For 59 minutes, the Carolina Hurricanes completely outclassed the Detroit Red Wings, a quality playoff team in the Eastern Conference, on their way to a 5-2 victory at the Lenovo Center on Saturday night.
Shayne Gostisbehere turned in a three-point night while Taylor Hall and Jackson Blake stayed hot as the Canes ran their point streak to 12 games and winning streak to 5 behind a quality performance between the pipes from Frederik Andersen.
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Hall got the scoring started with his 14th goal of the season in the first period. After blocking a Detroit shot sent the puck into the neutral zone, Hall won a foot race to earn a breakaway in on veteran goalie Cam Talbot. Hall unfurled a slick move, beating Talbot to the far side on the forehand to make it 1-0.
In the dying moments of the first, Sebastian Aho struck for his 22nd of the year when a pass he intended for Seth Jarvis went in off the stick of Red Wing defenseman Simon Edvinsson to take a two-goal lead into the break.
Eric Robinson made it 3-0 with his first goal since returning from injury with a hard-fought tally in front of Talbot.
The one minute the Hurricanes didn’t have a claim to dominating came at the end of the second, and it threw the game’s result into question. Edvinsson ripped a perfect shot off the bar and in behind Andersen to make it 3-1, and then Patrick Kane added his ninth of the season to get back within one.
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The Wings weren’t able to transfer that momentum into the third, as Andersen made a couple big stops before Gostisbehere restored Carolina’s multi-goal lead on a give-and-go with Blake.
Blake got in on the scoring himself a few minutes later when he looked off Logan Stankoven on a 2-on-1 to wire a wrister past Talbot to make it 5-2.
Hall’s three-point night wrapped up with losing some teeth on a high-stick from Edvinsson to give Carolina a four-minute power play that began with just under five minutes left in the contest.
With the win, the Canes bolstered their lead atop the Metropolitan Division standings, as the Pittsburgh Penguins let a point slip away in a shootout loss to the New York Rangers earlier in the day. The Hurricanes now hold a nine-point lead over both the Penguins and New York Islanders.
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After coming back from the Olympic break with two wins on home ice, Carolina will hit the road for a four-game trip that will feature a stop in Seattle on Monday night before visits to Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary to occupy the schedule next week.