Carolina Hurricanes Stat Review: The 5th Line Sucks

Facing the Blue Jackets in Columbus, the Carolina Hurricanes saw their four-game win come to an end.

Well, Ladies and Gentleman, there won’t be a playoff position for the Carolina Hurricanes, at least for tonight. Back on the road again, the Canes ran into a Columbus Blue Jackets team that seemed much more determined than the last time Carolina faced them. Even though the Hurricanes struck first, the Blue Jackets reeled off four unanswered goals to win the game 4-1. All and all, it was an ugly affair in Ohio and the stats don’t paint any prettier of a picture. This is one of the few losses this season where the Hurricanes had no business winning the game. So without further ado on to the stats.

Shots

In every single period of this game, the Carolina Hurricanes failed to register double-digit shots on goals, and their total shots weren’t much better. Judging my these graphs it seems like the Hurricanes almost gave up in the third period compared to the Columbus Blue Jackets who decided to pour on the offense there at the end of the game. The Hurricanes just couldn’t get the offense going tonight against a stout Blue Jackets defense which was compounded by Columbus’s great possession game.

Shot Differential

Ugh, the Carolina Hurricanes were not good at all. The number of games a team can win with only four players with positive shot differentials is much closer to zero than any other number. Justin Faulk was especially egregious in this stat tonight, which was a change of pace from his string of great play since his return from IR. The Skinner/Rask/Ryan line was doing their best by they just weren’t enough.

Shots and Expected Goals Plots

One surprising player to stand out in all this mess is Matt Tennyson. He played a really good game compared to both his team and his past performances. Games like this used to be more consistent from Tennyson when he was first called up from the AHL, but during December he went into a lull and lost his starting position for five games. If Matt Tennyson can return to form, it will go a long way to helping things on the third pairing, which in turn helps the Carolina Hurricanes’ playoff chances despite the loss tonight.