Hurricanes' backup goalie plays unlikely hero in Game 2 win after starter goes down

Curtis McElhinney will go down in NHL history as the first goalie to play in his first three playoff games with three different teams.

But he’s undoubtedly more excited about joining the long list of unlikely heroes who helped their teams win a critical NHL game.

Stepping in for injured Petr Mrazek in the second period, 35-year-old McElhinney stopped all 17 shots he faced to give his Carolina Hurricanes a 2-1 win against the New York Islanders and a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Mrazek is day-to-day.

“Mac has been great for us all year and he was ready to rock 'n' roll,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said in his postgame news conference.

Games 3 and 4 will be played in Raleigh, North Carolina, where the Hurricanes won all three games in the first round and outscored the Washington Capitals 12-4.

Before Sunday, McElhinney’s only NHL postseason appearances were a 34-minute relief appearance for the Calgary Flames in 2009 and 47 minutes in relief for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2018. He is the fifth NHL goalie to earn his first playoff win after age 35 and the first to do that since Eddie Johnston won in 1972. McElhinney hadn’t played a game since beating Philadelphia on April 6.

McElhinney has played 219 NHL games, mostly as a backup. But GM Don Waddell told USA TODAY Sports last week that McElhinney has played an important role in helping the ‘Canes reach the playoffs. He was 20-11-2 in 33 regular-season games for Carolina.

“There was no ‘oh no, we got to put that guy in,’ ” Brind’Amour said.

The Hurricanes seem to be fueled by their adversity. Defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk was also injured early in this game, leaving the team to play with five defensemen. Saku Maenalanen has a hand injury. Micheal Ferland, Andrei Svechnikov and Joran Martinook were already injured.

This is a team that has embraced an us-against-the-world mentality since famed Hockey Night in Canada” broadcaster Don Cherry called them a “bunch of jerks” because they dared offer a player-choreographed celebration for fans after home wins.

They embraced the nickname of a “Bunch of Jerks” as their own. It seemed to add another level of motivation for a team that is in the playoffs for the first time since 2009.

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The Hurricanes were trailing 1-0 when McElhinney took over. But Warren Foegele and Nino Niederreiter scored 48 seconds apart at the start of the third period to give Carolina the lead.

“We’re not going to put excuses on hitting posts and bars, but the reality is we were the better team. They just scored one more than us,” Islanders goalie Robin Lehner said after the game.

The Hurricanes don’t seem to receive the credit they probably deserve.