The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-0 in Game 1 of their second round series. Logan Stankoven scored twice, and Frederik Andersen recorded a shutout with 19 saves.
Key points
Carolina Hurricanes won Game 1 against Philadelphia Flyers
Final score was 3-0
Logan Stankoven scored two goals
Frederik Andersen recorded a shutout
Game took place at Lenovo Center
Carolina HurricanesPhiladelphia Flyers
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The Carolina Hurricanes set the tone in Game 1 of their second round series against the Philadelphia Flyers, defeating them 3-0 Saturday night at Lenovo Center.
Logan Stankoven stayed red hot, scoring twice, while Jackson Blake picked up the other one on a beautiful solo effort. Frederik Andersen made 19 saves for his second shutout of the postseason.
After the game, Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour along with Stankoven, Blake, Andersen, Jordan Staal and Mike Reilly spoke with the media. Here's what they had to say:
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Rod Brind'Amour
On if his team set a tone in Game 1: I don't know how much one game bleeds into the other. It's important to get a win, but I don't know how much one game goes to the next.
On the start: We had a good start, obviously. That's what won us the game. There wasn't much happening, but obviously the first period was good.
On the Logan Stankoven line picking up right where they left off: That was the big question, how we were gonna come out. Obviously that answered that question. That line's been great. All three of those guys, every game, for not just five playoff games. It's been months of it. Obviously that's been the difference.
On Mike Reilly drawing in: We were kind of thinking Nikishin was gonna play, but he didn't. But Reils has done this all year. In, out. He missed 30 games there for a stretch then came right in and played well. There's a value to that veteran kind of guy who's, first of all, a pro and he showed that tonight.
On the extra defensive efforts: I think a lot of guys you could say that about. I thought we did okay defensively, maybe not so much the other way, but it all counts. It's all little plays. Miller made a great play on a backcheck and those are things that don't show up, but we obviously notice them.
On the high stick penalty on Jordan Martinook in the first period: I have the thing on my bench where I cam see them, so that's the frustration part of it that we've talked about here for a while. If I didn't see that, I wouldn't know. You can't catch it live and that's kind of what I'm talking about with using replays just to get the calls right because it's hard. We have the best officials. Nobody can do a better job, I know that. Just to help them out a little bit might be good.
On Logan Stankoven: His game hasn't changed, now it's just that pucks are going in. He's always created opportunities. He puts in the work, so the confidence has always been there because of that. We always seem to judge people on production and I get it, but he's been playing like this all year.
On Frederik Andersen: Steady. Not a lot of work there for the first half of the game or whatever, but then a couple of big saves to start the third. Then at the end we get into a little bit of penalty trouble and they pull the goalie and get a whole bunch of flurries. He's been solid. Can't understate that. That's a big deal.
On Andrei Svechnikov going down after the slash from Tyson Foerster: I didn't know what happened at the time, but when you see guys go down, it's always a scare. But he was able to comeback so I think we dodged something there.
Logan Stankoven
On the game: I thought we had a good start. I think the first couple of periods was good. Thought we got a little bit sloppy toward the end there, so I think there's some things we can clean up. I know we have better than that, but I was happy with our start. Sometimes that can definitely help you win games.
On coming into this series: I think it's just about getting your body ready and having a good mindset coming into the series. I felt like my body felt good, legs felt good. I don't expect to score every game and to have a series like I did last series, but I just try to provide secondary scoring and it's been a lot of fun playing with Blaker and Hallsy. Hopefully we can continue that.
On how he processes: I think it just goes back to how many chances I've had throughout the season to score and these guys setting me up and hitting posts or goalies making good saves. Now, I think I've felt like since the Olympic break, things have started to turn and pucks have started to go in. I think as a player, I've been learning what areas of the ice to find to get shots off and I think just in time, things change and I feel like I've been able to develop as a player and as a person.
On his shooting confidence: I think I just try to get it off quick. Obviously it's nice to have that confidence, which comes with putting the puck in the net. You just kind of build off of that. I think it's just about focusing on little details and going out there first shift and hitting somebody or getting a shot on net and having a good offensive zone shift and then just building from there. Things have been rolling so far.
On Mike Reilly: Mikey's a great teammate. It's hard to come in right away and fit into playoff hockey and he hadn't played in a bit. I thought he did a great job of just keeping it simple and a couple of apples for him. That's always a good feeling.
Jackson Blake
On getting Trevor Zegras' skin: Maybe a little bit. I'm not the biggest chirper, but I try to play my game and work hard and try to get pucks back and stuff like that. I mean, it was 3-0 at that point with eight minutes left, so I knew they were gonna try and run us and do maybe not the smartest thing. I don't know if I was really trying to get under his skin or not, but I think it comes with the game and I expect that for sure.
On Logan Stankoven's heater: Stank's been unbelievable this postseason. I mean, he's been unbelievable all year, but especially this postseason. He's been probably the hottest guy in hockey right now I think. Our line, Hallsy too, is making those little plays and that makes it easier on me. Stanks and Hallsy, they're working so hard and being junkyard dogs out there. They've been awesome and really fun to play with.
On his goal: Gotta give a lot of credit to Hallsy there. He made an outstanding play on the boards and that's not easy to do, that play he did on the boards. I just had a little speed and I saw that the guy on my left was a forward so I just tried to beat him and then got a pretty lucky bounce I'd say back to my backhand. God willing on that one, for sure. Got lucky, but just a great play by Hallsy. Gotta give him credit there.
Frederik Andersen
On the game: We definitely came ready to play. It was obvious. It was a good game.
On the penalty kill: That's just our mindset. We're aggressive on the PK and that's a big part of why we won the game. It was huge.
On rust versus rest: Well given that we won in Game 1, it's pretty obvious. It's a good start. Now we want to refocus for the next one.
On Logan Stankoven: He puts in a ton of work. That's showing off. He's a guy that breathes hockey, lives it and so it's awesome to see him finding the net like he is.
On if he considered shooting for the empty net: I just felt that they were pretty far down there so I didn't know if I could clear it past them. Maybe I'll try next time.
On if setting the record for most playoff wins by a goalie in franchise history means anything to him: Not really. We have a goal in mind and we have to get there. That means getting the wins, so we'll take it, but it's a team thing. We're working hard to collect wins and that's what we're trying to do.
On the team standing up for each other: I like seeing it, of course. We're a tight-knit group. We want to be there for each other when things get crazy and we want to play physical too and put it on them that way. I think we're doing a really good job at that.
Jordan Staal
On the game: It was great all the way through. Power play could have clicked a little better, but . 5-on-5 play, we didn't give them too much and Freddie was great when he needed to be. Good start to the series.
On if the rest was good for them: Yep.
On Logan Stankoven: It's pretty obvious. Puck's going in for him as well, but he's just been on it. That whole line has obviously been a difference maker from the start of this playoffs. They've been going for a while now and came into the postseason humming. They're just all smart, tenacious, hardworking players that have great skill and it's nice to see Stank get rewarded. He's been good for so long and hopefully this keeps going.
On setting a tone: We're trying to invest with physicality. I thought the guys were good with being physical, especially on the D corps. A lot of guys on there play a lot and we want to keep investing with that and just give them no room and play our style. I thought from the start, from the get go, we had a great start. The fans were buzzing and it was nice that the first shot was in, so that was a bonus. But I thought the game was there too and everything was off to a great start.
On if he wanted Frederik Andersen to shoot for the empty net: Well the fans certainly did, for sure. At that point, he could let one rip, but obviously we're worried about wins. I'm sure he's pretty happy with the way this one went.
On Nikolaj Ehlers: He's an exceptional player. The things he can do on anyone's lines at any point with his speed and the way he can handle the puck and lug the mail. Just trying to read off of him the best I can. He's a dynamic player who creates stuff out of nothing and he's a lot of fun to play with.
On the penalty kill: It was really good. It's gonna have to be. Everyone was sharp, eating pucks when they needed to and were on the same page off of draws and everything. Then obviously Freddie at the end has to be your best penalty killer and he was.
On Mike Reilly: Mikey was awesome with what he did tonight. He's worked so hard throughout this year. Obviously being in and out of the lineup isn't easy and so for him to step in like he did is huge for us. We need everyone if we want to keep moving forward.
Mike Reilly
On getting back into the lineup: Just trying to stay as ready as I can and sharp as I can. A lot of the times, it's not that easy, but when your name gets called, you have to be ready. I'm glad we got that game.
On assisting on Logan Stankoven's opening goal: I just tried to get it to the net. Blaker made a good play and there was suddenly a big lane there. Obviously it was a great tip there.
On getting a good chunk of experience with the team during the regular season: I was excited when I was able to sign here. I knew how they play and I've played against them in the playoffs a few times and it's obviously not fun. It's a fast system and the guys care for one another. So I do think it was huge to get games earlier in the season. Even though it's been a bit up and down, it's been good.
On his two-assist game: I don't even know if I've had two assists in the last few months. Just some fortunate bounces. That line, Stanky and Hallsy and Blaker, just carrier the momentum right from the first series there and just kind of came out flying. When you're out there with those guys, those guys make plays.
On setting a tone in Game 1: Obviously we had a long layoff there and they just played a few nights ago, but we want to try and establish our forecheck right away just like every night. Get it behind their D and put the stress on them a little bit. I think we were able to do that and just time and time again, we were just getting the puck in, grinding them down a little bit and obviously got two goals there.
On when he found out he was playing: This morning. When I left the rink yesterday, I figured I wasn't playing, but that's just why you always have to be ready and just try to be mentally sharp and ready for the opportunity.
On staying mentally sharp: It's not that easy, but when you're on the ice doing extra stuff and skating when the guys get off the ice for a game, you're trying to emulate a game a little bit as best you can. Practice obviously isn't a game, so you try and do things that you might do in a game just to stay sharp. Mentally, jus try to stay positive and come to the rink with a good attitude each and every day. When your name is called, you have to be ready.
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