Starting Fast...
Often times to start a series both sides will go through the feeling out process, looking to get an early idea of how the opposition is gameplanning for things.
That was far from the case in this one though, as it took just 2:46 to get the scoring started.
Carolina made an early mistake, blowing coverage in the defensive zone and leaving Mika Zibanejad open in front of Frederik Andersen's net. The Rangers forward took advantage of the chance, igniting the home crowd.
Fortunately for Rod Brind'Amour's sake, his team didn't have to play from behind for long. The Canes came with a hard pushback after falling behind early and 68 seconds later, the contest was tied.
A blast from the point by Jaccob Slavin hit New York's Alexis Lafrenière, changing its trajectory and getting by Igor Shesterkin.
Taking the wind out of the Rangers' sails, Shesterkin had to be good in the following few minutes to keep Carolina from jumping in front. Both Brady Skjei and Martin Necas hit posts, but then, unfortunately, penalty troubles caused issues.
A Tony DeAngelo roughing minor and a cross-checking minor to Evgeny Kuznetsov 6:18 apart sent New York to the power play, and both times, they executed.
Needing just nine seconds on one of the tries, it quickly put the Canes behind 3-1 after 20 minutes, a hole that would prove challenging to crawl out of.
