Hurricanes Waste Hot Start as Game 1 Slips Away

Carolina comes out with the kind of jump that usually has a coach relaxing his shoulders and a room believing the night belongs to them. Then the little leaks start - a mistake here, a silent stretch from key scorers there - and suddenly the whole game gets slippery. In the Final, you do not get many chances to survive that kind of drift, especially against a team that can smell hesitation.