2023-04-26 23:25:01
RALEIGH, N.C. – Stefan Noesen making the most of what he’s going through right now with the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the playoffs once morest the New York Islanders.
After ending up in the American Hockey League last season, the 30-year-old forward has found his role with Carolina this season: that of the all-round player who puts himself in front of the net on the power play. He has played a key role so far in the series once morest the Islanders with two goals and two assists, all on the power play, to give the Hurricanes a 3-2 lead going into Game No. 6, which will be contested on Friday.
“I would say it’s a dream come true, but I have 300 games of NHL experience, so I can’t exactly say it’s a dream come true. »
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The dream might have ended last year. Noesen signed a one-year contract with the Hurricanes, but was instead sent to the AHL with the Chicago Wolves. The previous season, he was relegated to the reserve squad during the COVID-19 pandemic, and he was shut out in six NHL games – five with the San Jose Sharks and one with the Toronto Maple Leafs .
“He was trying to find his way,” said Ryan Warsofsky, who coached Wolves last year and is an assistant for the Sharks this season. “He probably struggled a bit with the mental aspect of being a professional athlete. It’s not just showing up at the rink and that’s it. It had to be rebuilt a bit for it to have this mentality. »
Drafted 21st overall by the Ottawa Senators in 2011, Noesen was at a crossroads following eight professional seasons where he spent stints in the NHL with the Anaheim Ducks (2014-2017), New Jersey Devils (2017-2019), the Pittsburgh Penguins (2019), the Sharks (2019-2021) and the Maple Leafs (2021). He had overcome torn anterior cruciate ligament and medial collateral ligament in his left knee in 2013-14, a torn Achilles tendon in 2014-15 and another left knee injury in 2018-19, in addition to having was claimed twice on waivers by New Jersey and San Jose.
Even though he was frustrated, Noesen was determined to turn this time in Chicago into an opportunity. He did just that by becoming the AHL’s top scorer with 48 goals, including 13 on the power play, and a league-high 13 game-winning goals in 70 games last year. He added nine goals and 25 points in 18 playoff games to help Wolves win the Calder Cup.
“It was so much fun,” Noesen said. Our team was really good, there was great camaraderie and the coaches and staff were really good. It was an important experience for me. »
A performance that allowed him to obtain a two-year contract with the Hurricanes last summer, and the chance to spend the entire season in the NHL for the first time since 2018-19 with the Devils. He was used throughout the roster and had a career-best 36 points, including 13 goals, in 78 games. His seven power play goals tied him with Sebastian Oh ranked second on the team in the category, behind the nine of Martin Necas.
Video: NYI@CAR, #1: Noesen redirects Burns and AN
Noesen’s great season continued in the playoffs, as he scored a power play goal in the first two games once morest the Islanders, including a deflection that proved to be the game-winning goal in the 2-0 win. -1 from the first duel. He also had two assists on the power play in the 5-2 Game 4 win.
“In Chicago, I was the veteran who had to lead the team,” Noesen said. It’s different here. I’m only a small part of the team, even though I’m among the 10 oldest guys in the roster, which is kind of weird, but a lot of fun. I learn a lot from this guy. »
Noesen had just one career NHL goal on the power play before this season, but Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour said it was an easy decision to put him in net on the first unit of power play.
“He scored 50 goals in the minors last year when he was regarding two meters from the net,” Brind’Amour said. So it’s very simple. We knew the player, he had a great season last year and he found his bread and butter. »
Noesen (6-foot-1, 205 pounds) has the physicality for the job and a knack for deflecting pucks in front of the net on massive offense.
“He’s one of the best I’ve seen when it comes to getting in the net,” Warsofsky said. It creates space. He can deflect a shot like I’ve never seen anyone else do. »
For Noesen, it is above all a question of effort and of having had the opportunity to play this role.
“I’m not the most talented. Not the fastest either, he said. There are a lot of guys who have a lot more talent than me. The work that I do, it is very simple. It’s effective and guys like it. »
After overcoming so many hardships in his career, the striker has learned to savor such moments, and he hopes that’s just the beginning.
“We worked really hard, my family and my wife, to get back into such a position,” he said. Not a day goes by that I take that for granted. I’m working like crazy to make sure I can support them, and now that we’re in a position to pull off something special, we’re going to give it our all every night. »
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