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Posted at 1:25 PM EST.

7:05 PM EST. OT included. The Blue Jackets played in Montreal last night and probably deserved better but Carey Price stood his ground and the Jackets lost 3-1. That’s not a new story, as Price has bailed out the Canadiens for years but it was the Jackets first loss in seven games. What’s so interesting is that five of Columbus’s six wins consisted of back-to-back 2-1 scores, a 2-0 victory, a 3-2, and a 1-0 victory. Three of those victories went into OT and they lost three in a row prior to reeling off six straight. One could argue that the Jackets could have easily been on an eight or nine game losing streak, as their margins for winning have been so slim. In those aforementioned five wins, the Jackets scored 10 goals. The Jackets are not a metrics juggernaut either, as they rank 20th in Corsi Against over the last month during five-on-five play and 11th in Corsi For per 60 mins over that same span. Good team yes, but not an elite one.

Enter the elite Hurricanes and their pedestrian 10-8-4 record. If Carolina had adequate goaltending, they would be at or near the top of the standings. We’re not even talking about good goaltending, just adequate and when they get it, they win. We have no idea how Scott Darling with perform here but if he’s adequate, Carolina is likely to win because it’s a rare day in which this team gets outplayed and even rarer when they get outplayed by a team playing the second game of back-to-backs. Carolina’s numbers under the hood are the NHL’s best. They rank 1st in Corsi For % and first in Corsi for per 60 minutes during five-on-five play. They are a top-5 team in Corsi Against and they have taken the fewest minor penalties in the game. The ‘Canes also rank second in expected goals for per 60 minutes. We don’t want to bore you with all the stats but we assure you that the Hurricanes are a dominant possession team that is killing the under the hood numbers. The ‘Canes always have a great chance to win and they are certainly the superior team here in a better spot too.

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