Recap: Canes 'Can't Capitalize' In Loss To Devils

NEWARK, N.J. - A solid start lifted the Carolina Hurricanes to an early lead, but they failed to find enough offense to outpace the New Jersey Devils on Friday as they fell 4-2 at Prudential Center.

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Just like their last visit to the Garden State, the Hurricanes opened the scoring midway through the first period as Eric Robinson poked home a loose puck in the crease. But despite further strong play from the visitors, New Jersey tallied twice in 42 seconds to take a 2-1 lead into the break.

A similar second stanza followed a familiar script: Brent Burns whistled a wrister from the slot to tie the game just 22 seconds into the frame, but two more goals from the Devils - this time separated by four minutes - gave the hosts a two-goal advantage through 40 minutes.

Carolina controlled much of the play in the third period but managed just seven shots on net as Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom shut the door on the Canes' comeback bid.

Pyotr Kochetkov stopped 19 of 23 shots between the Carolina pipes.

Stats & Standouts

• Tyson Jost's second-period coincidental roughing minor kept it from being a penalty-free performance for the Canes, but they did complete the game without conceding a power play - the first time they've done so since staying completely out of the box against Columbus on Nov. 26, 2023.
• Sebastian Aho's five-game point streak came to an end tonight, as he, and most other forwards, were held off the scoresheet. Carolina's #20 had posted six points (4G, 2A) during his five-game run.
• Jaccob Slavin celebrated a milestone moment on Friday, skating in his 700th NHL game - all with the Hurricanes. The steady blueliner leads the NHL in takeaways since his debut season (672) and marked the occasion with a thunderous hit on Timo Meier.

They Said It...

Jaccob Slavin breaking down the defeat...

"You (saw) a couple of mistakes in the second period, a couple of letdowns in the last five [minutes] of the first period, and those are what's costing us. If you take away a couple of different plays, it's a completely different game. Their goalie made a couple of good saves, but our group as a whole in here, we can't have those shifts where we take breathers. On their fourth goal, I've got to box out in front. I've got to be better there. Just little things like that, everyone has to bear down a little bit more."

Rod Brind'Amour following the loss...

"I liked our game overall. They're going to have their shifts, and they did, but overall, I liked how we played. We generated enough offense to win. Giving up four is not what we want to do, but we didn't really give up a ton of opportunities. Overall, I didn't mind the game at all. We just have to capitalize. We had our chances. You have to bury them, and we didn't."

Jaccob Slavin on the group's mindset as they battle through this rough patch...

"We have an unbelievable team. We've got a good D, good forwards, and we've got good goaltending. It's just a matter of putting it all together for all three periods. The belief is high. This is a rut we are in right now, but we believe that we have the answer in this room to get out of it. There's a lot of hockey left to be played this season and that's a good thing. We're in a good spot right now. We've just got to get better every night."

What's Next?

The Canes return to Raleigh immediately post-game and will take on the Devils again on Saturday.

Next Game: Saturday, Dec. 28 vs. New Jersey | 7:00 pm | Tickets | Parking | Upcoming Theme Nights