In a game that was tied halfway through the second period, it looked as though the Carolina Hurricanes had used all of their offensive might the previous night with the nine goals they scored.
But finally developing offensive momentum in the back half of the contest, the Canes (30-15-4) tallied four goals and downed the New Jersey Devils (24-22-2) for the third time this season, this time in Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Energy from the Canes’ side was high after its 9-1 blowout against the Florida Panthers the previous night, but the Devils weren’t shaken during the opening 20 minutes. In a goalless first period, the Devils matched the Canes punch for punch. New Jersey dominated shots-on-goal against Carolina, putting up nine in comparison to four from the Canes.
It took over 33 minutes, but right-wing Andrei Svechnikov finally broke the stalemate with consecutive goals to cement the Hurricanes’ lead.
Center Sebastian Aho intercepted the puck near middle ice and passed the puck back to Svechnikov, who shot the puck directly past Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom.
Using similar tactics one minute later, the puck was passed to Aho by defensemen Sean Walker in the middle of the rink. Once again, Aho moved the puck back to Svechnikov for his second goal of the night.
New Jersey got itself on the board five minutes into the final period when right wing Timo Meier — assisted by center Cody Glass and a former Hurricane, defenseman Dougie Hamilton — shot the puck past goaltender Frederik Andersen to make the score 2-1.
As it inched closer to the middle of the third period, Carolina fought for a more comfortable lead, which right wing Jackson Blake delivered. Skating close to the Devils’ net, Blake wrapped the puck from the right side to the left after obtaining it from left wing Nikolaj Ehlers and defenseman K’Andre Miller, bringing the score to 3-1.
Taking inspiration from Ehlers after he scored a hat trick 24 hours earlier, Svechnikov scored his third goal of the night with four minutes remaining. The puck made it back down the ice after the Canes’ defense pickpocketed New Jersey, allowing Aho and center Seth Jarvis to assist Svechnikov in his snap shot goal, marking his fourth career hat trick and tying him for ninth-most in Canes history.
Andersen saved 29 of the 30 shots on goal that he faced, helping contribute to the win. Andersen has had a less-than-ideal season coming back from injuries and recorded career lows last month. But with more and more time on the ice, the Canes staple has slowly begun to return to form.
Carolina will travel back home to take on the Buffalo Sabres on Monday, Jan. 19. Puck drop is set for 1:30 p.m.