Recap: Canes Roll Past Rangers To Open Weekend

RALEIGH, NC. -The Carolina Hurricanes opened their weekend back-to-back by claiming the top spot in the Metropolitan Division, taking down the New York Rangers by a score of 6-3.

Despite the impending snow in Wake County there was a rowdy atmosphere inside PNC Arena from the time the puck dropped, with fans understanding the implications the contest had on the Eastern Conference standings.
The Canes also appeared to understand the assignment from the get-go, setting up a possession-based attack in the early moments of the contest. Controlling the puck for the majority of the opening frame, New York was held to just four shots in the opening 20 minutes. During that time the home side was able to strike not just once, but twice, courtesy of Vincent Trocheck and Seth Jarvis.
Trocheck's ninth of the year came via deflection following a Tony DeAngelo shot from the point, and the 19-year-old tapped home some early insurance on a two-on-one with Sebastian Aho.
Taking their two-goal lead into the second, DeAngelo then added his second assist against his former team after putting a one-timer on a platter for fellow former Ranger, Jesper Fast.

New York was able to finally crack Frederik Andersen on a power play moments later, beginning a surge that posed a serious threat to the Canes lead that had started to feel comfortable. New York started to build momentum immediately following the strike, however, thanks to Andersen, some threats were held out of the back of the net.
The All-Star's efforts allowed Carolina to push back with some offense of their own, eventually getting a fourth goal from Aho and a fifth on a must-see setup from Andrei Svechnikov.

Carolina took a 5-1 advantage and although the Rangers were able to put together another heavy attack in the third, striking twice, the Canes were able to put a power on the contest with a DeAngelo power play tally in the third.
They Said It:
Tony DeAngelo, the night's first star, on what he thought the difference was tonight:
"I thought we carried the play early. I thought they had a really good push there in the third. They're a good team, they make plays, so they're going to get some really good chances. I thought in the first two periods we limited them real well and we created a lot. Our forwards were playing really well down low and controlling the puck. We were getting a lot of chances and scrambles in front. We had a lot of tip chances and that's our game. In the first two periods we really had it going."
Jesper Faston how important it was to have a performance like the team did tonight, knowing it was the first of two games in two days:
"Look at the standings, we knew they were ahead of us. We wanted to make sure we played the right way and send a little message."
Rod Brind'Amourpinpointing one aspect of his team's play from tonight that he'd like to see again tomorrow against New Jersey:
"If you can get off to these starts, it certainly makes your life a lot easier. Every coach says the same thing. That would be the receipe."
What's Next?:
The team was supposed to travel to New Jersey immediately post-game, but due to the snow and RDU being closed, the team will instead fly up Saturday for their meeting against the Devils at 7 p.m.
Bonus Notes:
Worth A Click:
Canes Announce Schedule Updates
Sin City Bound: Canes React To All-Star Reactions