Perfect Special Teams Performance Leads Canes Past Golden Knights

RALEIGH, NC. - The Carolina Hurricanes beat the best team in the NHL on Tuesday, turning in flawless nights on both the power play and penalty kill to take a 6-3 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

Svech Is Back...

After missing the team's last five games due to an upper-body injury, the Canes lineup got a boost with the return of Andrei Svechnikov.

From the opening puck drop, #37 was noticeable, not just in the form of generating offense, but also in the physicality department.

In addition to a thunderous boom on Alex Pietrangelo, the star winger also jumped immediately back into his role on the power play and made an immediate impact.

Just 10:27 into the first period, Svechnikov was set up at the circle to the left of Vegas netminder Logan Thompson and beat him clean with a shot for his second goal of the season.

Putting It All Together...

Although Vegas was able to even the contest before the end of the first period, what Carolina responded with in the middle 20 made it a moot point.

A three-goal period when all was said and done, Captain Jordan Staal got the rush started with a tap-in from Jesper Fast inside the first five minutes of the stanza.

Followed up by some insurance from Jesperi Kotkaniemi, the tally for #82 was his first since November 28. Concluding a surgical offensive zone shift, that was perhaps the moment when it started to look like the performance that the Canes had been looking for for quite some time.

The third and final goal of the period came via Michael Bunting, the power play's second in as many tries. Stalking the net front, #58 located a Sebastian Aho rebound and put it home to extend Carolina's lead to three.

Two More For Good Measure...

Up 4-1 heading to the finish, it took just 10 seconds into the third for Carolina to get back on the scoring train.

Again on the power play, Seth Jarvis tapped home a rebound left by another connection between Aho and Bunting, giving the latter two three points on the evening.

The third goal on three tries, it was just the second time this season that the Canes produced three goals on the man advantage, joining their October 17 performance in San Jose.

To close out Carolina's half-dozen, Brady Skjei rifled his team-defense-leading sixth marker of the season. Jumping up in the play to intercept an attempted clear by Vegas, the team's new second-unit power play quarterback gloved down the puck, skated in, and gave his club a five-goal lead.

With spirits high in PNC Arena, the night had a sour ending, but one that can be overlooked given the efforts of the first 58 minutes.

The Golden Knights put two past Pyotr Kochetkov inside the final 1:24, closing the gap to 6-3 before reaching the final horn. Spoiling what could have been a fourth consecutive outing of just one goal allowed, the 24-year-old still turned in a 30-save win and was spectacular at earlier points in the contest.

Their 17th win of the season, tonight also moves Carolina's point streak to five games for a new season-long.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour on his team's perfect night on special teams...

"I thought they did a really good job.  The penalty kill was good.  That's one of [Vegas'] strengths, special teams.  They've got special players.  We were able to win that tonight and that was obviously the difference in the game."

Andrei Svechnikov on getting back in the lineup and how much getting the early goal helped him get back into the flow of the game...

"I had some juice.  I was trying to make plays, hit some guys, and make it easier on the guys.  [Getting the goal] felt good.  It gave me a little bit of confidence.  The first goal is always important for the team.  You kind of feel the game right away."

Michael Bunting sharing how important it is for the team to garner momentum off of a win like tonight, especially with a few days off looming...

"We know what we need to do here to succeed and have success.  I thought we did well there.  We have to build off of it.  We're going back at it in Pittsburgh in a couple of days and then we have another.  We want to finish off strong going into the Christmas break."

What's Next?

The Canes are scheduled to fly to Pittsburgh on Wednesday. They'll then take on the Penguins on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena.

Worth A Click

Dell Joins Canes On A Free Agent Tryout

Andersen To Resume Skating Soon

Canes Reassign Raanta To Chicago

Kochetkov's Most Electrifying Saves Yet

Mailbag #72: Team Performance Chef Sean Murnane

Projected Salary Cap Jump, 2024 Draft Info Announced

Bucket List: When and Why?

Whalers Night: In White!

Williams Named To Hurricanes Hall of Fame

Prospects: Where Are They Playing?

Uniform Schedule For 2023-24

2023-24 Single Game Tickets