Hurricanes at Jets – The Recap

I know, I know – I missed a recap.  I had good notes on the loss to the LA Kings that the Carolina Hurricanes endured, but over the last couple days I decided not to write anything, in large part because it had already been said.  I prefer getting these things out before the masses have had a chance to formulate and shape opinions.  It is important to me that the words that I write and the thoughts that I have are viewed as original – not some regurgitated opinion on a fan site.

With that last piece in mind, I would like to take this opportunity to talk through all the pot shots regarding Jackson Blake.  I have been an ardent defender of him and his play from the jump, and I’d like to make sure my position is known (if it hasn’t already been clear here in this blog): 

• Jackson Blake is a big piece of the future in Carolina. 
• Trading Jackson Blake would take a unique situation that I, frankly, don’t see happening.  What he is doing for us right now is far greater than any return the organization would receive – it would be like trading a dollar for a shiny nickel.  To me, it wouldn’t be worth it.
• Jackson Blake is a playmaker.  Even in the game tonight, he brought the puck into the zone well, handled the puck well, distributed well and shot the puck well (he had a power play goal wiped off the board on a questionable goalie interference call).
• Jackson Blake isn’t the problem – in my eyes, he is a solution.
• Everyone wants to talk about his size – everyone loves a big frame, I get it.  Is he the fastest guy on the ice?  No.  But what is he doing?  He is working and building his overall game playing with highly skilled players.  And what does this do?  It continues to a) reward his effort and work and b) develop him as a top 6 winger. 

When we look at Jackson Blake, we, as fans, must be able to project it out some – and we have a near perfect comp…one Seth Jarvis.  I am done hearing Blake should be this, or he isn’t that.  Every night he’s noticeable – I just don’t know what game people are watching.

Below are my thoughts on the game:

• Scott Morrow drew in as the 7^th defenseman, playing 11 and 7 tonight, which I think is a good idea on the road.  As Tripp mentioned, you can manufacture some lineups with the home team getting the last line change.  Additionally, double shifting the likes of Rantanen and (possibly) Hall could allow these two to get more looks at our system to get acclimated quicker.
• The top three lines started the game sharp, getting several quality chances early.
• Pyotr Kochetkov’s rotation was tonight in the crease, and overall, he looked good.  Of the three goals he allowed, two came against the Winnipeg top ranked power play unit.  The Jets can really move the puck on their power play.  The other thing I will say about Pyotr is that the dude really could do himself a favor and hang onto his goalie stick.  I think I saw him at least 4 times during the game where he had to prepare for a shot coming without his stick in hand.  It makes me nervous.
• The Rantanen-Aho-Blake line played very well this evening.  They were right on the doorstep a hand full of times and, while it doesn’t show in the score sheet, it is very noticeable when you watch. 
• A theme to this blog will be comments on the commentary on a particular ‘fan site’ – I don’t truly believe any of them to be Hurricanes fans with any depth of knowledge.  Most of them are saying Rantanen won’t be back because of this top line’s lack of ability to score.  I think that is all hogwash.  Additionally, if a player makes any sort of mistake in the game, these armchair jokers make it seem like it’s a chronic issue that’s been happening and the player should be relegated to the AHL.  Rant over.
• I think I really need to get a true understanding of what goaltender interference is.  I believe I know it when I see it – if a goalie is trying to do his job but is interfered with in the middle of the attempt to save, then I would agree.  What Mikko Rantanen was accused of on the power play snipe from Blake was weak sauce at best.  On the contrary, the third goal Winnipeg was awarded after being waived off on the ice.  Until the NHL takes the vagueness out of the interpretation, it’ll continue to be muddled. 
• The Winnipeg Jets are a team that could really make some noise in the playoffs.  If their D plays the way they played against us (especially in the 3^rd period), I can’t imagine anyone scoring on them.  And their power play – lethal.
• About halfway through, it really felt as if the game was even – each team got the chances, both at even strength and on the power play.  The difference has been special teams.  Overall, I thought that we played well 5 on 5.
• Seth Jarvis played a solid game – nothing on the scoresheet to show for it, but had a couple solid chances that were close, but ultimately didn’t come through.
• It is worth noting that we changed up our power play units and I thought both power plays had generated some chances, but also didn’t really look crisp.  Blake buried one that was overturned and Rantanen had one on the doorstep that he feathered right off the far post instead of the back of the net.  Maybe we need to loosen the grip on the stick?  Not sure.  I’d keep the two different units that we trotted out together for a few games to see if we could make something with them. 

In the end, it was two power-play goals, and a goalie interference call that didn’t go our way that led to a 3-0 loss.  I don’t think we played exceptionally poorly – honestly, I think our 4-2 loss against Los Angeles looked worse.  At 5-on-5, I thought there were two teams that were hungry and wanted to keep the pace moving – and both teams did. 

With Winnipeg in our rearview mirror, we head to Minneapolis to take on the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.