Ullmark makes 32 saves, Senators shut out Hurricanes

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Linus Ullmark made 32 saves for the Ottawa Senators in a 3-0 win against the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center on Friday.

Shane Pinto scored two goals and Nick Jensen had a goal and an assist for the Senators (14-13-2), who have won two in a row and four of the past five.

“I thought our commitment to checking away from the puck was big, something we’ve talked about a lot,” Ottawa coach Travis Green said. “It was a good win for our team. We’ve been playing some good hockey. To get the results here is just going to help us.”

The win was Ullmark's first against the Hurricanes after going 0-4-1 in seven games.

“I know it’s a hard place to come in and play,” Ullmark said. “They’re really good coming out in the first five or 10 minutes.

“You can never relax. They have some really high-end skill, so it’s a fun game once things are clicking and we’re doing the right things, like keeping the lanes open and helping me see the pucks and getting rid of those second opportunities.”

Pyotr Kochetkov made 19 saves for the Hurricanes (18-10-1), who have lost five of the past seven.

“It felt good about how we were defending,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “We created enough chances that we had a couple good looks. Their goalie played really well.

“I liked the effort, and I liked the process of how we went about the game. It felt better, that’s for sure.”

The Senators took a 1-0 lead at 4:04 of the second period. Jensen forced a turnover on Eric Robinson before Michael Amadio passed to Pinto for a wrist shot between the circles. Pinto had gone 15 games without a point.

“For me personally, it was definitely a monkey off my back, and hopefully I can keep it going,” Pinto said. “All around, it feels good. I can’t say enough about (Ullmark). He’s the reason we won that game. We’re happy to have him.”

Jensen made it 2-0 at 14:45 of the third period when, pinched down into the right circle, he took a pass from Nick Cousins and scored five-hole on Kochetkov.

“Going to the third period there, it was a tight game, so getting that second goal was a pretty big sigh of relief for guys on the team,” Jensen said. “Guys were selling out blocking shots, collapsing down low, everyone trying to help each other. I thought that was a really good part of the effort.”

Pinto added an empty-net goal with 47 seconds left for the 3-0 final.

NOTES: Amadio and Cousins each had two assists and were plus-3. … Ullmark has given up three goals in his four-game winning streak. The shutout is the 10th of his NHL career. … Brent Burns and Seth Jarvis each had a game-high five shots on goal. … The Hurricanes forwards have not scored a 5-on-5 goal in the past three games.