Carolina Hurricanes Look to Take Control at Home in Game 3 Against Washington Capitals
Home Ice Advantage: Hurricanes Eye Control in Playoffs
The Carolina Hurricanes, tied for the most home wins during the 2024-25 regular season, look to take back control of their Eastern Conference Second Round playoff series against the Washington Capitals in Game 3, set for Saturday at Lenovo Center (6 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS).
Carolina: “Feed Off the Atmosphere”
“The fans, it’s loud in there. When we get going in there, it’s just a different atmosphere and you feed off of that. It really does make a difference.”– Shayne Gostisbehere, Carolina Hurricanes defenseman
After splitting the first two games with the Capitals in Washington, the Hurricanes aim to regain control of the best-of-7 series on their home ice. Carolina went 31-9-1 with a plus-44 goal differential at Lenovo Center during the regular season and won all three of their home games in the first round against the New Jersey Devils by a combined 12-6.
Washington: Experience Counts
The Capitals, fresh off their Game 2 victory, draw confidence from their experience playing in one of the NHL’s most hostile environments, Bell Centre in Montreal, during the first round.
“We expect a loud, hostile environment Saturday, but can lean on our experience from the first round,” said Capitals coach Spencer Carbery. “Those were two of the most difficult buildings — Montreal and Carolina — to play in in the League.”
Key Matchup: Alex Ovechkin’s Slump
Number to know: 65 – That’s how many Carolina shots Washington has blocked through Games 1 and 2; conversely, the Hurricanes have 19 blocked shots in the series.
What to look for: Alex Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time goal-scoring leader, has yet to tally in the series after netting four in the first round and 44 during the regular season. The Capitals captain must end his drought in Game 3.
Lockdown Defense: A Strength for Both Sides
“I would say one of the strengths of our group is being able to defend. Especially against a team that’s right up there with the top teams in the League at spending the most time in the offensive zone, we know we’re going to spend some time there, so it’s important that our details and our structure is dialed in.”– Spencer Carbery, Washington Capitals coach
“Feeling good. Obviously (Thursday) night got away from us a little bit. We really didn’t play our game, but we were still in that game and had a chance to win it. Take some positives from that game, but any chance you can a win on the road in the first two games that’s pretty big, especially coming back home.”– Shayne Gostisbehere, Carolina Hurricanes defenseman
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Carolina Hurricanes
- Andrei Svechnikov – Sebastian Aho – Jackson Blake
- Taylor Hall – Jesperi Kotkaniemi – Logan Stankoven
- Jordan Martinook – Jordan Staal – Seth Jarvis
- Eric Robinson – Jack Roslovic – William Carrier
- Jaccob Slavin – Brent Burns
- Dmitry Orlov – Jalen Chatfield
- Shayne Gostisbehere – Sean Walker
- Frederik Andersen
- Pyotr Kochetkov
Washington Capitals
- Alex Ovechkin – Dylan Strome – Aliaksei Protas
- Connor McMichael – Pierre-Luc Dubois – Tom Wilson
- Andrew Mangiapane – Lars Eller – Taylor Raddysh
- Brandon Duhaime – Nic Dowd – Anthony Beauvillier
- Jakob Chychrun – John Carlson
- Rasmus Sandin – Matt Roy
- Alex Alexeyev – Trevor van Riemsdyk
- Logan Thompson
- Charlie Lindgren
Injury Report
The Hurricanes listed center Mark Jankowski (undisclosed) as injured and Jaysson Kaihelpers on the ice for practice Friday, raising hopes he may play in Game 3. Jankowski skated in an optional practice after missing Game 2.Forward Riley Stillman was a healthy scratch in Games 1 and 2. Capitals forward Sonny Milano has missed the entire series with an upper-body injury.
Did you know?
The Hurricanes and Capitals’ Game 1 went to overtime, becoming the first time since 2016 that the teams met in the playoffs and the first game went to extra time.
Pro Tip:
With home ice advantage on their side, the Hurricanes must capitalize on their opportunities and limit unforced turnovers to take control of the series.
Docteur être home
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