MORRISVILLE, N.C. — Frederik Andersen’s illness — which cropped up between the morning skate and Wednesday’s game, leaving Pyotr Kochetkov as the surprise backup on the bench — has made moot for the moment any discussion of the Carolina Hurricanes’ goaltending situation.
Until it becomes as clear that Andersen is available as it was unclear what was going on Wednesday night, it’s Antti Raanta’s net for the foreseeable future. Which, given the way he’s played to help the Hurricanes to a 2-0 series lead over the New York Islanders, is how it should be, and was going into Game 2 regardless of Andersen’s status.
Throw in Kochetkov’s stellar albeit limited record in relief and there’s no reason for concern, as jarring as it is to see Andersen sitting in the press box during a playoff game, a reminder of darker times a year ago. At some point, given Raanta’s history — he was injured during both playoff series last year, although it’s hard to downgrade his durability when David Pastrnak is plowing into him like a garbage truck with no brakes — the Hurricanes are probably going to need Andersen.
Just not yet.
“We’ll go either way at some point, I’m sure,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “I imagine Freddie will get in there at some point, but (Raanta) has played solid, got us two wins to this point, so I don’t know we’re in a big rush to make any changes there.”
That’s a credit to Raanta’s play in the first two games, the goal he basically scored on himself in Game 1 aside. He’s been everything the Hurricanes have needed him to be, and he’s held up under an uncommon barrage, the kind the Hurricanes don’t usually allow. In both games, the Islanders have had an edge in high-danger scoring chances — 17-13 in Game 1, 14-7 in Game 2 — something that happened only twice in consecutive games in the regular season, and 17 times overall (and the Hurricanes won nine of those).
Even under such unusual conditions, Raanta hasn’t flinched. All three goals the Islanders scored Wednesday came off breakdowns, with Pierre Engvall making contact with Raanta in the crease on the first — the Hurricanes had ample reason to challenge, but declined — and Brady Skjei and Martin Necas making colossal errors on the other two.
That might rattle a goalie into letting in a soft one, but Raanta still made all the hard saves and kept the Hurricanes in a game that was far from their best long enough for Jesper Fast to win it in overtime with an unstoppable rocket.
Raanta’s play makes it easy to forget about Andersen for a moment, but his situation remains a concern. Seeing Andersen out for the morning skate and then unexpectedly in a suit instead of pads is all too reminiscent of the New York Rangers series last year, when he couldn’t quite get himself back to 100 percent and comfortable to play. That’s easy to criticize from afar, but Andersen has been through enough injuries to know when he’s ready and when he isn’t. The fact that he skated Thursday morning before the team’s departure to New York is a positive sign.
Still, you throw in this illness with that absence in a series the Hurricanes eventually lost and the reputation Andersen gained in Toronto as a regular-season goalie — the Leafs’ playoff performance since suggests he was not the issue — and it becomes a combustible narrative.
Someday, somehow, Andersen is going to have to play a postseason game for the Hurricanes. Friday night on Long Island would have made some sense, even as well as Raanta has been playing, given how much better Raanta has played at home this season and Brind’Amour’s predilection for rotating goalies.
That rotation may still be on the table down the road, but it’s a harder decision to defend the way Raanta played in the first two games, especially if Andersen is fully available for Game 4 on Sunday. And until Andersen is cleared and ready, there’s no discussion at all.
