Recap: Necas, Mrazek Help Canes Shut Out Lightning

With a different kind of lineup in a different kind of home opener, the Carolina Hurricanes returned to action after a long layoff and grinded out a 1-0 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Petr Mrazek made 32 saves in his second shutout of the season, and Martin Necas' first goal of the season was the game-winner in overtime.

HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTO GALLERY | STATISTICS

The Difference

Mrazek was nothing short of solid and reliable in net for the Canes, a depleted but rested team that needed a steady performance out of its goaltender. Mrazek was especially sharp in the second period when the Lightning tilted the ice in their favor after the Canes came out strong in the first. He stopped all 14 shots he faced in the second, including this grade-A opportunity off the stick of Pat Maroon, who couldn't quite sneak the puck past Mrazek's outstretched left pad.

The Canes' netminder turned away the 18 shots that came his way in the first and third periods, as well, including this quick hitter from Blake Coleman late in regulation.

In total, Mrazek posted 32 saves en route to his second shutout in three starts to begin the season.
"Petr looked great tonight," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "He looked like he was on it right from the start."

Fist Bumps

Martin Necas
With the Canes' roster gashed, Necas saw an increased role and took advantage of it. The 22-year-old forward logged a career-high 19:37 of ice time (including 2:40 on the power play and 1:26 shorthanded) and scored the lone goal of the game, the winning tally 1:12 into overtime.
Necas circled back in the neutral zone with the puck before dishing off to a fresh Jordan Staal and making a beeline toward the net. With a tired Lightning group on the ice, that created a 2-on-1 rush, and Staal was able to float a pass through Victor Hedman and over to Necas for the tap-in tally.

"He made a beautiful sauce to me," Necas smiled.
"He's got that ability. I call it game-breaking. 5-on-5 is hard and tight. You get those specialty times, and you need those special players. We've got a couple," Brind'Amour said. "He's starting to really emerge, and obviously you can see it."
The Lineup & Effort
It had been 10 days since the Canes last played a game, and they spent most of that period idle in quarantine. They were missing five NHL regulars, including big minute-eaters, reliable penalty killers and critical pieces of their lineup. They had one player making his NHL debut and two more making their team debut. And, they had just two practices to bring it all together before dropping the puck against the defending Stanley Cup champions. The excuse jar, as Brind'Amour said, was full.
So, the Canes just went out and played their game, and not only did they hold their own, but they excelled at times and grinded out a victory as a team.
"That is how it's supposed to look. It doesn't really matter who goes in," Brind'Amour said. "Now, there are times when the talent has to take over, but I felt like tonight it looked right. The effort was certainly there."

The Canes came out with verve in the first period, and though Tampa Bay pushed back in the second - that much had to be expected - Mrazek was there to hold strong until his team was able to settle back in and find a second wind.
"It felt like the start of the season all over again. It was a weird feeling kind of going into the game. Roddy did a great job making sure we were on the attack. We wanted to get into right away and get after them. I thought that first period we did that," Staal said. "We lost some steam in the second, but with that long break, I thought we jumped on it, got our legs quick and found a way to grind one out."
Steven Lorentz
Lorentz's story
is really quite something, a tale of perseverance, hard work, determination and earned success. Though it wasn't an ideal NHL debut - there weren't any fans in attendance, and his family wasn't there to experience it all - it was an NHL debut nonetheless, and that in itself is worth celebrating.
Lorentz logged 14:41 of ice time and recorded one shot on goal, two hits and a takeaway. He looked like he belonged - and he probably does.

Stats Pack

2: Mrazek is the second different goaltender in franchise history to record a shutout in the team's home opener. Sean Burke accomplished the feat twice with Hartford (Oct. 7, 1995 vs. NYR and Oct. 5, 1996 vs. PHX).
25:11: With Jaccob Slavin out of the lineup, Brett Pesce led the Canes in time on ice with 25:11. Pesce also logged four shots on goal, three additional shot attempts and two blocked shots.
5: This was the fifth 1-0 overtime win in franchise history and the first since Dec. 4, 2016 against, yes, you guessed it, Tampa Bay.

Quote of the Night

"Teams grow with adversity. … We knew it was a great challenge, and I thought the guys did a great job stepping up and fighting through."- Jordan Staal

Up Next

After facing the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Canes will now host the team that went toe-to-toe with the Lightning, the Dallas Stars, in a two-game set this weekend.