Left wing Jordan Martinook’s hat trick propelled the Carolina Hurricanes past the St. Louis Blues in a thrilling 6-4 road win on Thursday, Dec. 1.
“He was really great,” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “He knew it [after] the first goal… and I just love the fact that he just turned the page. I mean, he had a tough shift there, and next thing you know, he just said ‘done,’ and next thing you know, he was the best player in the game.”
Following an OT victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins two days prior, the Canes (13-6-5) were trailing the Blues (11-12-0) 0-2 until a little over five minutes into the second frame. Carolina scored three goals in about a minute to bring the score up to 3-2, giving the Hurricanes some extra momentum heading into the back half of the game.
Defenseman Brent Burns, Martinook and center Seth Jarvis knocked a 1-2-3 punch past St. Louis goaltender Jordan Binnington to reinvigorate a deteriorating Carolina offense. Blues fans were rendered speechless by the Hurricanes’ 64-second run.
“Burns got the one on the power play, which was nice,” Brind’Amour said. “It was our only power play of the night, so it was good that we connected there. … Sometimes that momentum builds right after a power play, and we were able to snap home a couple more.”
Although St. Louis defenseman Torey Krug evened the score late in the period, Carolina’s stunning second-frame performance was all they needed to pull off a convincing win in Missouri. Things were relatively quiet until Martinook and center Jordan Staal scored a pair of goals with less than five minutes to go in the third period, raising the Canes’ lead to 5-3.
Goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov was called in for the final period and performed beautifully, saving 10 of 11 shots on goal. The 23-year-old has consistently played well after Carolina recalled him from the AHL, and his prowess saved the Hurricanes from blowing a two-point lead late in the game.
“He’s been great, as we know,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s a tough spot for a goalie to get thrown in, cold and the whole nine yards. He played great for us, so that was huge.”
In the end, even after a last-minute goal from St. Louis center Ryan O’Reilly, Martinook scored on a wide-open net with nine seconds to spare to seal Carolina’s victory. The win marks the Hurricanes’ second on their road trip — next, the Canes will travel to Los Angeles for a late-night match against the Kings on Saturday, Dec. 3. Puck drop is set for 10:30 p.m.
