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GDT: Canes @ Islanders 4/25 7:30

A

andyt

Canes Moderator
Staff member
The Canes look to put a stranglehold on the series.

Losing Pesce will be a big blow, exacerbated by who is replacing him in the lineup. At least TDA played the last 3 games of the season, so he’s not that stale. It also means bigger minutes for Orlov and Chatfield on the PK; Pesce was 2nd on the team in short handed time on ice in the regular season. Orlov and Chatfield combined played fewer shorthanded minutes than Pesce. Expect Andersen in goal.

The Islanders are making a change in goal, Ilya Sorokin is replacing Varlamov. Sorokin was a Vezina finalist last year but his numbers this year are bad, 3.01/.909. Since Roy was hired, they’re better, 2.74/.910 in 23 games. Matt Martin missed practice yesterday, Roy called it a maintenance day. He was replaced by Ruslan Iskhakov, who led AHL Bridgeport with 18 goals and 32 assists. Hudson Fasching was also back in the lineup after sitting out game 2.

National TV tonight on ESPN2.
 
Gotta be honest ... if Pesce had been playing better this would be a bigger deal. As it is, the changes the staff will be forced to make to the defensive rotation might have a bigger impact that actually swapping out DeAngelo for Pesce. Carolina will want to get to their volume game early and try to cut down on D zone errors when the puck comes off the boards. The Isles will be in disruption mode. The quicker the Canes can show NYI that the mountain is still there to be climbed, the better. You guys know I'm not big on first goals, but in this specific scenario ... first goal scored could be a big deal so long as it's Carolina doing the scoring. If the Isles throw the kitchen sink out there and go back the room trailing after the first period? Woof.

I said it in another thread but it bear repeating here ... pretty much none of the betting sites shifted odds when Sorokin was announced. If that's the big ace up their sleeve, maybe they need come up with another twist.
 
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