For the first time in 2026, the Carolina Hurricanes took the ice, trying to improve their spot atop the division against the Montreal Canadiens. The Canes closed last year with a lopsided loss in Pittsburgh, but they hoped some line juggling would help them get back on track in this inter-conference matchup.
The personnel remained the same for the Canes, but the most notable change saw Nikolaj Ehlers reuniting with Sebastian Aho on the top line. Brandon Bussi took the crease for the Canes, trying to bring his storybook season into the new year. Jakub Dobes was on the other side for Montreal. Defenseman Mike Matheson was a late scratch with an upper-body injury.
The game didn't start well for the Hurricanes. Almost immediately, they found themselves in a two-goal hole. Jesperi Kotkaniemi, playing in his 500th game, turned the puck over in the defensive zone. Nick Suzuki made him pay, snapping it off the back bar to open the scoring. Less than a minute later, Oliver Kapanen was left all alone to finish a chance after great work from Ivan Demidov.
The Canes' top line, sensing they needed a boost, picked the group up. After drawing a penalty, Nikolaj Ehlers cut the lead in half on the power play. Then, Sebastian Aho redirected Joel Nystrom's shot to knot it up. Finally, Andrei Svechnikov cleaned up a rebound in front of the net to give the Canes the lead. The trio combined for seven points in the opening 20 minutes as the Canes led, 3-2.
The power play got another for Carolina less than a minute into the second period. Alexander Nikishin's clapper from the point eluded Dobes to double the Canes' advantage. Then, the period fell apart. Sammy Blais brought the Habs within one a few minutes later. Then, late in the period, the Canes gave Cole Caufield and Josh Anderson goals 23 seconds apart to snag the lead back after 40.
The effort to open the third wasn't indicative of a team searching for the tying goal. They had one good shift, but it was immediately met by a Juraj Slafkovsky goal from a sharp angle. The Canes pulled Bussi with just under four minutes to play, and Aho brought them within one with his second goal and fifth point, but Lane Hutson provided the dagger into the empty net, finishing a 7-5 Habs win.
The top line does it all offensively, led by a magnificent night from Aho
It's a shame that the Hurricanes wasted one of the best individual efforts we've seen in a long time. For the second time in his career, Sebastian Aho recorded five points in a game, doing so against the Wild in 2019. He contributed to all five of the team's goals, scoring a pair and assisting on the other three. The Canes needed him to be special tonight, and he was.
The top trio of Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, and Nikolaj Ehlers were the only forwards to record points. Svechnikov and Ehlers each recorded a goal and two assists, bringing the line's total to 11 points on Thursday. Ehlers had an egregious gaffe on Montreal's fifth goal, throwing a pass into the slot with none of his teammates around. Otherwise, this line was unstoppable.
Brandon Bussi was due for a bad game
It always seems that the greatest runs always come to an end in the most lopsided ways possible. Last season, the Canes went on one of their longest winning streak of the season, only to get molly-whopped by the Los Angeles Kings. That's what tonight turned into for Brandon Bussi, whose 12-game point streak came to a halt with this regulation loss.
While he made some big stops at different points in the game, Bussi lacked the sharpness we've seen from him this season. The momentum-killing moment was Slafkovsky's goal midway through the third. The shot beat him from a bad angle because he wasn't committed enough to his post. We shouldn't overreact to one bad night, especially since it's his first rough start in well over a month.
Additional Thoughts
The rookie blueliners had up-and-down nights. Both Alexander Nikishin and Joel Nystrom had tough moments that led to goals, but they were also contributors offensively. Nikishin notched points on both power-play goals, recording the first multi-point game of his career. Nystrom picked up his eighth assist of the season, giving him five helpers in his last eight games.
It would be one thing if the Canes were allowing highlight-reel goals and making their opponents work to score, but they aren't. Almost every goal against has been self-inflicted. There were at least four goals tonight that could've been avoided if they had made a smarter decision with the puck. It has been a recurring nightmare all season, and it is actively costing them points.
Up Next: The road forward doesn't get any kinder for the Carolina Hurricanes. They'll play a weekend back-to-back, beginning at home against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night. Then, the Canes will fly to Newark to meet the struggling New Jersey Devils on Sunday. Next week, the group gets a little more home cooking, playing three times at home, with the first on Tuesday against Dallas.