Carolina Hurricanes get in the big licks in Game 2 playoff win over Devils

It was hours before the playoff game Friday and the Carolina Hurricanes’ Jesperi Kotkaniemi sat alone at his stall in the locker room at PNC Arena.

Not that the room was empty. After the Canes’ morning skate, the media filed in and surrounded such players as Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho and others. Kotkaniemi was by himself.

“It’s OK, I’m fine with it,” he said, smiling.

The center then talked about the grind of the Stanley Cup playoffs, about facing the New Jersey Devils in the second round, about the physical and mental stress of the 60-minute battles on the ice.

‘With the adrenaline of the games it’s easy to charge your head,” he said of getting the proper mindset. “But the body, after 82 games in the season it’s about getting the blood running and staying fresh and having the body ready to go.”

Kotkaniemi was ready to go Friday in Game 2 of the second-round series. So were the Hurricanes, who blew past the Devils 6-1 to grab a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

A lot went into the Canes’ victory: killing off a 5-on-3 Devils power play in the first period, another rock-solid game from goalie Frederik Andersen, defensemen keeping the Devils’ big guys in check.

“Freddie was there all night,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said after Andersen had 34 saves in a third straight playoff start and win.

Before the game, Kotkaniemi had talked how scoring first was important in the playoffs. He then proceeded to score twice in the first four minutes of the second period for a 2-0 Carolina lead.

His wingers, Jordan Martinook and Jesper Fast, were all over the ice, winning battles, hounding the puck, playing the body, setting up plays.

“Playing with ‘Quickie’ and ‘KK’ you’re trying to play heavy and grind it out,” Martinook said “Quickie has an unbelievable motor on him and I think I do, too.”

Kotkaniemi’s first goal came early in the second period, on a power play set in motion by an interference penalty against Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler with four seconds left in the first. His second came after Martinook came flying in on the forecheck, smashing a couple of bodies into the wall as Fast soon joined in. The puck squirted free in front and Kotkaniemi had another goal.

While the goals were nice — “You take ‘em any way you can get ‘em this time of year,” Brind’Amour said — Kotkaniemi might be remembered as much for a hit he put on Devils captain Nico Hischier in the first period.

Not long after Fast had blasted defenseman Ryan Graves, Kotkaniemi collided with Hischier along the wall as the Canes set a physical tone.

“That’s what we need to do. We need that from everyone,” said Staal, who had the third of four second-period goals. “It doesn’t have to be massive hits but those were big ones.

“It’s about wearing ‘em down. It’s about giving them nothing and making it hard on them and just frustrating them. All those things are just part of giving them nothing. Hits are a part of it. It’s always good to get a little lick in every now and then,”

The Devils now have taken two big licks from the Canes. Rookie goalie Akira Schmid has yet to play in the third period against the Hurricanes, departing again in Game 2.

Devils coach Lindy Ruff was quick to concede his team has not matched the Canes’ intensity level.

“Right now, 5 on 5, they are the better team,” Ruff said after the game. “We’ve got to win more battles, got to be more determined. I thought we started the game really good, but as the game went on we got frustrated, made some poor decisions with the puck, gave the puck away.

Photos: Game 2, Carolina Hurricanes vs New Jersey Devils

“GIve them credit. Their battles were better than ours.”

The Devils, after a pair of 5-1 losses to start their playoff series with the New York Rangers, rebounded to win four of the last five games. They’re now going home to the Prudential Center, ready to absorb the energy of their crowd, their fans.

The Hurricanes, who did not win on the road in the playoffs last year, won twice against the New York Islanders in their first-round series. It’s a team playing to its identity, which is working hard for everything, rolling four lines and getting contributions from everyone.

“We need everyone being tenacious and hard on pucks and winning battles and playing the way we can,” Staal said. “It’s going to be a new challenge going into their building and not letting their crowd get them going. We’ll have to go there and find a way to get some W’s.”