All eyes were on the New York Islander, Carolina Hurricanes game one of the NHL playoffs. The Islanders, who not many thought would even make it this far, gave the Hurricanes a run for their money.

One of the biggest things was for the Islanders to stay out of the penalty box. Unfortunately for them at 1:22 Anders Lee made his way to the box after he held Hurricanes defenseman Brady Skjei. Many have had a lot to say about this call but in any event the Islanders and their second-worst penalty kill in the league had a big job to do. They failed giving Carolina a 1-0 lead.

After 20 minutes the game was tied at 1-1 with a goal from rookie Kyle MacLean. The shots were nearly the same from both teams; the Islanders nearly turned this game on its head. Through 40 minutes, the Islanders were heavily outshooting Carolina — nearly doubling them in shots — and were throwing their body in front of seemingly every shot, and every pass, that came off a Canes player’s stick.

Unlike the first period in the second the Islanders had a huge penalty kill with Ryan Pulock and Casey Cizikas blocking shots. The second period ended scoreless, but what stood out was the Islanders' shutdown defense. They held the Hurricanes to just five shots, with 13 of their own, and headed to the third up 21-12 in shots on net. 

The Canes wrestled their way through the third and made it 2-1 and then eventually went to win it 3-1. Even though the Islanders lost, they gave the Hurricanes a run for their money and proved that they deserve to be here in the playoffs.

Playoff Takeaways: Andersen shines as Hurricanes outlast Islanders in Game 1 (sportsnet.ca)