The Importance of Brady Skjei’s Power-Play Goal for Hurricanes

Analysts and fans around the league and in Raleigh were wondering if they had what it takes to win Game 4 and at least force a Game 5 back in New York on Monday night (May 13). However, as soon the puck dropped, it was clear that the Hurricanes were not going to roll over and in the end, they survived to force another game back in Manhattan. They went on to defeat the Rangers 4-3 in a very do-or-die must-win game after a huge goal on the powerplay from one of their defenseman. What did the clutch powerplay goal from Brady Skjei mean for the Hurricanes moving forward in the series?

Hey, Hey What Do You Skjei

The Hurricanes were on the powerplay after the Rangers’ Ryan Lindgren was called for a tripping penalty. It was Carolina’s second and final powerplay of the game. They did not capitalize on the first man advantage but did have more chances than they had in the first three games. At this point, they were 0-for-16 and just needed something from the struggling powerplay to light something for those units. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour before the game switched around the units swapping out Brent Burns and Brady Skjei between PP1 and PP2 with Skjei going to the top unit. In the end, it proved to work and provide the spark needed for the powerplay.

In a mini-game of keep away, Teuvo Teravainen and Skeji were passing the puck to each other at the top of the Rangers zone. As time went on, Teravainen saw that Skeji had a better shooting lane and sauced him a puck right into his wheelhouse. Skeji wound up his stick and ripped a slapshot onto the net. As mentioned earlier, the Hurricanes needed to get to the front of the net to create a net-front presence to take away Igor Shesterkin’s eyes. Up to that point, he was seeing everything from the Hurricanes who are known as a shot-heavy team. However, this happened to be the perfect time for Seth Jarvis to skate in front of the Rangers netminder as Skjei’s shot went top-shelf over the shoulder of Shesterkin to give the Hurricanes the lead once again.

On their 17th attempt in the series, the Hurricanes finally got the power play goal that they were looking for. It was Skjei’s first goal of the postseason and it ended up being a clutch one. Furthermore, it was the game-winner as Carolina went on to win the game 4-3 to force Game 5 back in New York on Monday night. The Hurricanes’ power play is now 1-for-17 but it’s the one that mattered most with their season and the quest for Lord Stanley to stay alive. Moving forward, it is a goal that the Hurricanes need to learn from and adopt for the rest of the units. If you’re Brind’Amour, it might be best to keep Skjei on PP1 for the rest of the series to keep the momentum and good mojo going for the powerplay.

After the game, Brind’amour was asked about the powerplay and finding the right combination of guys to get the units going. “We’ve had some good looks in this series on the power play,” Brind’Amour said. Andrei Svehcnikov has had three or four right in the slot and another one tonight. You are going to go through those stretches, but you don’t want to give up chances. That’s the real dagger. Tonight, I thought we had a couple of good looks again and just real lucky to get one in.”

The right set of guys made it work and one has to hope they carry that into Game 5 while taking it one game at a time. The statement was reiterated by Skeji after the game stating, “That’s kind of our mindset going forward here — just win the day. We’re still win-or-go-home.  Every game from here on out is going to be the same message in the locker room.”

That is all the Hurricanes can do at this point. Take it one game at a time and go 1-0 that night. It will be a long road to come back from 3-0 down in a series; it has happened only four times in the over 100-plus years of the NHL. The last team to do it was the 2014 Los Angeles Kings versus the San Jose Sharks in the first round.

For Skjei, this could be a big moment that could make the case to stay in Carolina. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) this summer. His current average annual value (AAV) is $5.25 million and could be looking for a pay raise. The Hurricanes have a lot of guys who are becoming UFAs and restricted free agents (RFA) so it’ll be interesting to see what the team does. Skeji, who is 30 years old, could be seeking out a $6-plus million AAV for his potential last contract in the NHL. Carolina has a tough decision to see if they possibly bring him back for the 2024-25 season. However, it is not their main goal right now as all eyes are set for Game 5 on Monday.

Game 5 on Monday

Game 5 at Madison Square Garden will have a 7 pm Eastern puck drop. The game will be televised on ESPN for viewers in the US while Canada can watch it on Sportsnet and CBC. Furthermore, it will be on 99.9 The Fan for fans of the Hurricanes to listen on the radio side. It will be another do-or-die game for the Hurricanes and all they can do is take it one game at a time. As long as they can carry the momentum of Game 4 into Game 5, they have another chance to survive and push the series to Game 6 back in Raleigh on Thursday, May 16.