Martinook, Andersen help Hurricanes
push past Devils 3-1 for 2-0 lead in 1st-round playoff series
[April 23, 2025]
By AARON BEARD
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jordan Martinook and Frederik Andersen played
with the steady veteran composure that comes only through game after
game of postseason intensity.
It's a big reason why the Carolina Hurricanes hold a 2-0 lead in a
playoff series yet again.
Martinook saw an opening and pounced on his chance to break loose
for what turned into the go-ahead shorthanded goal in the second
period. And Andersen came up big in net all night, putting them at
the forefront of the Hurricanes' 3-1 win against the New Jersey
Devils on Tuesday in Game 2 of their first-round series.
The win improved Carolina to 11-0 when playing for a chance to take
a 2-0 series lead dating to its run to the Stanley Cup in 2006.
Shayne Gostisbehere also scored in the second for Carolina, while
Seth Jarvis added a clinching empty-net breakaway goal in the final
minute. That was enough for the Hurricanes, who had a much tougher
fight on their hands against the shorthanded Devils than in a Game 1
romp.
Martinook, who also assisted on Jarvis' empty-netter, continues to
thrive against the Devils in the postseason. Going back to a
second-round win two years ago, Martinook has four goals and nine
assists with at least one point in all seven of those games against
New Jersey.
“I love playoffs, I feel like it brings the best out of me,”
Martinook said when asked about that success. “I don't know. Just, I
love the emotion, the energy, of the games. It's the funnest time of
the year for a reason.”
Then there was Andersen, who stood up for 25 saves and didn't allow
the Devils to find the back of the net for the final 56 minutes.
That including a big stop on a shot by Nathan Bastian with about 6
minutes left.
“You see his demeanor,” Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said.
“Whether he has a great game or a game he'd like to have back, you
would never know. It's just very, very calm. I think the way he
plays in net is very calming, too.”
Jesper Bratt scored the Devils' lone goal while Jacob Markstrom
finished with 25 saves for New Jersey.
The Hurricanes had dominated the series opener in Sunday's 4-1 win,
leaving coach Sheldon Keefe and his players lamenting the Devils'
inability to match Carolina's relentless edge in what captain Nico
Hischier described as “simple hockey, hard hockey.”
[to top of second column] |
Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook, left, celebrates his goal
with Dmitry Orlov (7) during the second period of Game 2 of an NHL
hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the New Jersey
Devils in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl
DeBlaker)
It didn't help, too, that New Jersey was down
defensemen Luke Hughes and Brenden Dillon from Game 1 injuries. But
the Devils got the determined effort they needed to stay in this
one.
“I liked a lot about our game today,” Keefe said. “We showed
attitude, we showed competitiveness, we showed care.”
It started when the Devils pinned Carolina in its own end early to
set up Bratt's clean-up of a rebound for the game's first score at
3:51 of the game.
It also included former Hurricane Brett Pesce personally saving two
goals for the Devils on loose pucks against Markstrom, including one
coming seconds after Gostisbehere pounced on his own rebound to beat
Markstrom. On that one, Pesce knocked a puck out as it laid on the
goal line — but not fully across it — behind Markstrom.
He also cleaned up one on Taylor Hall's near score on a push under
Markstrom in traffic.
“I thought we could've easily won that game,” Pesce said, an icebag
resting under a shirt on his left shoulder in the locker room. “I
think we gave it everything we had and came up short.”
The winner fittingly went to the veteran Martinook on a strong
attacking night, coming moments after the Devils were lined up for a
faceoff to start a power play. Dmitry Orlov collected the loose puck
and sent a transition pace to spring Martinook, who blasted a shot
past Markstrom at the 5:54 mark of the second to put Carolina ahead
for good.
“I can't think of enough good things to say about that game in
particular,” Brind'Amour said. “It might have been his most
impactful game as a Hurricane. ... So he was all over this game for
us.”
The series now shifts north to Newark for Game 3 on Friday night.
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