04/11/26 07:16:00
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04/11 19:15 CDT Metropolitan champion Hurricanes beat Mammoth 4-1 for 6th win
in 7 games
Metropolitan champion Hurricanes beat Mammoth 4-1 for 6th win in 7 games
By MATTHEW COLES
Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) --- Jordan Staal scored and reached 20 goals in a season
for the first time in a decade, and the Carolina Hurricanes killed four of five
penalties in a 4-1 win over the Utah Mammoth on Saturday for their sixth win in
seven games.
Andrei Svechnikov, Sean Walker and Sebastian Aho also scored for Metropolitan
Division champion Carolina. Frederik Andersen made 26 saves. Shayne
Gostisbehere and Nikolaj Ehlers had two assists apiece.
Aho returned to the lineup after sitting against Chicago on Thursday.
The Hurricanes are within one point of securing the top seed in the Eastern
Conference. Any loss by Buffalo or any point earned by Carolina will clinch it.
Utah's Dylan Guenther scored his 40th goal of the season and Karel Vejmelka
stopped 26 shots for Utah, which had won five straight and scored at least four
goals in six consecutive games.
After the Hurricanes killed the first three penalties, Guenther scored from a
tough angle at 2:42 in the third period.
The Hurricanes scored first, 4:25 into the game, when Svechnikov scored on a
power play. It was Svechnikov's 31st of the season, a career high, and also
gives him a new high in points with 70.
Staal, Carolina's captain, scored his 20th goal on a wrist shot from the slot
with 6:37 left in the first period. Now, seven Hurricanes have 20 goals this
season. Staal hasn't found the net this often since the 2015-16 season. Staal
also tallied 23 faceoff wins --- the most for a player in the NHL this season.
The Mammoth clinched their first ?official' playoff berth with a 4-1 win over
Nashville on Thursday night. In their second season in Utah, they did it with a
foundation of players who moved with the team from Arizona.
Carolina is 37-2-2 when it has the lead after two periods.
Up next
Hurricanes: Visit Philadelphia on Sunday for the third of a four-game trip to
end the season.
Mammoth: Visit Calgary on Sunday for their final road game.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
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