Carolina comeback win over Utah earns Hurricanes a piece of NHL history
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Carolina rallied from a two-goal deficit in final two minutes to win 5-4 in regulation.
- Andre Svechnikov and Shayne Gostisbehere each recorded two goals and an assist.
- The win made Carolina the third NHL team to complete such a comeback in regulation.
Carolina Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal had a simple explanation Thursday for a way-too-crazy ending and historic 5-4 victory.
“Things weren’t clicking,” he said, “and they finally clicked.”
And it became loud. It wasn’t very loud in the Lenovo Center and then it was. Very, very loud.
With two minutes remaining in regulation, the Hurricanes trailed the Utah Mammoth, 4-2. It was Whalers Night, always a festive time, but the vibe was not good.
And then, the Canes’ Andre Svechnikov scored on a power play with 1:59 left as the Canes pulled goalie Brandon Bussi for a sixth attacker.
And then, defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere scored 32 seconds later, his long-distance shot tying the score after the Canes again emptied their net.
It was bedlam in the building at that point, almost wall-shaking time as the decibel count soared. And just when it seemed the game might be headed to overtime, Staal scored.
Canes defenseman Jalen Chatfield put a shot on net from the right wing, with Jordan Martinook in front of goalie Karel Vejmelka. Martinook got a piece of the shot, and Staal tipped the puck in as he skated past defenseman Sean Durzi.
On Whalers Night, cue up “Brass Bonanza” one last time.
In another 29.4 seconds, the Canes were ready for a postgame Storm Surge celebration while the Mammoth, ending a four-game road trip, slowly skated to their room.
The Hurricanes (33-15-5) are the third team in NHL history to win in regulation after facing a two-goal deficit with two minutes remaining, joining the Dallas Stars (October 1995 against the Bruins) and the Montreal Maroons (March 1932 against the Rangers.)
“I love being a part of nights like this. You want more of them,” Staal said.
Svechnikov and Gostisbehere each had a pair of goals and an assist for the Canes. Svechnikov, who has played some of the best hockey of his career in January, notched his 20th of the season, matching his total last season. Gostisbehere made an immediate impact after missing the past five games with a lower-body injury, making some mistakes but shaking them off.
“We were trying to get back in the game, trying to get anything going,” Staal said. “There was definitely some momentum we were riding.”
Staal credited the home crowd with helping to spur the comeback. The noise level grew ever louder with each goal — first Svechnikov following up a carom off the end boards, then Gostibehere’s bomb.
“The fans got into it, and we were just kind of riding the wave,” Staal said. “There’s something to be said about this building. The fans here are great and when it gets going and it gets fired up, you can tell the guys feed off that.
“They didn’t have much to cheer for tonight. It was kind of back and forth and not much going on. Momentum’s a funny thing in this game. The boys took it and pushed it to another level.”
The Mammoth (28-22-4), who are now 10-3-1 in January, had built the 4-2 lead on Kailer Yamamoto’s two goals along with scores from JJ Peterka and then Michael Carcone at 7:11 of the third. It had been a chippy game, at times ugly, as Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev slammed Jesperi Kotkaniemi into the boards in the second period, then taunted the crowd on the way to the penalty box.
Vejmelka was making enough stops in net and the Mammoth forcing the Canes into puck-handling errors, especially in the neutral zone. The Hurricanes last played Saturday and weren’t very sharp.
“We were exactly where we wanted to be,” Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny said.
But with 5:18 left in regulation, Utah’s Barrett Hayton got his stick high on Nikolaj Ehlers, who was bloodied. The undisciplined move resulted in a four-minute double minor against Hayton, and Svechnikov popped in an easy one for his second goal on the power play.
Gostisbehere’s first goal also came on the power play as the Canes had trouble with breakouts and entries but managed to get two.
Bussi had 21 saves in his 20th win of the season, including some pivotal stops with the Mammoth up by two.
“At the end of the day, we found a way,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “Kind of crazy last couple of minutes, but we’ll take it.”
And talk about it. It was a crazy couple of minutes that won’t soon be forgotten.
This story was originally published January 30, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
