Hurricanes Continue Homestand Against Edmonton

By the time the Carolina Hurricanes take the ice for Wednesday’s matchup against the Edmonton Oilers, they will have played just four games in 12 days.

The break in action has allowed for rest after 11 road games over their first 15 contests, but prevented Carolina from creating momentum as they are in the midst of a five game homestand.

The Hurricanes enter with a chance to start a winning streak after downing the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-2 on Saturday. With the victory, Carolina improved to 5-1 at home on the year.

Now, as they look to defend home ice, they will welcome Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers.

Entering the season, Edmonton was among the Stanley Cup favorites, but a slow start saw the team part ways with head coach Jay Woodcroft.

The Oilers compiled a 3-9-1 record under his guidance this season, and are 2-2 since his dismissal.

Edmonton has struggled on both ends of the ice, scoring just 50 goals, good for 6th-worst in the league, and allowing 66, which puts them 26th in the NHL.

The team also parted ways with Jack Campbell following a disappoint start in net, but the two goaltenders on the roster in Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard both have a save percentage of .873 or worse.

Offensively, Leon Draisaitl leads the way with 22 points (six goals, 16 assists), while Evander Kane and Zach Hyman are tied for the team-high in goals with eight.

Connor McDavid has seen a decline in production through the first 17 games, as he is fifth on the roster in scoring with six goals and nine assists.

McDavid is without a doubt one of, if not, the best skater in the NHL, but his lack of production has certainly been part of the slow start in Edmonton.

The Oilers are just 3-6 in the month of November, and while one of the most talented teams on paper, they pose a chance for the Hurricanes to get back into a groove.

With Calvin Pickard making his season debut on Monday, it is likely that Stuart Skinner, who has appeared in 12 contests this season, will be in net.

As for the Carolina, Wednesday’s matchup is a chance to build on their win over Pittsburgh.

Consistency has been an issue over the last few weeks, and while understandable on some occasions, it makes for frustrating postgame locker rooms.

Rod Brind’Amour challenged the team following their midweek lost to Philadelphia, and with their response on Saturday, another positive performance will instill confidence in both the coaching staff and the lineup.

As Jaccob Slavin has been taking reps as the quarterback of PP1, there is a chance he takes over and Jalen Chatfield finds himself back in the lineup on the blue line.

And with Antti Raanta earning the nod in goal on Saturday, Pyotr Kochetkov would be in line for the start if Rod Brind’Amour continues his goaltending rotation.

Puck drop is set for 7:00pm at PNC Arena.