A double sweep to open the National Hockey League playoffs hasn't happened in more than 40 years. After defeating the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers in lightning-quick fashion, the Carolina Hurricanes look primed to finally win a Stanley Cup.
That's not to say the road doesn't get tougher from here. A collision course with the Colorado Avalanche would, in all certainty, give us the best-on-best Stanley Cup the hockey world craves.
Defensive Excellence Sets the Tone
Critics have been quick to point to underwhelming competition in the first two rounds, especially a Flyers team that looked young and rattled for a second-round foe. But that discounts too much of what Carolina does to teams when they're at their best: bringing offenses to a screeching halt.
The Hurricanes' defensive numbers through the first two rounds are staggering. One of the benefits of dominating possession is that opponents simply spend a lot of time trying to win the puck back.
Over the eight games against the Senators and the Flyers, the Hurricanes won the scoring battle at even strength 16-6 (+10). Opponent power plays are only one goal better than Carolina over that same eight-game stretch. The goal differential for Carolina's penalty kill is just -1.
Six even-strength goals against in eight games is remarkable. It's simply very difficult to even get the puck into Carolina's zone. And when teams do, it's another task entirely to create scoring chances from the dangerous areas of the ice.
Structured Play and Team Defense
Carolina's personnel play tightly within structure and are exceptional at keeping opposing forwards on the perimeter. The same relationship applies on the penalty kill, where a four-man unit of Jordan Staal, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, and Jalen Chatfield can completely shut down the game.
Carolina's defensive zone is hockey's Bermuda Triangle. Watch a Carolina game, and one thing becomes crystal clear: This team will forecheck you into oblivion, and inexperienced teams can struggle mightily against the pressure.
Oppposing Forwards Neutralized
One of the impressive aspects from the first two rounds was how many quality forwards from both Ottawa and Philadelphia found zero space to operate against Carolina's vaunted defense. Comparing their shot volumes from the regular season versus their head-to-head matchup with Carolina, there is a staggering drop-off.
It's not just that so many players had decisive, double-digit drop-offs in opportunity. Carolina also did it to some of the most dangerous players on the ice. Skaters like Brady Tkachuk, Drake Batherson, Travis Konecny, and Trevor Zegras were bottled up.
The only two consequential skaters who outperformed were Tim Stutzle and Christian Dvorak. And that outperformance was only a function of shot volume: Stutzle was blanked at evens in four games against Carolina, and Dvorak had just one assist.
Goaltending Cements the Victory
Great goaltending behind all of it through Frederik Andersen and his absurd .950 save percentage shows why Carolina has breezed through the competition.
Ask anyone in the Hurricanes organization and they'll tell you the job isn't finished. Few teams have more postseason wins than Carolina over the past decade, yet they still haven't raised the Stanley Cup since 2006.
There's a tortured history there of late, especially in the Eastern Conference Final. Carolina has been there two of the past three years, with both of those bids ending without a trip to the Stanley Cup Final.