Recap: Canes Edged by Jets

WINNIPEG - The Carolina Hurricanes suffered their first regulation loss of the season, falling 3-1 to the Winnipeg Jets.
Bryan Little scored the game-winning goal for Winnipeg with just 2:09 remaining in regulation, while Micheal Ferland tallied the lone goal for the Hurricanes.
Here are five takeaways from tonight's cross-conference match-up.

One
Unless the Hurricanes were going to finish the season 81-0-1, or some undefeated-in-regulation variant of that, the team's first regulation loss of the season was bound to happen sooner or late.
And, all things considered, a 3-1 loss to one of the best teams in the Western Conference on the tail end of a back-to-back isn't anything to hang your head over. The Hurricanes remained aggressive, they fought back to tie the game in the third period and they got a solid performance in net from Petr Mrazek.
"It was a hard-fought game," Jordan Staal said. "We were right there. We did a lot of great things and worked really hard. Sometimes they don't go your way. I thought we could have had a better result, but that's hockey. We'll move forward from this one."
"I didn't feel like we were overly matched. It felt like we were hanging in there with them and probably had some opportunities to win the game," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "Overall I'm happy with the effort for sure."
Two
A broken line change and a puck that didn't get deep enough led to the Jets turning the puck back the other way with speed. Then, it was on and off the tape of Little, as he tallied the game-winning goal with 2:09 left in regulation.
A tough bounce and a tough break for the Canes, who probably deserved a better fate. But, you learn from it and move forward.
"An unfortunate way to end," Staal said. "t was just a quick play off a tired change. That's just the way the game goes sometimes."
"Those are the ones that hurt a little bit, but it's a learning experience. We had some mistakes by our young guys tonight that cost us," Brind'Amour said. "We always talk about fighting for inches, and we didn't get it far enough. They came back and countered and it's in the net. It's a tough learning lesson for these young guys, but we believe in them and we'll move on to tomorrow."
Three
Much of this game belonged to Mrazek and Laurent Brossoit, who dueled it out at opposite ends of the ice through a scoreless 40 minutes.
"They both played really well," Staal said. "I swear I was going to get one tonight, but it didn't work."
In the second period, Mrazek came up with what's probably the save of the young season for the Hurricanes. The Jets skated into the zone on a 2-on-0 - yes, you read that correctly. Nikolaj Ehlers and Patrik Laine executed the give-and-go, but Mrazek didn't bite too hard on the give to Laine and was in good enough position to slide over and deny Ehlers' shot.

Earlier in the second, Mrazek came up big on the always-dangerous Laine, who had a quality scoring chance on what was essentially a 2-on-1. Mrazek was able to push across the crease and body down Laine's shot.
"Mraz played really, really well. Some big saves," Staal said. "He was good tonight."

Four
In one moment, Staal had room to skate along the near wing, blistering a wrist shot off the inside off the far post and out, mere inches away from giving his team a 1-0 lead in the third period. In a moment shortly after, he was whistled for an interference penalty. On the ensuing Jets power play, Laine scored on a one-timer from the near circle - Alex Ovechkin's house - to put the Jets on the board first.
But, there's no quit in this Canes team. Even in the second half of a back-to-back, the Canes only trailed the Jets in the third period for just over three minutes. Dougie Hamilton took a pass from Sebastian Aho and backhanded a shot that squeaked through Brossoit. Though the puck was likely going to cross the goal line anyway, Micheal Ferland hammered it in just to be sure.

"I thought we kept our foot on the gas the entire game," Ferland said. "We kept going at them and at them. Their goalie played really good, and our goalie played really good, too."
"When you continue to put shots on net and play the way we have, pucks are going to go in eventually," Staal said. "We're believing in that, and we have the talent to do it."
Five
The Canes have responded well to in-game adversity this season, not letting a deficit affect their mentality or how they approach their offensive attack. Now, they face the adversity of a regulation loss for the first time this season. How do they respond on Tuesday in another tough match-up?
"We know if we play that way every night, we can beat any team in this league," Ferland said. "That's what we take away from tonight's game. Be ready to work in Tampa."
Up Next
The Hurricanes will wrap up this three-game road trip in Tampa Bay on Tuesday.