King Kaufman's Sports Daily
Stanley Cup: Carolina and Edmonton to meet in all-WHA Finals after injuries and tough breaks doom Buffalo.
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June 2, 2006 | Nothing like an NHL Game 7. Nothing.
With a packed, hankie-waving crowd going wild at the RBC Center in Raleigh, N.C., the Carolina Hurricanes beat the undermanned Buffalo Sabres 4-2 Thursday night to take a classic seven-game conference final and reach the Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers.
Edmonton-Carolina is exactly the kind of all-small-market final that could never have happened if the NHL hadn't interrupted play for a year with a lockout that was necessary to get the league's financial house in order and restore competitive balance.
Just look at the last Stanley Cup Finals before the stoppage: Tampa Bay vs. Calgary.
Oh. Hmm. Wait a minute.
But hey! Let's talk about the Hurricanes, a Sun Belt team that never could have gotten this far in the old economic system. The 'Canes haven't been to the Finals since 2002.
OK, hang on.
What a game!
Carolina captain Rod Brind'Amour scored the game winner, racing in from the right circle to pounce on a loose puck that Buffalo defenseman Roy Fitzpatrick didn't appear to know was in his skates right in the low slot. That power-play goal broke a 2-2 tie with 8:44 to go, and the Hurricanes put the game away when Justin Williams picked up his own rebound and backhanded it past fallen goalie Ryan Miller with 52 seconds left.
The Sabres fought bravely with a decided shortage of NHL defensemen, having lost four of them to injury, Jay McKee the latest to go out -- with a leg infection. And that's not to mention injured center Tim Connolly.
But in the end they couldn't overcome the manpower problem and the step the Hurricanes seemed to get from the home crowd.
Buffalo stunned that crowd by scoring a go-ahead goal with five seconds left in the second period. Jochen Hecht bounced the puck off goalie Cam Ward from behind the net, Ward having failed to seal off the left post when Hecht circled behind.
It was one of several funny bounces that helped decide the game. The Hurricanes' first goal, on a slap shot by Mike Commodore, went in after ricocheting off two Sabres players. Given 50 tries, Minnesota Fats couldn't have reproduced that carom.
Brind'Amour's game winner came on a man advantage created when Buffalo defenseman Brian Campbell accidentally flipped the puck over the boards on a clearing attempt, a delay of game.
