By Bob Sutton, The Associated Press on February 16, 2023.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Seth Jarvis had three goals for his first career hat trick and the Carolina Hurricanes scored three times in the first five minutes of the third period to beat the Montreal Canadiens 6-2 on Thursday night. Jarvis scored in the first and third periods for his first multigoal game of the season, capping his night with a short-handed goal with 19.8 seconds left. He has 11 goals this season, but had just two since Christmas before this outburst. Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Sebastian Aho and Jordan Staal also scored for the Hurricanes, who have won nine of their last 10. Antti Raanta made 20 saves, while Andrei Svechnikov recorded three assists and Brent Burns had two. Michael Pezzetta and Rafael Harvey-Pinard scored for the Canadiens, but their three-game winning streak ended as they began a four-game road trip. Sam Montembeault stopped 20 shots. Aho broke a 2-2 tie with his team-leading 24th goal of the season 2:05 into the final period. He fought in front of the net for a chance to get his stick on the puck. Pezzetta opened the scoring 3:24 into the game with his fourth goal of the season. Kotkaniemi tied it less than nine minutes later, breaking away for a goal at 12:14 of the opening period against his former team. He was signed from the Canadiens on an offer sheet in September 2021 and has secured a point in all three of his career games against Montreal. Jarvis notched his first goal of the game later in the first period. Harvey-Pinard registered his seventh goal in 11 games this season on a power play with 4:49 left in the second period. NOTES: Montreal center Kirby Dach missed his first game of the season because of illness. … The Canadiens failed to score in both visits to Raleigh in the 2021-22 season and their scoreless stretch in Carolina’s home arena extended to more than 179 minutes before scoring. … A pregame ceremony was held to induct former Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward into the team’s new Hall of Fame. UP NEXT Canadiens: At Toronto on Saturday. Hurricanes: Saturday night vs. Washington in a Stadium Series game at North Carolina State’s Carter-Finley Stadium. – AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports 17