DALLAS - Less than 24 hours after punching their return ticket to the postseason, the Carolina Hurricanes aim to inch closer to locking up first place in the Central Division in a rematch against the Dallas Stars.
In securing their 69th point of the season in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Stars, the Canes clinched their third consecutive postseason berth. Max McCormick and Jaccob Slavin helped the Canes erase a two-goal deficit in the second period, and Jani Hakanpää netted the game-tying goal late in regulation.
CAR Recap: Hurricanes clinch playoff berth in OT loss
"We've got eight games left, and we're in the playoffs? Let's go. That's pretty impressive. Enough of the negative stuff. This group has worked their ass off all year," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "I know we lost the game in overtime. We lost the talent show part. We dug in, got a point and got in. We're not done."
Numbers to Know
7: The Canes have garnered seven of a possible 10 points on this road trip, with a chance to bring home 9 of 12, all while playing with an injury-riddled lineup. 2:Morgan Geekie recorded a pair of primary assists on Monday night, his first career multi-assist game in the NHL. 7: In seven games with the Canes, Hakanpaa now has more goals (2) than he did in his first 47 games in the NHL with Anaheim (1).
