Takeaways from the Carolina Hurricanes’ 7-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers

The last thing the Carolina Hurricanes wanted was a worrisome three-game losing streak heading out to Colorado to face the Avalanche, last season’s Stanley Cup champions.

The Canes’ Andrei Svechnikov would have none of that, putting on a show, scoring three times for his second hat trick of the season against the Edmonton Oilers to spur a 7-2 victory. Svechnikov’s third goal, late in the third period, was the 100th of his career and had the hats flying onto the PNC Arena ice.

Brent Burns, Jordan Staal, Jordan Martinook and Jesper Fast each scored and goalie Pyotr Kochetkov, in his first NHL start of the season, had 20 saves for the Canes (9-4-1), who rebounded after losses to Toronto and Florida.

“It was special for sure to be at home and score my 100th goal here,” Svechnikov said. “It was a couple of tough games for us, but we bounced back and played hard.”

The Oilers’ Connor McDavid, the NHL’s leading scorer, did some Connor McDavid things with his speed and displayed his special skill and puckhandling wizardry in scoring in the third period. Zach Hyman had a power-play goal in the second for the Oilers, who played without injured forward Evander Kane.

Takeaways from the game:

▪ Some call Kochetkov “Koochie” and there were some “K-ooooch” cheers Thursday from Canes fans. He denied Dylan Holloway on a penalty shot at 9:19 of the first — “The turning point of the game and the momentum flipped,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said — and then pushed out of the crease to poke away the puck and stymie a breakaway by Hyman in the second.

“A special play,” Svechnikov called the stop on Hyman. “It gives you more confidence and you want to play for him, especially his first game this season. It was awesome for sure.”

Is he unorthodox? Kochetkov can be and he was in one early sequence when he was flopping about the crease. But the goalie has one job: stop the puck. He did.

▪ Most Eastern teams are happy having to face the Oilers’ McDavid just twice each season. The Oilers should feel the same about Svechnikov, who had his first regular-season hat trick in the Oct. 20 game in Edmonton.

Svechnikov’s second goal Thursday was a near replay of one of his goals in Edmonton, No. 37 unloading a shot from the top of the crease that the goalie had no chance of stopping. His third, which had hats flying, came on a short backhander in tight.

“He’s been good for us all year and we need it,” Brind’Amour said. “He’s been leading the charge.”

▪ McDavid? No 97 can fly and did it a few times, gliding down the slot and beating Kochetkov with a wicked backhander in the third for his 15th goal of the season. But he often ran into D-man Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei waiting for him and the end of the runway.

▪ It can be deflating allowing a goal in the final moments of a period, and the Oilers did it twice Thursday. Svechnikov’s first goal came with 20 seconds left in the first period, and Staal’s nasty backhander just beat the horn to end the second period for a 4-1 lead.

▪ Where’s Freddie and how long will he be out? Good question. Goalie Frederik Andersen, who left practice early Tuesday, “tweaked something” according to Brind’Amour and has a lower-body injury that resulted in Kochetkov’s recall from Chicago. Brind’Amour didn’t call it a day-to-day injury, nor did he call it a week-to-week issue. So it’s anyone’s guess for now.

▪ After the Canes were shut out Wednesday by Florida, Brind’Amour said he would juggle the lines. He had Sebastian Aho centering Svechnikov and Teuvo Teravainen and Jesperi Kotkaniemi at center with Seth Jarvis and Martin Necas against the Oilers. Rookie Jack Drury, called up this week from Chicago, stayed in the lineup and centered Paul Stastny and Stefan Noesen.

The Staal line stayed the same, Staal centering Martinook and Jesper Fast, and all three scored. Martinook’s goal was all effort, the winger reaching up and batting the puck in after falling to the ice for his third of the season.

“He’s been solid all year, really effective,” Brind’Amour said of Martinook. “It’s good to see him get rewarded.”

This story was originally published November 10, 2022 at 9:40 PM.

Chip Alexander

The News & Observer

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In more than 40 years at The N&O, Chip Alexander has covered the N.C. State, UNC, Duke and East Carolina beats, and now is in his 15th season on the Carolina Hurricanes beat. Alexander, who has won numerous writing awards at the state and national level, covered the Hurricanes’ move to North Carolina in 1997 and was a part of The N&O’s coverage of the Canes’ 2006 Stanley Cup run.