Shayne Gostisbehere ended it late, and the Carolina Hurricanes finally have their first win of the season.
Carolina beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in overtime on Saturday night, with Gostisbehere burying the game-winner after Andrei Svechnikov provided the screen in front of the net with just 2 minutes and change left. The result pushed the Hurricanes to 1-1-1, while the Flyers fell to 0-1-2.
The game belonged to Carolina for long stretches, even if the scoreboard didn’t fully show it. The Hurricanes outshot Philadelphia 40-18, but Joseph Woll stood tall and kept the Flyers alive well into the third period.
Sebastian Aho gave Carolina the kind of start teams dream about, scoring just 10 seconds into the game on a shot from the slot to make it 1-0. Philadelphia answered later in the first and again in the second to grab a 2-1 lead, but the Hurricanes kept pressing.
Aho tied it back up 4:59 into the third with a power-play goal, his third of the season. Nikolaj Ehlers and Svechnikov picked up the assists, and Svechnikov now leads the team with three.
Special teams swung the rest of it Carolina’s way. Gostisbehere took a slashing penalty with 1:26 left in regulation, but the Hurricanes survived the kill, including 34 seconds of 4-on-3 play in overtime. Then Owen Tippett was whistled for slashing in the extra session, handing Carolina the power play that set up the winner.
The Hurricanes finished 2 for 4 with the man advantage and held Philadelphia scoreless on all four of its power plays.
Rod Brind’Amour also shuffled his lines, moving William Carrier onto the top unit with Aho and Svechnikov, and the change stood out.
Carolina heads to Montreal next, where it will face the Canadiens on Tuesday night.
In Other News...
Gostisbehere Broke Flyers Hearts Again In A Game Carolina Nearly Lost
Shayne Gostisbehere has a knack for making life miserable for his former team, and he did it again in a game Carolina had to survive. The Hurricanes squeezed out an overtime win over Philadelphia, with Gostisbehere finishing it off and extending a pattern that has already made him a recurring problem for the Flyers in clutch moments.
Philadelphia never found much rhythm offensively and also took a hit when Rasmus Ristolainen left with an injury, compounding an already difficult night. Joseph Wolls 37 saves helped Carolina hang around long enough to get the result, and the Hurricanes came away with their third win of the season while the Flyers were left wondering how many more familiar ghosts they can afford to chase. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Found A Much Needed Answer In Their First Road Win
The Hurricanes first road trip of the season carried a little more meaning than just another early-night stop in Philadelphia. Carolina got Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Mike Reilly into the lineup for their season debuts, while Pyotr Kochetkov got the start in goal as the club looked for a steadier answer away from home after opening the year on its own ice.
Carolina found one in overtime, where the offense finally broke through on the power play to finish a game that had plenty riding on it for an early October checkpoint. For a team still sorting out its rhythm and trying to settle new faces into the mix, the win gave the Hurricanes a useful lift and a clearer path heading into the rest of the road slate. [Read more 🡒]
Canes Finally Looked Like Themselves In A Win Fans Needed
After a rough stretch that had Carolina searching for its usual rhythm, Sunday night offered a cleaner, more familiar version of the Hurricanes. Sebastian Aho sparked the attack with two goals, including his first of the season and a power-play finish, and Carolina kept pressing through a tight game before getting the kind of result it had been chasing at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Pyotr Kochetkovs return added another layer to the night, giving the Hurricanes a steadier look in goal as they handled the pressure of a one-goal game. It was the sort of win Carolina needed to feel like itself again, even if the bigger question is whether this is the start of something more lasting or just a well-timed reset. [Read more 🡒]