RALEIGH — The Hurricanes limited the Red Wings to just 12 shots on goal and used a third period power play goal by Andrei Svechnikov to break a tie in a 4-2 win Friday at PNC Arena.
The win, which ended Detroit’s seven-game point streak, improved Carolina to 25-14-5 on the season and moved them ahead of Philadelphia in points percentage for second place in the Metropolitan Division and three points behind the first-place Rangers.
Jordan Martinook scored for the fourth straight game, and Martin Necas, Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho all had a goal and an assist in the win. Antti Raanta stopped 10 of 12 shots.
Three observations
1. The Hurricanes’ power play had gone two games without scoring after converting in 10 of the previous 12 games, and it only got one chance on Friday.
Carolina made it count.
With the game tied 2-2 just past the midway point of the third period, the Hurricanes finally got a chance with the man advantage when Stefan Noesen was tripped by Detroit defenseman Jeff Petry.
The Hurricanes needed just 31 seconds to convert, with an Aho shot hitting Michael Bunting in the slot, sending the puck right to Svechnikov for the go-ahead goal at 10:46 of the final period.
“I feel like we’re getting to our spots now and figuring out where one another are gonna be,” said Bunting, who had two assists for his seventh multipoint game of the season. “We do a lot of video on it. It’s been good, and we’re hoping that it keeps rolling.”
2. It was a mostly uneventful first two periods with just 24 combined shots on goal and four goals that came in two quick spurts — alternating goals scored 47 seconds apart in the first period and two more scored 2:52 apart late in the second. Other than that, it was a lot of dump-ins and neutral zone play.
“There’s not much room when you play against Detroit,” Svechnikov said.
It required patience.
“You get a little frustrated and then you want to hang out a little bit, and the next thing you know that’s how they catch you,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “I thought our guys did a great job of just sticking with the game plan.”
As Brind’Amour said, that’s easier said than done, but Carolina maintained its poise and took over in the third period, eventually getting the deciding power play.
“It was kind of a grind game on both ends, for them too I’m sure,” Bunting said. “And it was just capitalizing on our opportunity. We were able to get one there on the power play, which is huge, to take the lead, and then we didn’t look back. Yeah, we were patient and let our skill take over once we had the opportunity to.”
3. Martinook stayed hot, scoring in his fourth straight game when he crashed the net and redirected a Brent Burns shot to tie the score 1-1 just 3:14 into the game.
It’s the 40th time this season an NHL player has scored in four straight and 99th time in franchise history (38th since relocation to North Carolina).
Martinook now has four goals and an assist in his last four games and five of six goals on the season in the last seven games. Is he doing anything different?
“I don’t see anything different in his game ever. That’s what makes him a great player,” Brind’Amour said. “He just plays the same way every night. Whether he gets on the scoresheet or not, he’s always around it, he’s always getting opportunities.
“I think he was really unfortunate for however many games to not have goals or points because he was doing what he’s doing now. Maybe the law of averages are working out for him though.”
Number to know
7 — Times this season the Hurricanes have held an opponent to 20 or fewer shots after they allowed a season-low 12 Friday against the Red Wings. That breaks a tie with the Kings for the most in the NHL this season. Carolina improved to 5-1-1 when allowing 20 or fewer shots this season. It was also the sixth time this year the Hurricanes have at least doubled their opponent in shots on goal.
Plus
Martin Necas, Hurricanes forward — In his first game since Jan. 2, Necas came out flying and didn’t slow down. He had four shots on goal in the first period and scored his first goal since Dec. 15 in the second — deking Detroit defenseman Olli Maatta before cutting to his right and snapping a shot past Alex Lyon (26 saves) — for his 10th goal of the season.
“I probably should have had a couple in the first and then finally got one in,” Necas said.
Necas also assisted on Aho’s empty-netter that sealed the game, and he finished with team highs in shots (six) and shot attempts (nine).
“He was just the best player on the ice, right?” Brind’Amour said.
Minus
Jaccob Slavin, Hurricanes defenseman — On a night when there wasn’t much to complain about, Slavin took just his third penalty of the season, a holding call that led to J.T. Compher’s tying power play goal in the final minute of the second period. Fear not: Slavin still finished plus-2 on the night.
They said it
“He’s wearing his helmet in warm-up now, and I think that’s what’s just turned his whole game around.”
— Hurricanes forward Michael Bunting on his theory of why Jordan Martinook has goals in four straight games
