When Shayne Gostisbeer got injured against the Edmonton Oilers, a different issue arose besides the fact of losing their most aggressive defenceman.
Once again, they had lost a key contributor to their power play in a top unit quarterback.
However, it appeared that this time, the Carolina Hurricanes coaching staff tried something new, as they added Gostisbehere’s linemate, Alexander Nikishin, to the top power play unit as a quarterback.
The change comes as Nikishin’s defensive play has stepped up significantly in recent games, and it was nice to see the 24-year-old rookie given an extra level of responsibility – even if experimental.
Nikishin achieved a lot in the top unit
In Tuesday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, he handled things decently. Of course, there were some issues here and there that he wants to improve on, but this was a welcome contribution overall, if only to give him additional experience on the defensive, play-making side of power play forechecking.
And it worked in the Hurricanes’ favor on the scoresheet. With the top unit on the two-man advantage, Nikishin blasted a spectacular snap shot on a brilliant play – a goal that gave the Hurricanes a chance to breathe, and ultimately the all-important goal to pull them through sixty minutes as the Penguins pushed back and sent them to overtime.
Additionally, the goal also put him in the Hurricanes history books, as with his ninth goal of the season, he passed Justin Faulk for most goals by a rookie defenseman. The franchise record had remained untouched since it was set in the 2011–12 season.
In their words (with some help)
After the game, Nikishin talked about his experience on the top power play unit with the help of fellow-Russian Andrei Svechnikov, who served as a translator.
“He said we put all the power play mistakes on him,” Svechnikov said after the game, helping his Russian teammate.
“So, he’s a little bit crazy.”
They discussed things a bit more, as Nikishin provided a detailed answer to the question.
“He said, obviously, it’s a joke,” he clarified through Svechnikov. “But it feels good, you know, playing on the power play first, and you have to expect everything, because all the passes can come from anywhere and you just have to anticipate and focus there.”
Nikishin also talked about the record broken with a power play goal.
“Apparently, it pleases him,” Svechnikov said. “Just making history, it’s special, and he’ll never forget it.”
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