That’s one way to start the stretch run. Behind a four-point night from forward Teuvo Teravainen and two goals from defenseman Dougie Hamilton, the Carolina Hurricanes topped the Los Angeles Kings 6-1 at PNC Arena Tuesday for their third straight win.
Teravainen had a goal and three assists to lead the way for the Hurricanes (34-23-6). Forward Jordan Staal, in his second game back from a lengthy absence due to a concussion, had three assists. Hamilton put up two goals and an assist, and forwards Sebastian Aho and Micheal Ferland also scored against the Kings (23-33-7). Goalie Petr Mrazek stopped 23 of 24 shots.
The Canes jumped out to a 1-0 lead about six minutes in; after Kings goalie Jonathan Quick was knocked over during a battle behind the net, Hamilton circled the net and fired a shot past a still out-of-position Quick.
“They played last night and played well,” Hamilton said. “We needed to get to them right away. It’s tough to play when everyone’s coming at you all the time. So if we can do that in the first period it’s tough for the other team to come back from that.”
Carolina doubled its lead about five minutes later; Aho steamed in on a two-on-one rush with forward Nino Niederreiter and buried a shot through Quick’s five-hole, putting the Hurricanes up 2-0 and snapping a 10-game goal drought.
The Canes scored twice 2:19 into the second period to take a commanding 4-0 lead.
“We come right out and have a good start,” Brind’Amour said. “Got a couple of fortunate bounces, but we did it right on those goals. At that point it’s just a matter of making sure we don’t give up a bunch of chances and I thought we did a pretty good job of that.”
Less than 30 seconds into the second period Ferland, who the Canes elected to keep through Monday’s NHL trade deadline, tipped home a shot from forward Jordan Staal and Slavin blasted in a shot from the right circle on the power play less than two minutes later.
“We know how [Staal] plays, he’s such a valuable player whether he’s on the score sheet or not,” Brind’Amour said. “Every player wants to put up points. He was obviously pretty good tonight.”
Teravainen added another insurance marker with just over six minutes left in the middle frame; he took a pass from Ferland at the left circle and rocketed a shot top corner to make it 5-0.
“It doesn’t really matter who we play with,” Teravainen said. “Everybody in this locker room is a pretty good hockey player, so it’s good playing with anyone.”
Hamilton’s second of the game gave Carolina a 6-0 lead 40 seconds after Teravainen’s tally. Ferland was shaken up on the play after tripping over Quick and headed to the locker room. The Kings challenged for goalie interference, but the goal was upheld.
This game could prove to be a costly one for the Canes. Defenseman Justin Faulk left the game with an upper-body injury in the second period and did not return. Ferland was also announced out with an upper-body injury and did not return.
Brind’Amour did not have an update on injuries after the game and said he would “assess the damage” the next day.
“This is a tough night for that,” Brind’Amour said. “Those are the games you hate to see that stuff kind of happen. Obviously, we need everyone healthy here. We’ll know more tomorrow.”
The Kings replaced Quick with Jack Campbell entering the third period. Kings forward Dustin Brown broke Mrazek’s shutout with a shot off the rush with about eight minutes left.
The win, coupled with a loss by the Columbus Blue Jackets, vaults Carolina into third place in the Metropolitan Division. The Canes will be back in action at PNC Arena Friday against the St. Louis Blues.
“I think we’re a close team with confidence in each other and in the group,” Hamilton said. “So with the way we’ve been playing we just keep going. I think that’s the biggest thing. We’re just taking it one day at a time. We’re just trying to keep playing the way and preparing the same way. We talk about our game and we’re just trying to get to it every game.”
Carolina Hurricanes defender Dougie Hamilton fist bumps forward Teuvo Teravainen after Hamilton scored his second goal against the L.A. Kings on Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019 in PNC Arena. The Hurricanes beat the Kings 6-1.
