Anybodyhome

3rd period strength.

Oh well, spoke too soon. 1-1.

No goal, good call and it stood. That's a rarity this season.

Stepan gets his 500th career point on a beautiful pass to Lorentz.

Andersen is expected in net today, although he is still listed as day-to-day. Raanta wouldn't surprise me, given the Canes are going to Pittsburgh after the game tonite and Pittsburgh is a more important game of the 2 this weekend. This is definitely a trap game. Huge win Thursday night, emotional win. Then into a back-to-back less than 24 hours apart and Pittsburgh is only 6 points behind us.

His trade value just went thru the roof. You all saw what the Seahawks got for Wilson.... double that.

Detroit just matches up well against the Canes. They gave Carolina fits last year, too.

In other news, Ned swatted one thru his own 5-hole while trying to play a dump in. Mrazek got chased after Arizona lit him up last night.

Yep. Emergency recall rules say he has to dress as backup or be sent back to Chicago before the game.

Yep.

Got his bell rung against Washington. Collision with Tom Wilson. Anderson skated this morning, but he's not 100%.

Shots are 12-2 in the 1st 10 minutes.

Canes are starting on fire. Lot of time in the offensive zone while the Avs are dumping and chasing and can't retrieve.

There's not a lot of defense in the west and Colorado gives up half a goal per game more than Carolina. So, if the Canes decide to play D for 3 solid periods, not just the first and third, they can put up 3 and win this game. I'd feel a lot more comfortable with my statement if Tony D was in the lineup. But slow down Kadri and Mackinnon, it might be okay.

But it does beg the question, if Raanta gives up 4 to the Avs, is he then in the same level as Lyon with you? It's a rhetorical question and I'm not trying to argue, I'm just sayin'... I wasn't real enamored with Lyon, either, but taking everything into consideration, I don't think I expected anything more from him. I'll reserve judgment for the time being.

Raanta is starting in net tonight as Andersen is still not 100%. Lyon was an emergency call up this morning and either has to dress as the backup or be sent back to Chicago before the game if Andersen is the backup. I still contend he got beat up during the Washington game. Last Time Out: Martin Necas broke an 18-game goal drought in the third period on Sunday, striking for the game-winner in what would be a 3-2 victory over Seattle. The power play scored twice to get the game to it's 2-2 juncture and when all was said and done, Antti Raanta made 28 stops on 30 shots for his second win in three days. Saved The Best For Last: Entering tonight Colorado is the only team in the NHL that the Canes have not faced. It is the first of two meetings between the two sides this season, with the two getting together again in Denver on Saturday, April 16. Home Cooking: The Canes have points in 11 straight home games, dating back to their win over Vancouver on January 15. It is currently the third-longest streak in franchise history and should they earn a point tonight, they'll move into a tie for second at 12 games. In The Crease: Antti Raanta has started the team's two most recent games, with Frederik Andersen not being 100% and not dressing for Sunday's game. Alex Lyon was recalled under emergency conditions Saturday night, then reassigned Monday, but was then recalled under emergency conditions again Thursday morning. Captain's Getting Hot: After starting the year with just two goals and eight assists in the team's first 36 games of the season, Jordan Staal now has five goals in his last eight games. Since the All-Star break he has ten points in 13 games. Good As The Game Goes On: Martin Necas' third period game-winner on Sunday moved the team's goal differential to +29 in the final frame of regulation this year. With that being the best in the NHL, Carolina has outscored their opponents 68-39 in the last 20 minutes of games. Production From The Blue Line: Colorado's 180 points from their defense this year rank tops among all NHL clubs. The Canes rank fourth with their 141. A Look At The Other Side: Colorado will enter tonight wanting to get back on track after losing a three-goal lead Tuesday night in New Jersey. The Avs led 3-0 just 5:52 into the middle frame, but the Devils rattled off five in a row in response and eventually picked up the 5-3 victory.

Florida averages over 4 a game. We'll see what happens tonite against another division leader in a Colorado Avs team which averages 3.91 per game.

When the league goes out of its way to promote someone, I guess NFL fans have little choice but to "get over it." The league, television and fans alike got past Ray Lewis being involved in a murder....

This wasn't a contract price issue. This was the Colts blowing their playoff chances the last game of the season losing to Jacksonville and having it recorded for posterity on "Hard Knocks: In Season," and the GM and owner telling Frank Reich, "We gave you a chance with your guy, now it's our turn to get our guy."

Who does Baylor and Temple have in the draft?

I don't see much difference between Mitch and Carson, tbh.

Russell Wilson gets Seattle 2 first, 2 seconds, a fifth round and 3 players and he's on the down side of his career. Wentz gets Indy 2 thirds? Dunno who's providing the drugs, but no way Wilson is worth half of that and no way Wentz is 2 third rounders. Indy could have asked for a little more and would have gotten it. Maybe a couple seconds.

What I saw and heard last night: Anderson, was reported, isn't injured. He skated earlier in the day and let RBA know he couldn't go. He may be just a little sore after a couple pretty hard collisions in net against Pittsburgh. Stepan may be in RBA's doghouse over a penalty he took? Last time he played was Washington, I think, and his penalty didn't have any effect on the outcome of the game, so I'm not sure about this one. After all, the Canes took 6 penalties that night. Nino is playing with a real chip on his shoulder lately. During TV timeouts last night he was having discussions with the refs on the ice. I think he gets whacked quite a bit and doesn't seem to get any calls his way. Regardless, I think he's more dangerous when he plays pissed, just like Staal. The Kotkaniemi line took the opening face-offs last night for each period last night. That's about all we saw of that line as nothing much materialized. The "Breaking Ice" piece on Ethan Bear shown during the second intermission on the big screen was great. If you watch this and don't come away thinking this guy is one of your favorite Canes, you need counseling. Seriously, it was that good. Good enough I'm considering an Ethan Bear jersey. Watch here if you like:

On my way out the door to the game. Looks like the same lineup from Friday night with Raanta in net.

Okay, I watched the 3rd and OT. Had to take the 2nd off. The team I saw win that game is not the team that took the ice. Jordan Staal hitting and scoring?!?! Vinny not backing down. The team that won this game can beat anyone.