Recap: Vejmelka 'The Story' As Hurricanes Held In Utah

SALT LAKE CITY - Martin Necas scored to extend his point streak to 11 games, but 49 saves from Karel Vejmelka and three third-period goals lifted the Utah Hockey Club to a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes at the Delta Center on Wednesday.

GAME SUMMARY | BOX SCORE | UPCOMING HOME GAMES

Despite outshooting their opponent 14-8 through the first 20 minutes, the Canes trailed 1-0 as they entered the second period. Dominating the middle frame, they broke through on the power play as Necas hammered a one-timer past Vejmelka just past the midway point of the contest, but could not further convert their strong play into results on the scoreboard.

Utah struck 5:09 into the third to take the lead, then tallied twice in 17 seconds just minutes later to open up a three-goal lead. Some poor discipline from the Hockey Club gave the Canes nearly 11 minutes of power-play time in the final frame, but Vejmelka stood tall to bail his team out.

Pyotr Kochetkov finished with 15 saves on 18 shots before exiting the game near the midway mark of the third period. Spencer Martin stopped two of three shots in relief.

Stats & Standouts

• It's not often you put up 50+ shots and lose, but the Canes can only tip their cap to Karel Vejmelka and move on to Saturday's clash on home ice. After scoring four or more goals in each of the last nine games, the Canes stuck to their style on Wednesday but a hot goalie and a few tough bounces cost them in the end.
• Martin Necas' star continues to rise with another goal to push his point streak to 11 games. The 25-year-old is up to 25 points (9G, 16A) in 15 games this season, including eight goals and 14 assists on his current streak.
• Following Utah's go-ahead goal in the third, Pyotr Kochetkov stayed down in the crease after incidental contact with Sean Walker and chatted with Head Athletic Trainer Doug Bennett. He remained in the game momentarily but eventually exited after another Utah tally. In a positive sign, he remained on the bench for the remainder of the game. Rod Brind'Amour did not have an update post-game.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour giving his description of the loss...

"They got a couple of quick ones [in] three or four minutes. I don't even think it was bad, we just let them get some chances and they all went in. That's just the way it went. Their goalie was obviously the story. We definitely had enough scoring opportunities, but we kind of had that little lull there for a couple of minutes (in the third period) and it cost us."

Brind'Amour continuing on Vejmelka's night and his team's errors...

"You've got to give him credit, he made some big saves. We butchered it, if we're honest, on the five-on-three. You can't hold onto the puck like that. We did some uncharacteristic things there, but at that point it was 4-1, so that wasn't the game. The game was the little segment where we let them get some opportunities and they cashed in."

Martin Necas on his fellow countryman Vejmelka and what the team could have done differently to beat him more than once...

"When he gets hot, he gets hot. I know him pretty well. We've got to get a little bit more in his eyes so he doesn't see the puck. Sometimes it goes like that, but those five minutes that we took off cost us the game."

What's Next?

The Canes will travel back to Raleigh post-game and are scheduled to be off on Thursday. They'll return to practice on Friday before a weekend back-to-back set against the Senators and Blues at Lenovo Center.

Next Game: Saturday, Nov. 16 vs. Ottawa | 7:00 pm ET | Tickets | Parking