NHL scores 2016: Hurricanes the latest Metropolitan team to dazzle

The Metropolitan Division just won’t go away. You’ve got the Penguins, Flyers, Blue Jackets, and now the Capitals all on win streaks over five games. The Islanders and Rangers may have lost on Tuesday, but the big surprise of the evening was the Hurricanes’ incredible three-goal comeback to secure an 8-6 win.

Yes, they scored eight goals. OK, fine, it was against the Canucks. But it was still impressive. Four goals in 4:40 to start the third period turned a 5-2 Vancouver lead into a 6-5 Carolina advantage. That’s the fastest four-goal spread for Carolina since it did so against the Bruins in 2007.

Though Carolina is likely out of the Wild Card race even four months out from the playoffs — a nine-point gap is harder to close than one would think, especially given how the rest of the division is playing — it’s certainly not down. The Hurricanes of last year would have folded down three goals heading into the third period.

Yet their young players kept them in it. A combination of their under-24-year-olds in Sebastian Aho, Jeff Skinner, Victor Rask, and Justin Faulk had a hand in the comeback. There’s a reason the Metropolitan Division is dominating the way it is, and the Hurricanes’ youth is a big part of why many are high on their future.

As for the rest of the Metro, the Capitals are the latest to heat up in the division after winning their fifth straight. The Islanders, their opponents, are now dead last in the Eastern Conference after losing their second in a row. Their New York counterparts, the Rangers, took their first loss in the Antti Raanta era, as the Blackhawks broke their three-game win streak. The Blue Jackets won their tilt after potting a pair in the third to beat the Oilers 3-1.

Oh, and two points separate the Penguins at the top and the Flyers in fifth place. Talk about having no wiggle room whatsoever.

Sabres 6, Kings 3
Capitals 4, Islanders 2
Blackhawks 2, Rangers 1
Hurricanes 8, Canucks 6
Sharks 3, Maple Leafs 2 (SO)
Coyotes 4, Red Wings 1
Predators 6, Blues 3
Wild 5, Panthers 1
Stars 6, Ducks 2
Blue Jackets 3, Oilers 1

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1. The Canucks weren’t the only ones to lose multi-goal leads.

St. Louis and Toronto also had troubles holding a late lead. The Blues allowed five straight after opening the game 3-0 in the first 22 minutes, which opened the door for their Central rivals, the Predators, to jump the Jets for fourth place in the division.

The Maple Leafs also lost their multi-goal lead. What was a 2-0 advantage over San Jose turned into a 2-2 tie after a pair of goals for the Sharks in just over two minutes of play in the middle stages of the third. The Sharks eventually pulled out a 3-2 victory in the shootout, though at least Toronto got points out of its mishandled lead.

2. Antti Raanta lost his shutout streak, and quite possibly the Rangers’ net.

A big reason Antti Raanta was keeping a healthy Henrik Lundqvist out of the net was that the Rangers were winning in front of him. Alain Vigneault clearly didn’t want to rock the boat — not only because they were winning, but also because Raanta was doing so well. Now, after a 24-save performance in a 2-1 loss to the Blackhawks, Lundqvist could see his opening.

Raanta actually played really great in the loss, and the Rangers had a strong game but were thwarted by the goaltender at the other end of the ice Scott Darling. Yet, this loss could be what Lundqvist needs to get back into the net.

3. The Wild are also streaking, and the Panthers are sinking.

Minnesota, too, has won five in a row after doing so on a great shooting percentage night, with five goals on 22 shots. The Wild are also getting great production from their youngsters as they’ve moved into second in the Central.

Meanwhile, the Panthers have been middling since the firing of Gerard Gallant.

Oh, and Roberto Luongo wasn’t happy after giving up those five goals to Minnesota.

All is not well in Florida, it seems.

4. You know who else is fading? The Red Wings.

Another uninspired loss for Detroit has it sitting at sixth in the Atlantic. Despite facing the Coyotes on the tail end of a back-to-back, the Red Wings were able to score only once on Mike Smith, who saved 37 in the win for Arizona. In the three straight losses for Detroit, the Red Wings have allowed nine goals and have scored just two.

Zach Hyman used to be a hockey player like you, then he took a Brent Burns shot to the knee.

But he survived and came back to score the opening goal for the Maple Leafs mere minutes later!