Teravainen, McGinn spur Hurricanes to 7-3 win over Blue Jackets
It’s no secret this season has been a tough go for Teuvo Teravainen of the Carolina Hurricanes.
After playing the first three games, he was hit with COVID-19 and went into quarantine. It caused him to be sick, zapped his energy. Or so it appeared when the winger finally returned to the ice, first in practice and then back into the lineup.
But Monday, Teravainen was back -- all the way way back -- as the Canes raced past the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-3 at PNC Arena. At times he was the best skater on the ice, scoring a goal, having another taken away, and assisting on three goals.
“I think today was the first day I started to feel a little bit better,” Teravainen said on the postgame media call. “It’s been kind of tough with all that COVID. I just haven’t felt normal. It’s like I’d get tired really easy. And the timing, too.
“I hadn’t played in kind of a long time, so it took the last couple of games to get going again. It’s starting to be a little better now, so that’s good.”
Teravainen’s line was very good Monday for the Canes (10-3-0), who were playing only their fourth home game after nine on the road. Brock McGinn also had a four-point game that tied his career high, scoring twice, finishing with two assists. And center Sebastian Aho had a goal and assist.
Teravainen had a first-period score disallowed when the Canes were ruled to have been offside on the zone entry. The Canes trailed 2-0 and 3-1 in the first before Staal scored his first late in the period off a Warren Foegele pass.
Teravainen and McGinn then scored 27 seconds apart in the first two minutes of the second period as the Canes soared ahead. They would not trail again, winning board battles, clearing the zone when need be and leading 5-3 after the second to end the night early for Columbus goalie Joonas Korpisalo.
“He’s been great,” Teravainen said of McGinn, who shares the team lead with seven goals. “I think he could play on any line right now and be good. He’s pretty hot. He works hard and he’s got that little scoring touch, too.”
Jordan Staal, again a load in front of the net, showed off his rediscovered scoring touch and had a pair of goals. The second came on a third-period power play after Nino Niederreiter had given the Canes a power-play goal for a 5-3 lead in the second.
Cedric Paquette, in his first start with the Canes, made a quick, favorable impression. The center, obtained Saturday from the Tampa Bay Lightning, put a crunching hit on defenseman Seth Jones along the boards in the neutral zone and later hit Jones again.
“He had long travels the last couple of days and for him to come out and be crashing and banging was awesome to see,” McGinn said. “Our bench obviously loved it.”
James Reimer had a somewhat shaky start but the Canes goalie steadied after the first, making the stops when needed as the Canes pulled away. Reimer finished with a season-high 37 saves.
Columbus (7-6-4) scored 26 seconds into the game on a goal by Cam Atkinson and Boone Jenner made it 2-0, but the Canes kept their poise. Aho’s goal was answered by Kevin Stenlund, who scored in a baseball-type swipe at the puck, but Staal’s late goal made it 3-2 game.
Teravainen’s first game after being in the COVID protocols was Feb. 2 against Chicago. He went six games without a point, then scored against the Dallas Stars on Saturday, which seemed to relieve him and his teammates, and was ready Monday.
“You could see he had a little jump to his step,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “The plays he was making, they were crisp. Hopefully, he feels 100 percent real soon.”
This story was originally published February 15, 2021 at 6:40 PM.
