Hurricanes rally past Ward, Blackhawks in OT

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Sebastian Aho scored 1:16 into overtime to give the Carolina Hurricanes a 3-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks at PNC Arena on Monday.

Cam Ward made 37 saves for Chicago in his first game against his former team, but the Blackhawks lost their eighth straight (0-6-2). Coach Jeremy Colliton is 0-2-1 since taking over after Joel Quenneville was fired Nov. 6.

The Hurricanes (8-7-3) trailed 2-0 in the second period but scored three straight goals for their second win in eight games (2-4-2). Their only other victory in that span was against the Blackhawks in Chicago on Nov. 8 (4-3).
WATCH: [All Blackhawks vs. Hurricanes highlights]
Teuvo Teravainen and Micheal Ferland scored for Carolina, and former Chicago goalie Scott Darling made 33 saves.
"I thought we came out a little sluggish, and you knew [the Blackhawks] were going to come flying, and they did," Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "But then as the game moved on, I thought we got better and better. Our compete is always there, which I like. The start was a little worrisome, but the guys turned it on after that."
Ward, who won the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy with Carolina in 2006, signed as a free agent with the Blackhawks on July 1 after 13 seasons with the Hurricanes.
"It took me a little bit to calm down," Ward said. "Obviously, there was a little bit of nerves coming back and playing your former team. You so badly want to play well. It just slipped away in overtime. Almost made it happen."

Aho ended a 12-game goal drought when he beat Ward five-hole from the left hash marks after skating the puck across the zone.
"I try not to think anything about those points or goals," Aho said. "I know when I'm playing good. Actually, this night was not my best. I wasn't happy at all, but a good end."
Jonathan Toews and Alex DeBrincat scored for the Blackhawks (6-8-4).
Toews gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead at 9:07 of the first period when he deflected Henri Jokiharju's shot from the point.

DeBrincat scored to give Chicago a 2-0 lead at 10:49 of the second period. After David Kampf stripped the puck from Carolina defenseman Justin Faulk, Dominik Kahun made a drop pass between his legs for DeBrincat, who scored from the slot.
The Hurricanes responded with two power-play goals in 1:06.
Aho won a face-off to Teravainen for a one-timer three seconds into the first man-advantage to cut the Blackhawks lead to 2-1 at 14:07.
Ferland scored at 15:13 to tie it 2-2. He beat Ward from the slot off a backhand pass from Andre Svechnikov.

"You want to make sure you're not losing the game because of the special teams, which is what happened the first 12 to 13 games," Brind'Amour said. "It's not from any lack of effort. It takes time to get some of this stuff together, and that's the difference tonight, obviously. They played a good game, and I thought our guys played a good game, and the special teams is where it was decided."
The two power-play goals blunted the momentum Chicago had gained through the midway point of the game.
"[You have to] tie down the front of the net, especially on the power play," Toews said. "We gave up two quick goals. Not fun, but we still had our chances to distance ourselves in the game. Just the way things are going right now that we didn't find a way to get up a few more goals."

They said it

"I believe we're on the right track. I believe we will turn this around. I think we've got really good players. When things are going against you over a long period of time, it's not easy to get out of it. The circumstances are what they are. We've got to find a way to get it done. We can and we will."-- Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton
"He's a special person, and to me he'll always be special. He helped me realize one of the dreams I've had my whole life, to win the Stanley Cup, and he was a huge part of that. So I know what he put into this organization and seeing him out there was nice, and obviously, the (video) tribute was great. Some of his best saves that I remember very well, so that was a pretty special moment." -- Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour on Blackhawks goalie Cam Ward, his former teammate with Carolina

Need to know

It is the second time the Blackhawks have lost eight games in a row in 2018. They were 0-7-1 from Feb. 1-15 last season. … DeBrincat's goal was his first in eight games. … Svechnikov left the game at 10:02 of the third period after a hit from Brent Seabrook, but he returned after going through the NHL concussion protocol. … Aho and Teravainen each has a three-game point streak.

What's next

Blackhawks: Host the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN)
Hurricanes: Host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; FS-CR, FS-O, NHL.TV)