The Carolina Hurricanes saw their win streak end at eight games on Saturday after suffering a 6-4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. The Canes led at two points during the first half of the game before the Avalanche blew the doors down at the end of the second period. With the win streak ending, the Canes tried to start a new one on Monday night against Jack Eichel and the Vegas Golden Knights.
For the first time this season, the Hurricanes deployed a different lineup, snapping their streak at 13 games. Seth Jarvis missed the contest with a shoulder injury, allowing Tyson Jost to make his Hurricanes debut. The Golden Knights were also without a big player as captain Mark Stone missed his second straight game. Pyotr Kochetkov and Adin Hill battled in the net for their respective teams.
The Kotkaniemi line set the tone for the Hurricanes, netting a pair of goals in the first period. Martin Necas didn't earn a point on the opening goal, but his speed and footwork allowed him space to find Jesperi Kotkaniemi. The center fed Sean Walker for a one-timer that was tipped past Hill by Eric Robinson to get the Canes rolling early. Necas would earn a point on the second goal, setting up Kotkaniemi for his second of the season after Hill kicked out Kotkaniemi's initial chance.
The Hurricanes dominated the first period, but Vegas looked poised to seize control with an early power play in the second. Unfortunately, the Golden Knights forgot that Jordan Martinook can do no wrong. While he wouldn't get a point, Martinook provided smothering pressure on Shea Theodore, forcing the Vegas defenseman to throw the puck into the middle of the slot. Jordan Staal walked down and clapped a shot past Hill 11 seconds into the penalty to make it 3-0.
The friendly bounces kept coming for the Hurricanes. Jack Drury's clean face-off win came to the point for Jaccob Slavin, who stepped into one. Slavin's shot hit the inside of Tyson Jost's leg and redirected into the net for his first Hurricanes goal in his team debut. Jost wasn't looking at the puck when it hit him, but those were the bounces the Canes were getting. This would spell the end of Hill's night after being left out to dry by his teammates, allowing four goals on 21 shots in just over 26 minutes.
Jack Eichel broke the shutout early in the third period by sneaking a shot through Kochetkov. Not only did it break the shutout, but Eichel's goal also broke the FanDuel Sports Network feed for those watching at home, forcing many Caniacs to miss the remainder of the game. Fortunately, there wasn't much to miss. Martinook scored into the empty net and Ivan Barbashev scored a garbage-time power-play goal in the final seconds of a 5-2 Canes win.
While the Hurricanes didn't play poorly for most of Saturday's loss, they looked much more connected in Vegas. The biggest difference was that they never allowed the Golden Knights' stars to get going. Staal's short-handed goal might've been the most important moment of the night. The Canes were on the wrong side of a short-handed tally in Colorado after Cale Makar got the Avalanche on the board to make it 2-1. Instead, Staal extended the lead, allowing the Canes to go into cruise control the rest of the night.
The team's win streak might've been reset, but Pyotr Kochetkov's streak is up to seven games with another outstanding performance. He has left the subpar start against the Flyers in the past, putting in two straight outstanding games against Pittsburgh and Vegas. Kochetkov finished the night with 30 saves, making good use of his pads throughout the game. He looked composed all night, backstopping the Canes to another win.
The offense has scored four or more goals in their last nine games. For a team that lost as much as the Canes did during the offseason, there were legitimate concerns about where the scoring would come from. This win was a perfect example of how the Canes have gotten it done. Staal scored for the first time since Opening Night. Jost was plugged into the lineup and made an immediate impact. Kotkaniemi was finally rewarded with another goal. Robinson has proven to be an underrated addition. Staal, Robinson, Kotkaniemi, and Slavin all finished with multi-point nights.
Up Next: The Carolina Hurricanes' road trip will conclude on Wednesday night in Salt Lake City against the Utah Hockey Club. The Canes will then return home for a weekend of back-to-back games at the Lenovo Center. They'll welcome the Ottawa Senators to Raleigh on Saturday before hosting the St. Louis Blues on Sunday.