After going 5-1 on a six-game road trip, the Carolina Hurricanes returned to Lenovo Center and kept the good times rolling with a dominant 8-2 win over the Boston Bruins Thursday night, extending their win streak to five games.
The power play was firing on all cylinders for the Hurricanes (7-2-0) with three goals on the man advantage against the Bruins (4-6-1). Center Jack Roslovic recorded his first multi-goal game with the Canes, defenseman Sean Walker scored his first career goal in a Carolina jersey and center Martin Necas continued to stuff the stat sheet with four points for his fifth multi-point game of the season.
Roslovic got the scoring started just over six minutes into the contest when he was left alone in the slot and fired a shot over the right shoulder of goaltender Jeremy Swayman. Boston responded with a power play goal from left wing Brad Marchand seven minutes later.
It seemed like Lenovo Center was in for a competitive game between two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference the last few seasons but then the Hurricanes offense exploded for three goals in 52 seconds.
Two came via the power play as right wing Andrei Svechnikov and Necas cashed in on the man advantage 52 seconds apart. Sandwiched in between the power play conversions was a goal from right wing Jackson Blake who deflected a shot from defenseman Dmitry Orlov who was playing in his 800th career game.
By the time the horn sounded after the first 20 minutes the Hurricanes had scored four goals on 10 shots and nine players recorded at least one point.
Despite being down three goals after the first period, the Bruins didn’t give in and cut the deficit to two just over three minutes into the second frame when defenseman Hampus Lindholm skated freely into the slot and fired a shot under the glove of goaltender Pyotr Kocketkov.
As they did in the first period, the Hurricanes responded with multiple goals in less than a minute. Svechnikov scored his second power-play goal of the night to make it 5-2, and 41 seconds later, Roslovic was left unmarked in the slot again for his second goal of the night, chasing Swayman out of the game.
Even though it was up 6-2 after two periods, Carolina kept its foot on the gas in the final frame and added two more goals. Walker found a loose puck in the middle of the ice and sniped a shot to the top right corner for his first goal with the Canes.
Under five minutes later, center Jesperi Kotkaniemi found the back of the net for the first time this season when he fired a shot under the glove of goalie Joonas Korpisalo. Necas recorded his third assist of the night on Kotkaniemi’s goal as he continues to pace the Canes in points with 15.
It seems that Necas has fully unlocked his potential this season, and if he continues at this pace, the Hurricanes are as dangerous a team as there is in the NHL.
With the win, the Hurricanes are tied for the highest point percentage in the Eastern Conference with the Washington Capitals who they play in their next game on Sunday. Puck drop is set for 5 p.m. at Lenovo Center.
