First place in the Metropolitan Division was on the line Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden as the New York Rangers aimed to leapfrog the division-leading Carolina Hurricanes. When the horn sounded, though, the Hurricanes had further padded their cushion, taking a four-point lead over the second-place Rangers.
The Rangers might be a team on the rise—they had won three straight heading into Tuesday's game—but the Hurricanes proved they're still a step ahead.
It's April in the NHL, which means games carry increased magnitude as teams jostle for playoff positioning. The Rangers and Hurricanes have both clinched playoff spots and are almost assured home-ice advantage in the first round, but Carolina's 4-2 victory Tuesday demonstrated the Hurricanes' ability to push back and hold their ground, even against a hot, talented opponent on the road.
Freddie Andersen Has Great Stickhandling Skills…And Is a Darn Good Goalie
Frederik Andersen has been a revelation for the Hurricanes this season. After struggling last season with the Maple Leafs, the 32-year-old netminder has found his best form in Carolina, posting career-highs in goals against average (2.07) and save percentage (.926).
On Tuesday, he went toe-to-toe with Vezina favorite Igor Shesterkin in a goalie matchup Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said featured two of the league's best.
The Rangers spent a good chunk of the first period in the offensive zone, including a pair of power plays, but Andersen kept them scoreless. He ultimately stopped 28 of 30 shots Tuesday night, with a large chunk of his saves coming amid that first-period barrage from the Rangers. Andersen's play kept the Hurricanes afloat until the offense was able to find its footing and make an aggressive push to tally three third-period goals.
"We were really poor to start the game," coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "We turned the puck over in our own end 12 times on our sticks. So that just sets up their game. We didn't give up a ton, but it was too much in our zone, and we found it in the third period. Freddie kept us in there, made some saves when he had to and had a good third period."
The Canes have finally found their No. 1 netminder.
They've been a top team in the league going back to the 2018-19 season when they reached the Eastern Conference Final, but their goaltending has been inconsistent. Petr Mrazek ended their nine-year playoff drought in 2019 and helped pilot them there again in 2020 with James Reimer filling in the gaps. Alex Nedeljkovic was a Calder Award finalist last season, but the two parties couldn't come to an agreement on a long-term contract, and Carolina traded him to the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings.
Andersen had been bumped out of the top spot with the Toronto Maple Leafs by the end of last season. His move to a smaller market has allowed him to fly underneath the radar while rediscovering his game. This version of Andersen looks more like the one who won a Jennings Trophy in Anaheim in 2016. And he looks even better than when he put up a .916 save percentage over his first four seasons in Toronto.
As it turns out, he's even a pretty good puck-handler, too. He played the puck at the blue line as he came off the ice for a delayed penalty in one of the most entertaining moments of Tuesday's game.