RALEIGH, N.C. — The Carolina Hurricanes have had a lot more practices than games the past few weeks, which coaches like a lot more than players.
As Canes center Sebastian Aho said Friday, “I hope all that practice is just building for better games in the future.”
The week of work translated into a Canes victory Friday night against the Calgary Flames, but only after a slow start at PNC Arena. Carolina won, 6-3, to win on home ice for the first time in 2022.
Andrei Svechnikov had a pair of goals and defenseman Brady Skjei, suddenly an offensive force, had a goal and two assists for the Canes (24-7-1). Skjei, who scored twice Saturday in the 7-4 win at Columbus, has seven points in his past four games.
Jesper Fast, playing his 500th career game, scored the Canes’ first goal as 12 players figured in the scoring. Derek Stepan and Tony DeAngelo also scored as the Canes beat the Flames for the second time this season.
The Flames (17-10-5) made the Canes earn it. Trailing 4-1, Calgary got a goal from Matthew Tkachuk in the second and then a breakaway score from Johnny Gaudreau in the third to pull within 4-3 midway through the third.
The Canes killed off a Svechnikov penalty to keep the lead — the Flames were 0-4 on the power play. Skjei scored and then Svechnikov on a power play to finish it off after the Flames unsuccessfully challenged the Skjei score. Fast tied the score 1-1 in the first period with the redirection of a Brett Pesce shot from the point.
Fast had tested goalie Dan Vladar with a backhander in the low slot on his previous shift, but beat him by getting a piece of the Pesce shot in the right circle or his eighth of the season.
The first 15 minutes of the game belonged to the Flames, who were beaten, 4-1, by Tampa Bay on Thursday but had plenty of zip a night later. Calgary finished the period with a 21-10 shooting edge — the most shots allowed in a period this season by the Canes, who were giving up 26.3 in a game.
Calgary’s Blake Coleman sniped a shot past Andersen at 5:12 of the first after a Jordan Staal turnover and Matthew Tkachuk picked up his 15th in the second period.
The Canes piled up zone time in the second. Stepan took a pass from Steven Lorentz and scored for a 2-1 lead after a strong forechecking shift by the Canes’ fourth line. Svechnikov then made it 3-1 with a shot between the circles that got through defenseman Noah Hanifin and then trickled through Vladar’s pads.
Svechnikov had a goal and assist in the win at Columbus — his fourth empty-net score of the season. But his hustle to the puck and a strong release on the shot earned him his 11th in the second period.
DeAngelo had a second-effort goal. Vladar shouldered down a shot by DeAngelo from the right circle, but the defenseman circled behind the net and was in position for a second chance and score.
The game was a matchup of two teams that have had their rosters and schedules altered and skewed during what has been a disjointed season. The Canes are back to full strength, able to sit forward Jordan Martinook and defenseman Brendan Smith as healthy scratches.
The game was a matchup of two teams that have had their rosters and schedules altered and skewed during what has been a disjointed season. The Canes are back to full strength, able to sit forward Jordan Martinook and defenseman Brendan Smith as healthy scratches.
