Mac Attack
McElhinney's 48 saves in Montreal matched a career single-game high for the veteran netminder, and he stole two points for the Hurricanes to win his fourth consecutive start.
"We all kind of just jumped on Mac's back there," said Trevor van Riemsdyk, whose pinball goal in the second period ended up the game-winner. "He made some special saves. He stole that one for us."
"The win is all that matters. We got pretty fortunate tonight," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "It was probably the first game this year that was like that. We've had a couple of those go the other way against us, so now I know how that feels where the goalie just stole the game. We need that sometimes."
McElhinney has made 145 saves on 150 shots in his last four games, posting a 1.25 goals-against average and a .967 save percentage in that time.
Now, he's one of two goaltenders the Hurricanes will deploy for the foreseeable future.
On Thursday, the Hurricanes placed Scott Darling on waivers with the intention of assigning him to the American Hockey League. Petr Mrazek is healthy, and McElhinney figures to get the start on Friday against Anaheim.
"We milked that as long as we could, just to be fair to everybody, our team and those guys, too. Having three goaltenders] just doesn't set up very well. It's hard to practice, hard to get their reps and keep any kind of consistency," Brind'Amour said. "Mac has played extremely well. … Mac has earned the right to be here. We all would agree on that."
**Question Marks Up Front**
Micheal Ferland did not practice with the Hurricanes on Thursday, and his status for Friday night remains up in the air.
[PROJECTED LINEUP
"We're just giving him another day," Brind'Amour said. "I'm not sure exactly if he's going to be available or not."
The Hurricanes recalled Clark Bishop Thursday afternoon. Bishop, who made his NHL debut on Oct. 20, could center the team's fourth line, should Brind'Amour want to move Victor Rask up the lineup and Sebastian Aho over to the wing.
"We all know Victor is a top-nine forward, and we have him basically not playing top-nine minutes. We've got to find a spot for him," Brind'Amour said. "I'm not sure that's how it will shake out tomorrow, but it's something I wanted to look at."
The Opposition
Tonight's match marks the fourth stop on a five-game road trip for the Ducks. After dropping a 5-2 decision in Nashville, Anaheim scored wins on back-to-back nights in Tampa Bay and Florida. Captain Ryan Getzlaf leads the team in scoring with 18 points (6g, 12a).
ADVANCE AUTO PARTS KEYS TO THE GAME
