Temperatures flare as Hurricane Carolina blasts the Boston Bruins in a fun 2-win game; Antti Raanta injured in collision
Carolina and Boston ramped up in Game 2 of the first-round playoff series at the Stanley Cup on Wednesday. And it resulted in both sides suffering the loss of the Hurricanes keeper Antti Raanta and defender of Bruins Hampus Lindholm left the game with an injury.
However, it was Carolina who dominated the scoreboard, defeating Bruins 5-2 and took a 2-0 lead in a best-of-seven series at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. Boston took the series home with a 10-3 lead in the first two games.
Heavy fighting began early on Wednesday and lasted for the final whistle.
Carolina watched Raanta go down the middle of the first period after colliding with the Bruins striker David Pastrnak. The bloody Raanta immediately escaped and would not return with a wound on his body; Pastrnak was sanctioned two minutes for goalkeeper interference.
Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amor had no update on Raanta after the win but did say the netminder was not concussion.
As for whether he thinks Pastrnak intentionally targeted Raanta, Brind’Amor said, “What do you think? It couldn’t have been clearer.”
Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy had a different perspective on the incident.
Cassidy said of Pastrnak: “We were playing a power game, and he was trying to go after a bad guy. “His foot got caught in his mattress. He was trying to block the passage and get out.”
In the second frame, Hurricanes ‘forward Andrei Svechnikov leveled Lindholm along the planks with a blow that sent the blueliner player wobbly. Lindholm tried to get up on his own but failed before being stopped by the keeper Linus Ullmark and team coaches; He had to come out with a lower body injury.
Svechnikov was not penalized for that blow, but Brandon Carlo stepped in to protect his teammates and both Carlo and Svechnikov earned rough teens for the ensuing scuffle.
“[Lindholm’s] Cassidy said. “He has an upper body injury. Hits are on time, sure, but seem high. [The referees] didn’t see it that way. “
Cassidy added that he’s not sure if Lindholm has been taken to the hospital or if he will return to Boston with the team on Wednesday.
“I feel bad,” Svechnikov said of injuring Lindholm. “It was a heavy blow.”
Meanwhile, in the second stage, Brad Marchand perform a swipe at the Hurricanes rookie keeper Peter Kochetkovthird set of strings to replace Raanta (Carolina didn’t have Frederik Andersen, who are traumatized in the lower abdomen). Kochetkov made an exception to Marchand’s hit and returned the blow to the Bruins’ agitator resulting in offsetting the slash calls awarded to each side.
The 22-year-old Kochetkov is the youngest goalkeeper ever to make his post-season debut in Carolina’s franchise history. He played just 149 NHL minutes in three appearances for Carolina before being called up to Game 2 but recorded a 3-0-0 record in those games, with 2.42 GAA and 0.902 SV%.
He ended Wednesday’s game with 30 saves on 32 shots.
The third half between the two teams is Friday at TD Garden.
