Flames defeat Hurricanes for seventh straight victory

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Dougie Hamilton scored twice and Mike Smith made 38 saves to help the Calgary Flames win their seventh straight game, 4-1 against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena on Sunday.
Matt Stajan and Matthew Tkachuk scored for the Flames (25-16-4), who swept a four-game road trip.

"I definitely thought the road trip was all we wanted," Tkachuk said. "You never go into a road trip and say, 'I want to win every single one of them.' You just go one game at a time. Looking back, it's a real good road trip going into the break."
The Hurricanes (20-17-8) are 1-4-0 in their past five games. It was the final game for each team before a five-day break.
WATCH: [All Flames vs. Hurricanes highlights]
"I don't think we were engaged in the game, period," Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said. "I don't think we had much emotional engagement to the game. I hope it's flu-related, I really do. We were slow, lethargic. Slow with the puck, slow making decisions. Those nights we're not the hardest-working team -- I don't know our record, but it wouldn't be flattering."
Stajan's first goal of the season gave the Flames a 1-0 lead at 6:01 of the first period. He beat goaltender Scott Darling (26 saves) from the slot after Curtis Lazar cut to the net and earned a delayed penalty when he was tripped by Carolina defenseman Jaccob Slavin.

"It's always nice to contribute," Stajan said. "You work so hard to do the little things that you don't always get praised for, but the guys in here know what kind of job we do. I think our fourth line has created a lot of energy, but it's nice to get one."
Hamilton made it 2-0 at 18:47. Johnny Gaudreau carried the puck over the blue line and found Hamilton pinching between the circles for a shot past Darling's glove.
Carolina had consecutive power plays in the second period after hooking minors to Tkachuk and Mark Jankowski four seconds apart, but the Flames held the Hurricanes to three shots.
Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho left the game 45 seconds into the third period after a hit from Mark Giordano as Aho cut to slot with the puck. Giordano was assessed a match penalty for an illegal check to the head.
Peters had no update after the game.
With the teams skating 4-on-4, Hamilton made it 3-0 with his second goal at 3:17. He finished consecutive passes from Tkachuk and Gaudreau near the left post. The goal came on the return rush after Brock McGinn hit the crossbar behind Smith.
"I think [Smith] got a piece of the one that hit the post," Tkachuk said. "There's a lot of things in each game you can look at as turning points, but ultimately we made the most of our opportunities tonight."
Tkachuk scored on the power play at 12:08 on a loose rebound to make it 4-0.

Smith was sharp in the third period with 12 saves.
"I thought (Smith) was the best when we got to the 4-0 mark and he made some real good saves," Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said. "The third, when they were pushing, he came up big."
Lee Stempniak, playing his second game of the season after returning from an upper-body injury, made it 4-1 with a power-play goal at 15:29.

Goal of the game

Hamilton's goal at 18:47 of the first period.

Save of the game

Smith's save on Justin Williams at 11:30 of the second period.

Highlight of the game

Hamilton's goal at 3:17 of the third period.

They said it

"I think anyone who knows [Giordano] in the League knows he plays hard. His shoulder and his hands were down. [Aho] was dragging the puck for a while. Just playing hard. I didn't look at the hit closely after, but it's a little bit part of the game, and you just hope the young guy's not injured." -- Flames coach Glen Gulutzan on Giordano's hit on Aho
"I'm surprised [Aho] continued on with the puck to be honest with you. He was in a real good spot to shoot it. Obviously there was some head contact. I don't know if there was much intent. I thought his arm was tucked in low. It was unfortunate." -- Hurricanes coach Bill Peters on Giordano's hit

Need to know

Calgary center Sean Monahan missed the game due to illness. The Flames are 50-0-2 when leading after two periods since the start of the 2016-17 season. ... Gaudreau has nine points (four goals, five assists) in eight career games against the Hurricanes. ... The Hurricanes have scored six power-play goals in the past five games.

What's next

Flames: Host the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday (3 p.m. ET; NHLN, CBC, SN, NHL.TV)
Hurricanes: At the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; FS-CR, FS-D, NHL.TV)