The Carolina Hurricanes locked up the Metropolitan Division in style on Tuesday night, slipping past the Boston Bruins 6-5 in overtime at Lenovo Center. Jaccob Slavin crashed the net and tapped in the winner just 1:13 into the extra frame, ending a playoff-like, back-and-forth track meet and giving Carolina a nice little tailwind heading into the last days of the regular season.
As reported by Sportsnet, the Hurricanes spread the scoring around with six different goal scorers, while Boston’s Morgan Geekie tried to steal the show with a hat trick. Brandon Bussi weathered a shaky start to finish with 16 saves. Jeremy Swayman was pulled in the second period and Joonas Korpisalo came on in relief, and Taylor Hall chipped in a goal and an assist that helped tilt the momentum.
Per The News & Observer, the win moved Carolina to 50-22-6 and officially clinched the Metropolitan Division. The team says it will host the first two games of its opening-round Stanley Cup playoff series at Lenovo Center. Coach Rod Brind'Amour said he liked how his group responded down the stretch as the Canes locked in home ice for that first-round matchup.
What It Means For The Playoffs
Clinching the Metro locks in at least two home dates to start the first round and strengthens Carolina's argument for a high conference seed, which will shape both matchups and travel once the playoffs begin. With only a handful of regular-season games remaining, the Canes still have a little room to nudge their final seeding in what has become a late-season scramble outlined by Sportsnet.
Goaltending And Momentum
Goaltending remains a key storyline. Brandon Bussi's rebound performance was a big piece of the night, and The News & Observer notes that the victory was his 30th of the season, while Andrei Svechnikov also reached the 30-goal mark. Even so, the late third-period push by Boston, capped by Pavel Zacha's tying goal, highlights some details Brind'Amour will want tightened up before the postseason grind starts.
Up Next
Carolina now heads out on a four-game road trip that starts in Chicago on Thursday, while Boston visits Tampa Bay on Saturday, per local game coverage. For the Canes, the trip doubles as a final tune-up before the real fun, and the real pressure, arrive with the opening puck drop of the playoffs.
