Jaccob Slavin didn’t shy away from responsibility after Carolina lost Game 1 to the Montreal Canadiens, with a score of 6-2 on Thursday evening. He stood by his locker and accepted blame for the loss.
“I really feel like I gave them the win. I need to step up my game,” he said.
This is a statement from the most reliable defender in the Hurricanes team.
Rod Brind’Amour, when asked about his experienced player’s performance, mentioned that he has never seen a game like that in the eight years he has coached Carolina. Eight years. That’s a noteworthy statement.
Slavin’s salary cap hit of 6.46 million dollars isn’t the problem. The problem lies in the fact that the Hurricanes’ defensive strength goes through him, and Game 1 really hurt that.
Right now, Slavin has 0 goals and 1 assist through 8 playoff games, with a neutral rating, meaning he didn’t score more than he gave away. A low scoring offense is okay, but making mistakes, especially in Game 1, is not.
Montreal won all three regular-season games against Carolina, outscoring them in those matches. The Canadiens took the games with scores of 7-5, 5-2, and 3-1.
Brind’Amour is staying positive about Game 2.
“He’ll recover from this,” Brind’Amour said simply. No long explanation. It was the kind of brief statement coaches use when they want everyone to stop worrying about a problem.
The moment captured in Walt Ruff’s video shows enough. Slavin standing there, looking serious, showing no reasons why he played poorly.
Carolina ended the regular season with a record of 53 wins, 22 losses, and 7 overtime losses, totaling 113 points and a goal difference of 56. They were at the top of their division. They were meant to win this round.
But Game 1 didn’t look like it was from a top team. The Hurricanes allowed six goals in their own arena against a team that finished 7 points behind them in the standings.
Now, Martin St-Louis changes the expectations for the away team. Montreal came to Lenovo Center and took a victory. Game 2 is set for Saturday night, at the same place, with the same teams, and the same concerns for Slavin.
When a player as skilled as him admits he’s the issue, everyone in the locker room pays attention. The other team notices it as well. This makes Game 2 a test to see if Brind’Amour made the right call believing they could recover.
The series has just started with one game played. Carolina cannot afford to lose another game at their home.
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