After holding the Bruins scoreless through the first two periods and into the final seconds, the Carolina Hurricanes came within 9.6 seconds of their second shutout of the season, but couldn’t close it out.

The Canes (12-5-1) set the tone for their road trip with a 3-1 win over the Boston Bruins (12-8-0), a sharp contrast after falling short to them just 16 days earlier. Using that loss as a blueprint, Carolina tightened its lines, limited its opponents’ chances and set the pace.

The Hurricanes — sitting at 4-for-4 on the penalty kill — were basking in confidence, ready to run out the clock, until defenseman Alexander Nikishin was sent to the box with less than two minutes remaining. Letting off steam for just a second was all the Bruins needed to get on the board and avoid the shutout. Winger Riley Tufte saw goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov lose his stick and used this to his advantage. Kochetkov tried to get a glove on the uncontrolled puck, but was beaten by Tufte, who put up the sole point for Boston.

Constantly finding the paint, winger Mark Jankowski quickly became an obstacle for goaltender Jeremy Swayman, but even the perfect screen can turn out unexpectedly. Positioned in front of the net to create a shooting lane, Jankowski only created chaos, which is exactly what the Canes needed. Blocking a shot from his linemate, Jankowski knocked the puck down to his feet, leaving Swayman confused, and swiftly swatted the puck into the net. Not only was this the game-winning goal, but his first goal of the season.

“On the goal, he is in front of the net alone,” said winger Taylor Hall. “He’s not tied up, he’s always in a really good spot, and in our defensive zone too, he allows [Robinson] and me to kind of take off and use our speed to create chances. We didn’t get a whole lot tonight, but we were really close on a lot of instances. [Jankowski] is such an effective player and a fun player to play with.”

Hall had his own show stopper late in the third to lift the Canes out of reach of the Bruins. Defenseman Joel Nystrom, with his second assist of the night, got the puck to Hall, who skated into Boston’s defensive zone. Skating parallel next to him, his linemate was covered by defensemen, so in a split decision, Hall decided to do the dirty work himself. Pulling the goalie off his line, he had just enough space to go around and push the puck to the inside of the far post.

“The puck wouldn’t settle down,” Hall said. “So my first option, especially with a lefty going to the net, was to try and find a way to get it to him because if I can put it on his stick, all he has to do is just hit the puck and it goes in. … I was kind of flying through the air as I scored, so it was fun.”

Center Jordan Staal had a standout night as well. After weeks of training and building chemistry with his linemates, wingers William Carrier and Jordan Martinook, the trio looked nearly unstoppable. Opening the scoring, Staal pounced on a shot by Nystrom and used his size and power to fend off the defenseman with one arm, and the other to swipe the puck into the net.

“We play a lot of games together, so we know each other,” Carrier said. “We all play a similar way out there, and we’re responsible defensively. It starts there, and when you get a couple of big goals there, we embrace it. [Staal] had one there last game, and we’re trying again tonight.”

The Hurricanes continue their road trip to Minnesota and take on the Wild, with a 9:30 p.m. puck drop on Wednesday, Nov. 19.