Hurricanes Head Home With Momentum After Statement In Finland

Hurricanes dominate in Finland, showcasing their potent offense and solid defense against the Kraken.

Mark Jankowski and Andrei Svechnikov each scored twice, Jackson Blake stayed hot, and Pyotr Kochetkov looked sharp in his return as the Carolina Hurricanes rolled past the Seattle Kraken 5-1 in the second game of the 2026 Global Series in Helsinki, Finland.

Carolina’s win moved the club to 16-3-2, and the Hurricanes have now outscored opponents 25-4 across their last five victories.

The game opened with a familiar result but a different feel. Carolina again jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, but Seattle brought a much different edge than it had on Thursday.

That showed up early on the Hurricanes’ first two power plays, including more than 1:30 of a 5-on-3. This time, Carolina actually got pucks to the net and created chances, but Joey Daccord answered with several strong stops.

Seattle then forced Carolina to kill off a penalty of its own, and the Kraken were noticeably more assertive than they had been the night before.

The breakthrough came after Seattle took another penalty when Berkly Catton tripped Jackson Blake. On Carolina’s third power play, the top unit finally broke through with a sequence that was all touch and timing.

Shayne Gostisbehere kept the puck in at the blue line and sent it to Nikolaj Ehlers, who moved it cross-ice to Sebastian Aho. Aho then slipped a pass between his legs to Blake, and Blake finished it off for a 1-0 lead.

Six minutes later, Carolina added another, and the goal gave the Hurricanes’ lone Finn a point after he had been the only one on the roster without one. Jesperi Kotkaniemi held the puck in, found Mark Jankowski, and Jankowski ripped it past Daccord to make it 2-0.

The second period turned into the Andrei Svechnikov show on the power play. Both of his goals came from nearly the same spot, with Svechnikov set up in his familiar office to the goalie’s left and hammering away on one-timers. The first came after Carolina pinned Seattle deep and wore down the penalty kill with sustained net-front pressure, opening up passing lanes until the puck landed on Svechnikov’s stick.

Seattle answered once through Matty Beniers, but Carolina quickly regained control. Blake appeared to have another goal when Daccord knocked the net off its moorings and the shot that followed would have gone in, but the play was ruled no goal on the ice and not reviewed. Soon after, Brandon Montour slashed Jordan Martinook’s stick out of his hands, giving Carolina another chance, and the Hurricanes made that one look a lot like the last: pressure around the crease, a collapsed penalty kill, and another clean Svechnikov one-timer.

That goal ended Daccord’s night, with Philipp Grubauer coming in to replace him. Carolina kept pushing in the period, even as the Hurricanes tried to set Svechnikov up for the hat trick.

He never got it, and by the third period Seattle had little left to offer. Carolina kept the pressure on, and Jankowski scored his second of the night on a rush sparked by Taylor Hall’s shot fake.

Grubauer stopped chances from Jankowski and Svechnikov as Carolina kept coming, but the Kraken never seriously threatened to get back into it. When the horn sounded, the Hurricanes had their 5-1 win and were headed back to Raleigh.

Kochetkov finished with 12 saves and had no trouble shaking off the rust from his first loss of the season over a week ago, even flashing a couple of highlight-reel stops along the way. Ehlers also stood out with three assists and five points in front of his own friends and family, with the Dane just a stone’s throw from home.

Now Carolina heads back to Raleigh and has a few days to get back on Eastern Standard time before facing two more heavyweights. On Thursday, the Hurricanes meet Montreal in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch, and on Saturday they take on Edmonton for the second time. The Canadiens have climbed to the top of the Atlantic after a slow start, while Edmonton has kept rolling.

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