Who is the Hurricanes goalie to start Round 2? It’s a question without a wrong answer

The Carolina Hurricanes now have a goaltending dilemma, of the very best kind.

Whomever they play in the second round, whenever it starts, there’s a real decision to be made between Antti Raanta, who carried the Hurricanes through the first five games of the first round, and Frederik Andersen, who bailed the Hurricanes out in their Game 6 overtime win to eliminate the New York Islanders on Friday.

There’s a lot that will go into that decision — more even, perhaps, than the relatively minor gamble to start Andersen on Friday, because they always had Raanta in reserve for Game 7, at home, where he’s been nearly unbeatable.

And there’s no wrong answer.

The way Andersen played, winning his first close-out game in a playoff series in nine tries, indicated he’s fully fit and ready to contribute. He let in the first goal of the game after a bad line change left Cal Clutterbuck with all the time in the world to pick his spot high over Andersen’s glove from the right wing, then stopped the next 17 shots as the Hurricanes labored through two bad periods and thrived in a resurgent third to force overtime.

This was Andersen at his best in many ways: Big and calm when the Islanders attacked, then furiously scrambling to get his head, his arms, legs, even his back in the way if chaos erupted. And it did, several times.

“He was unbelievable,” Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal said. “He bailed me out a couple times. Quite a few other guys as well. Kudos to him for being sharp and ready to go. He played an unbelievable game to help us sneak out a W here.”

Whatever questions might have been left over from Toronto about Andersen’s ability to win in the playoffs were emphatically dismissed Friday; if there was a postseason issue, it was with the Maple Leafs and a lack of goal support, not Andersen. He was up to the task when the Hurricanes needed him. His postseason debut may have been a long time coming for them, but it was worth the wait.

But Raanta was also so good, carrying the Hurricanes through the first five games, especially Game 4 when he split his pants on his way to beating the Islanders and ending the Hurricanes’ eight-game road playoff losing streak, that it’s not automatic that Andersen remains in net. Raanta has earned that much at least.

That was perhaps the most promising long-term development Friday night: The Hurricanes rode Raanta last spring until he broke, with Andersen unavailable, but if they truly have two goalies they can rely upon, they can safely manage the workload for both. The way Andersen played opens the door to maximizing the strengths of both goalies.

“When both goalies are playing the way they’re playing, it’s easy to consider that,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Sunday. “If not, you’re a little less willing to do that, but clearly now, we have two good options.”

So Brind’Amour and goalie coach Paul Schonfelder have a lot to consider as they await this rematch, either the New Jersey Devils from so many playoffs past, or the New York Rangers from playoffs all too recent. They can’t really go wrong here. Raanta will be rested and ready. Andersen will be brimming with confidence. Vaya con dios.

If past practice is any indication, the Hurricanes will go back to Raanta in Game 1, because he’s been so good at PNC Arena and certainly didn’t lose the net, with the option of going back to Andersen in Game 2 if things don’t go well, or Game 3 if they do. This much is certain: If both remain healthy, the same goalie is unlikely to start five straight games again. That was how they got here.

Just as the Hurricanes have needed every player on the roster to contribute, collectively, per their motto, they’ll need both goalies, so they might as well plan ahead with that expectation.

“We’ve got two good options now,” Brind’Amour said. “Two good healthy options, which we never seem to be able to have in the playoffs the last few years.”

They needed both goalies to beat the Islanders.

They’ll need both to beat whomever comes next.

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