Three-Goal Third Propels Canes Past Capitals

RALEIGH, NC. - The Carolina Hurricanes battled from behind on Friday night, taking a 4-2 victory from the Washington Capitals.

Another Suboptimal Start...

24 hours after allowing three first period goals to the Bruins, things got started on the wrong foot for Canes once again.

Just 3:31 in, Alex Ovechkin beat Jaccob Slavin to a rebound in front and put it back behind Pyotr Kochetkov, who was playing in his team-leading 40th game of the season.

Carolina was able to get things going in the right direction afterward, registering the game's next 11 shots, but before they could get to the break the game's greatest goal-scorer doubled the advantage for the visitors.

Redirecting a shot from the point after an offensive zone faceoff win, the Canes went back to the locker room trailing by a pair.

Second Straight For Jake...

Although Rod Brind'Amour's group produced 18 shots in the first period, not many appeared to be tough tests for Darcy Kuemper, in net for Washington.

In the second though, the Canes broke through.

Dictating almost the entire 20-minute stretch, a turning point came when Kochetkov came up with a breakaway stop on Tom Wilson, and then a subsequent chance from Sonny Milano.

Moments after he snared both, Jake Guentzel got the scoring started for Carolina.

A stretch pass from Jaccob Slavin sent #59 in all alone and he whacked the bouncing puck home to bring his group within one.

Completing The Comeback...

With momentum trending all in the favor of the home team at the end of two, it felt like if Carolina could continue the way that they played in the second, an equalizer would soon come.

And it took some time, but it eventually did.

Inside the final 10 minutes, and on the man advantage, Martin Necas wired home a one-time setup from Brady Skjei to make it a 2-2 contest.

At that point, the Canes rolling too hot for Washington to stop.

Given another power play inside the final three minutes, Sebastian Aho scored the game-deciding goal, putting back the rebound of a Brent Burns shot from the point.

Guentzel would hit the empty net to close out his three-point night, capping off a 4-2 victory for his squad.

They Said It...

Sebastian Aho on the team's mentality after failing behind two early...

"Score-wise, we were obviously down two at the end of the first, but that's one of the best goal-scorers of all-time and he gets two goals there.  We were down two, but I don't think we played that badly.  That's hockey though and sometimes that happens.  The way we just battled our way back into this game shows a lot of good things about our group."

Jake Guentzel discussing the important pair of saves in the second period from Kochetkov...

"That's part of the game, sometimes you're going to need a big save and he did phenomenal again tonight.  A lot of credit goes to him for keeping us in there.  I'm glad we got it done for him."

Rod Brind'Amour on Guentzel's impact since joining the team...

"He's done a nice job, obviously. He's fit in wherever we put him and whoever we put him with, he's made them better. That's what a great player does."

What's Next?

The Canes are scheduled to be off on Saturday but will then return to practice on Sunday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

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