Recap: Canes Take Down Pittsburgh For Top Spot In The Metro

PITTSBURGH, PA. -The Carolina Hurricanes claimed sole possession of the top spot in the Metropolitan Division Sunday, taking a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Rundown:
The opening ten minutes of the contest belonged to the netminders, as Metropolitan Division All-Star Tristan Jarry, and Antti Raanta, making his first start in 12 days, were crucial in keeping things scoreless.
While the first 20 minutes felt as if there could have been a combined five goals, the only skater to successfully find the back of the net was Jesperi Kotkaniemi, concluding a remarkable shift for his 11th goal of the season. Kotkaniemi, who was playing on the fourth line in the middle Jordan Martinook and Seth Jarvis after Vincent Trocheck (upper-body injury) was cleared to play, put home a second effort in the slot after a loose puck wound up in the slot behind Martinook.
Taking their 1-0 lead into the second, the Canes quickly moved that to 2-0 just nine seconds into the middle frame. Jordan Staal crashed the net on the opening sequence, getting a puck to go off of his leg and behind Jarry for his second goal in four games.
It was the start of a sequence in which Carolina would jump all over Pittsburgh, putting 11 shots on in the opening seven minutes of the second period, after only getting 12 on in the opening 20 minutes. However, after the first media timeout of the second, the Penguins took control of the game, storming back to tie the game over the next 13 minutes of play.
Heading into the third 2-2, the Canes then got to work quickly again, scoring nine seconds in for a second consecutive frame. Jesper Fast became the seventh member of the roster to reach double-digit goals this season, striking on a feed from Nino Niederreiter.

The goal served as a springboard for the Canes to get back to their game, as they got better and better as the third period went along. Then, on a power play inside the final six minutes, Sebastian Aho etched his 22nd of the season to give his team a bit of insurance.

Pittsburgh would put together a push in the final minutes though, striking during a six-on-four to make it a 4-3 game. However, Raanta was able to slam the door shut on the final attempts, earning his 100th career National Hockey League victory with 31 saves.
What They Said:
Rod Brind'Amour'sopening thoughts on the game as a whole:
"I thought it was great. The first 30 minutes was really good, then we had the one bad shift where they scored, then they got life and took off. They got their game going, but overall I thought we were solid. I think our defense played really well, especially logging all those minutes. Give them a lot of credit."
Jesper Faston the quick goals in consecutive periods:
"They were huge. I tried to make a play quick there in the second period and it worked out perfectly. We've run that one before and I'm happy it worked out. It was a bit of a broken play on the second goal, but a great pass by Nino and all I had to do was hit the empty net there."
Jordan Staaloffering thoughts on Antti Raanta's performance today:
"It's great to see. I don't think he's gotten into his groove yet this year, but I think he's played really well against a really good team. I could see the boys being confident in both goalies and we have two goalies that can steal games. Rants did a really good job tonight."
What's Next?:
Immediately post-game the team flies cross state for a Monday afternoon meeting with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Bonus Notes:
Worth A Click:
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Kochetkov's Arrival Another Exciting Development For Carolina's Goaltending Pipeline
Canes To Host Stadium Series Game At Carter-Finley In February 2023
Hurricanes February Schedule