Recap: Canes Best Red Wings

The Carolina Hurricanes opened a five-game homestand with a 3-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTO GALLERY | STATISTICS

The Bottom Line

The Canes, for whatever reason, struggled at times against Detroit this season; coming into the season series finale between the two teams, the Canes sported a paltry 3-3-1 record against the Red Wings. The two teams traded some quality scoring chances in the first period, as the Canes settled in on the heels of an extended road trip. Once they got on the board in the second, they rolled and steadily dominated. The Canes held onto the puck. They were disciplined. They limited the Red Wings to just 17 shots on goal, including just three in the third period. It was exactly the type of win you probably expected to see the Canes land more than four times against the Wings this season, but that's hockey, right? With the victory, the Canes move two points closer to clinching first place in the Central Division.
"We had some chances in the first, and they did too. Reims kept us in the game," Sebastian Aho said. "We didn't get frustrated in the first. We just kept going and took over in the second."

Fist Bumps

Brady Skjei
Just as it took the Canes a bit to settle into their game, so too did it take Skjei, who missed the last four games with a concussion, a period to settle into his. Not even five minutes into the second period, he got the Canes on the board first with his second goal in his last three games played.
"After the first period I started feeling good. I did not play that good in the first, and I turned it around in the second. The goal helped," Skjei said. "It took a little time to settle in, but in the second and third I got back to my game and started playing a lot better."
On his goal, a patient Skjei dragged the puck around the defense of Vladislav Namestnikov and wired a wrist shot labeled for the top shelf.

"I looked to shoot, and I saw him go down, so I tried to move it more to the inside," Skjei said. "Whenever you can change the angle when you're shooting, it can throw goalies and defenders off."
Teuvo Teravainen
In his second game back in the lineup after being sidelined close to two months with a concussion, Teravainen recorded two points to reach 300 in his NHL career and was named the game's first star.
Teravainen tallied the secondary assist on Skjei's opening goal, and then in the third period, the Finnish winger restored his team's two-goal advantage.
The Canes hounded the puck near the blue line and forced a turnover. Sebastian Aho then fed his countryman, who slipped a shot through Jonathan Bernier to put the Canes ahead, 3-1.

"Turbo looks like he didn't really miss a beat, so that's a real positive sign," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "It's nice for him to get a goal for his own confidence."
Warren Foegele
When the Canes turned on their game in the second period, Foegele netted his 10th goal of the season to double his team's lead to 2-0.
Brett Pesce, skating in his 400th career game, poked the puck to Foegele on the doorstep. Amid bodies in front, Foegele punched in his own rebound.

Stats Pack

4: Of the five games in which Teravainen has found the scoresheet this season, four - including his two-point effort tonight - have been multi-point games.
6: Aho recorded two points to extend his season-long point streak to six games (3g, 8a).
117-64-19: Brind'Amour has guided the Canes to a 117-64-19 record in his 200 games as head coach of the team. He's the first head coach in franchise history to clinch a postseason berth in each of his first three seasons behind the bench.

Where Did He Go?

Jordan Staal leveled Troy Stecher in the third period, and his whereabouts remain unknown.
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Quote of the Night

"It's a nice milestone, but hopefully I get a couple more." - Teuvo Teravainen on his 300th career NHL point

Up Next

The Canes and Blue Jackets close out their eight-game season series on Saturday night.