As the Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators face each other on Saturday to open the Stanley Cup Playoffs, they will do so after battling similar adversity in the regular season.
Both teams took a long shot chance to play the part and both teams were successful in their goal of finishing the season strong to claim a postseason berth.
The Hurricanes suffered a major loss of goaltender before the season even started.
In Carolina, the season almost broke before it even started.
As the Hurricanes prepared their roster for the season, they faced a problem in net as their third goaltender, Kayden Primeau, had played very well during the preseason. As soon as they placed him on waivers to reassign him to their AHL-affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, they had a feeling he would be claimed. And so, they started looking for another goalkeeper to serve as a safety measure should that happen. (Yes, that happened. The Toronto Maple Leafs claimed him, though the Hurricanes later reunited with Primo when they placed him on waivers.)
Enter Brandon Bussey, the Florida Panthers' latest depth goaltender, signing after several strong seasons with the Providence Bruins. Having never pitched above the AHL-level in his career, he was placed on waivers and was on the drive to Charlotte, NC to join their affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, when he got the call that the Hurricanes had claimed them.
Making a change in more ways than one, he found himself on the opening night roster due to an injury preventing Pyotr Kochetkov from playing. He took the crease again and again and scored a run that made NHL history as he broke records one after another. Of 39 games played, he won 31 – tied for fourth in the entire league for most wins by a goalkeeper this season.
His consistency in net in the first half of the season, despite Kochetkov's prolonged absence requiring surgery and Frederik Andersen's cold streak, was key in giving the Hurricanes a huge boost in the standings.
Senators lose top goaltender, throw dice on aging veteran netminder
Meanwhile, the Senators faced the same dilemma as Carolina, albeit later in the season, during an equally crucial time.
In late December, Linus Ullmark – who has been a vocal advocate for mental health in hockey – took leave due to mental issues he was struggling with. The Senators then hit a skid as the position was given to 23-year-old goaltender Levi Merilainen, with 25-year-old Mads Sogaard supporting him.
Amid a blowout 8–2 loss at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche, the Senators announced that then-37-year-old James Reimer, the former Hurricanes goaltender, had been signed to a professional tryout contract.
Possibly, his signing saved their season.
Reimer brought a calm, seasoned veteran presence to a young goalie team that was shaken up, stopped the bleeding and earned the team a valuable Atlantic Division point in its first game back – and further points in three of the five games played while Ullmark was out. He had a goals against average of 2.42 in his 14 games, achieved a shutout and helped the Senators score 16 points while at the crease.
Since both teams face each other in the first round of the playoffs, only one team advances to the next round, so it cannot be underestimated what the Hurricanes and Senators managed to accomplish despite the obstacles they faced. Only 16 of the league's 32 teams were able to clinch a spot in the postseason. To be able to come this far while dealing with key absences in something as crucial as goaltending is something to be commended, no matter what team you're on.
