“He’s very even-keeled, and for that position, that’s really important,” Brind’Amour said. “The way he plays is to be that way. You wouldn’t know if he had a good game or a bad game.”
“Playing behind this team, we have the puck a lot,” Andersen said. “We pressure hard. So these kinds of games, they have quite often. You take that experience and battle with yourself to be focused on what’s next.”
The fact Andersen, a pending unrestricted free agent, has been this far in the playoffs three times before and fallen short also isn’t lost on him. At 36 and having been through some tough injuries — including this season — this could be one of his last, best chances to win.
“I think all our guys are (appreciative of being here),” Brind’Amour said. “You can’t take it for granted. The older guys for sure get it, but I think we do a good job in making sure our young guys understand that, too. You can’t take a day in this league for granted, let alone a Stanley Cup playoff game. It’s easier for the older guys to appreciate that, but I know he certainly does.”
“I’m just thankful for the opportunity, really,” Andersen said. “I’ve been through a lot. But I’m grateful for being around, and being able to play for this long has been really cool. We all dream about these times of year. It’s special.”
