Canes keep wins coming

RALEIGH -- After the Olympic break, after the NHL trade deadline, things could change for the Carolina Hurricanes, and their lineup could take on a different look.

But for now, the Hurricanes are winning. As the Florida Panthers and others have learned, the Canes are a tough out.

With a 4-1 victory Tuesday over the Panthers, the Hurricanes now have won three straight and seven of their last nine. In fact, since the beginning of December, Carolina is 17-13-2 - not a great record but enough to convince any skeptics the Canes are far from being one of the worst teams in the league.

The Canes won with goals from Jussi Jokinen, Joni Pitkanen, Matt Cullen and Tuomo Ruutu. They won with some calm, solid play in net by Manny Legace. They skated well, defended well in their zone, killed penalties, backchecked well, made the most of their hits.

Nothing special. Just good, sound hockey.

Jokinen, who somehow won't be playing for Finland in the Vancouver Winter Games, pushed his point streak to seven games with a power-play goal early in the second that gave Carolina a 1-0 lead. Set up to the left of Panthers goaltender Tomas Vokoun, he was at the right place at the right time to pop in the rebound of an Eric Staal rebound for his team-leading 21st goal.

Pitkanen, who will play for the Finnish Olympic team, scored on a shot he probably should take more often. Open near the top of the right circle, he took a pass from Ray Whitney and unloaded a bomb that zipped under Vokoun's glove for a 2-1 lead.

Pitkanen's goal came after the Panthers' Cory Stillman, who thrives against his old team, had tied the score 1-1. Slipping in on the backdoor, the former Hurricanes forward slapped in a pass from Stephen Weiss for his 11th of the season.

Cullen's goal early in the third showed off the center's speed and elusiveness. Taking a pass from defenseman Tim Gleason on the left wing, Cullen cut across the slot, pulled the puck past fallen defenseman Bryan Allen and beat Vokoun for his 12th of the season.

Gleason, who soon will head to Vancouver with Team USA, fought with Gregory Campbell in the first period and took a puck in the face early in the second - in other words, another typical Gleason game. Gleason took 12 stitches in the brow and was quickly back on the ice.

Legace was briefly shaken up early in the third. With the Panthers on a power play, Florida defenseman Dmitry Kulikov slashed the goaltender in a scrum in front of the goal.

Legace was down on the ice for a few moments and tended to by trainer Pete Friesen. But he was soon back up and in net.

Ruutu, who scored an empty netter with 1:14 left, was activated from injured reserve Tuesday and was back in the lineup after missing 15 games with a shoulder injury. Ruutu was a winger on the line centered by Brandon Sutter, who played his 100th NHL game.

The Canes have two more home games before the Olympic break, against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday and the New Jersey Devils on Saturday. It should be safe to say neither will take the Hurricanes lightly.

Game Summary

First--None. Penalties--Campbell, Fla, major (fighting), 6:16; Gleason, Car, major (fighting), 6:16; Ballard, Fla (interference), 13:27; Allen, Fla, major (fighting), 17:01; Goertzen, Car, major (fighting), 17:01; Oreskovich, Fla (slashing), 18:37.

Second--1, Carolina, Jokinen 21 (Staal, Cullen), 5:28 (pp). 2, Florida, Stillman 11 (Weiss, McCabe), 9:36. 3, Carolina, Pitkanen 4 (Whitney, A.Ward), 13:00. Penalties--Ballard, Fla (tripping), 3:56; Jokinen, Car (hooking), 10:28.

Third--4, Carolina, Cullen 12 (Gleason, Kostopoulos), 3:11. 5, Carolina, Ruutu 12 (Cullen, Pitkanen), 18:46 (en). Penalties--Kostopoulos, Car (interference), :46; A.Ward, Car (interference), 5:29; Kulikov, Fla (slashing), 6:29; Yelle, Car (tripping), 20:00.

Shots on Goal--Florida 8-7-5--20. Carolina 9-13-8--30. Power-play opportunities--Florida 0 of 3; Carolina 1 of 4. Goalies--Florida, Vokoun 19-20-9 (29 shots-26 saves). Carolina, Legace 6-5-2 (20-19). Att.--18,393. T--2:19.

FLORIDA PANTHERS

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CAROLINA HURRICANES

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