RALEIGH, N.C. — This one had a few more quirks, but for the third time in three tries since the All-Star break, the not bad, but far-from-optimal version of the Colorado Avalanche proved to be not enough against one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.
Martin Necas scored a natural hat trick on three of Carolina’s first four shots, and the Hurricanes sent the Avs to their third straight loss with a 5-2 victory at PNC Arena.
The biggest problem since the break is now officially the power play. Colorado converted 35% of its chances in the final 22 games before the time off, but the Avs had another rough night with the man advantage and it cost them.