Carolina’s top stars (Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho)
Svechnikov and Aho have been Carolina’s two best offensive players over the past seven years, but they have both run into a cold spell in the playoffs, and especially in this series.
They snapped that on Thursday night.
Svechnikov entered Game 5 with just four goals in the playoffs and only one in his past five games. He scored two (both on the power play) on Thursday.
Aho, meanwhile, had just one goal in his previous 13 games and snapped that drought with a huge second-period goal.
Brandon Bussi, Carolina Hurricanes
The goalie switch has, through at least two games, worked. Bussi won his second straight start for the Hurricanes and improved his record this season to 33-7-2. Now he is one win away from being a Stanley Cup champion.
Not bad for a guy who was undrafted and did not make his NHL debut until he was 27 years old. Sometimes you just need a hot goalie. Sometimes you just need a change. Carolina is getting what it needed from Bussi.
Game 5 losers
Carter Hart, Vegas Golden Knights
At this point, Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella just seems like he is going to stubbornly stick with Hart no matter what. He should seriously reconsider. By allowing four more goals on Thursday, Hart has now allowed at least four goals in each of the first five games of the series, while also owning a sub-.870 save percentage in the series. That is not winning hockey. It is starting to not give Vegas much of a chance.
He is the first goalie in Stanley Cup Final history to allow at least four goals in the first five games of the series.
Goaltending was one of Vegas’ biggest weaknesses and question marks all regular season.
It is starting to become both again.
It is especially baffling when you consider the Golden Knights have Adin Hill, who backstopped the team to a Stanley Cup just three years ago, sitting on their bench.
Vegas penalty kill
Carolina’s power play was struggling coming into the series, but that is no longer the case. With two more power play goals on Thursday night, Carolina has now scored six power-play goals over the past four games.
That is a terrible sign for Vegas’ penalty-killing unit as well as their discipline and inability to stay out of the penalty box in big situations.