Recording his fourth career hat trick — and first since 2022 — center Jordan Staal dominated both ends of the ice as he and left wing Jordan Martinook linked up for each of Staal’s three goals on the way to a 6-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Thursday night at Lenovo Center.

Staal joins Jaromir Jagr as the only two players in NHL history to have a hat trick at 18 or younger and at 36 or older.

“It’s cool,” Staal said. “Obviously getting rewarded with cookies is always a good thing but you guys have seen my game, it hasn’t changed. It’s being hard to play against, it’s finding ways to win games and in a more simpler fashion. When I get rewarded with them [I’m] excited. It always feels good and I’m going to continue and try to help in that way and any other way for this group.”

Coming into the game, the Maple Leafs (27-14-2) had won five in a row while the Hurricanes (25-15-2) were trading every win with a loss. Each line for the Canes earned a goal in what was a total offensive showing from a team that has been searching far and wide for goals.

The first half of the first period was all Toronto. Right wing William Nylander almost scored less than a minute into the contest, but the post bailed the Canes out. However, the iron could only do so much as Toronto left wing Nicholas Robertson tucked one past Canes goaltender Pyotr Kocketkov two minutes in.

Leafs center Max Domi passed it to Robertson from the corner, and wasting no time, Robertson one-timed it past Kochetkov for a 1-0 lead.

Nylander almost made it 2-0 on his second breakaway of the period but Kochetkov bailed out defenseman Dmitry Orlov by blocking the puck into the corner. Nylander wouldn’t be denied as the third time was the charm when he stole the puck from defenseman Jalen Chatfield who fanned on a shot and fired a wrist shot past Kochetkov for a quick 2-0 lead.

The Hurricanes have struggled to get going early, a large reason for their recent shortcomings. From opening night to Thanksgiving, Carolina scored first in 14 of 22 games which led the NHL. Since then, Carolina has scored first in only six of 19 games, the fewest in the NHL.

The Hurricanes knew they couldn’t succeed giving up these kinds of chances against the team that is in first place in the Atlantic division. Following the flurry of chances given up to the Maple Leafs in the opening eight minutes, the Canes ramped up the intensity to try and dig themselves out of the hole.

“I didn’t really know what was happening [in the first 10 minutes],” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “It was beer league hockey, beer league plays, to be honest. … That was hard to watch but you turn a page.”

Nearly 14 minutes into the first, Carolina left wing Eric Robinson got to the front of the net and was rewarded as he located a rebound from defenseman Ty Smith’s shot and scored his 10th of the season to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Just 17 seconds later — and on the next shift — Staal tied it up at two apiece. Right wing Andrei Svechnikov dangled below the goal line and created enough space to find Staal who was elevated the puck in tight.

Maple Leafs netminder Joseph Woll came into the game with a save percentage of 0.915 — eighth-best in the NHL. After the Canes scored two quick ones to conclude the first it appeared as if the “stone-Woll” had fallen.

Thirty-five seconds into the second while on the penalty kill, Staal netted his second goal of the night. Springing an odd-man rush, Staal got up ice and snapped a shot past Woll to take the Canes’ first lead of the night.

If there was one guy to pick to answer the call for the Maple Leafs it would be their respective captain in center Auston Matthews. The player who almost hit the 70-goal mark last season has missed stretches of games this year due to injury but came in clutch on the same power play his team gave up a goal.

As the 27-year-old was falling to the ice, he managed to get a hold of the puck and score with his backhand to tie it at 3-3.

Then, over three minutes later, Carolina rookie right wing Jackson Blake gave the Canes their lead back. Receiving a pass from left wing Juha Jaaska, Blake fired the puck through Woll’s five-hole for his ninth of the season. It was Jaaska’s first career NHL point in his fourth game.

“When I saw my name on the board, it was the same kind of emotion you have when it’s your first game — ‘Is this real life?’” Jaaska said. “[When] you’re a child you sometimes wouldn’t believe that you’re going to make it. … It’s pretty nice.”

Blake has been a consistent playmaker throughout the recent ups and downs. Although the point production hasn’t always been there, the 21-year-old has made the most of his fourth-line usage.

“He’s just so shifty,” Martinook said. “He’s not the biggest guy but I feel like he never gets hit and he’s obviously crazy creative with the puck and got great hands. You notice that on a lot of plays he makes and he’s been great for us.”

There were seven goals scored between the two teams before the halfway mark and as a result, the teams tightened up in the remaining middle frame. Each team had a chance on the man-advantage but two top-10 penalty kill units shut each other down.

With 20 minutes left in the game, Staal was officially on hat trick watch but quickly turned a watch into a warning. Twenty seconds into the period, Staal tipped in his third goal of the night and celebrated as the hats rained down onto the ice.

Carolina loosened up defensively when it took the two-goal lead and relied on Kochetkov heavily in the third period. A team loaded with fire-power consistently got chances but Kochetkov turned them away long enough for center Seth Jarvis to score the empty-netter.

“[Kocketkov] was phenomenal,” Brind’Amour said. “It was a ton of good saves and you got to have that. It’s the most important position, he needs to keep you in the game and that’s what he did for us.”

As Jarvis’ goal hit the back of the net, Matthews and right wing Mitch Marner hung their heads as they became first players this year to record a -6 plus-minus rating this year, and the first Maple Leafs to do so since 1991.

What the Canes have struggled to do in recent weeks is to stack wins and with the Vancouver Canucks coming to town, the team has a chance to build on this win tomorrow when they take on the Canucks at 7 p.m.