Hurricanes score four goals in first period to beat Oilers 6-3
By Bob Sutton, The Associated Press on November 22, 2023.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Teuvo Teravainen and Seth Jarvis each had a goal and an assist and the Carolina Hurricanes scored four goals in a 5:31 span in the first period in a 6-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night. The first-period spree set the tone as the Oilers never recovered. “We haven’t had a game like that where we score on all our chances,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “It was nice, obviously, to get those to go in and have them have to chase the game. That’s definitely the way to do it.” Jesper Fast, Jack Drury, Martin Necas and Brent Burns also scored for Carolina. Jalen Chatfield had two assists. Zach Hyman scored twice and Mattias Ekholm also had a goal for the Oilers, who dropped to 2-8 in road games. They’ve lost three in a row following a three-game winning streak. “We didn’t do ourselves any favours,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “We made it hard.” Both teams used two goalies, but for different reasons. Carolina starter Antti Raanta left for precautionary reasons after the first period with an undisclosed ailment. Pyotr Kochetkov made saves on 13 of 15 shots across the final two periods. “(Raanta) just felt something a little funny,” Brind’Amour said. “Nothing serious, we didn’t think, but we didn’t want to take a chance. Just precautionary, really.” Oilers starter Stuart Skinner was pulled with 5:12 left in the first period after Carolina’s fourth goal. It’s the first time Edmonton made an in-game goalie change since the season opener. Connor McDavid set up Hyman’s second goal for his 10th tally of the season just 3:45 into the third, cutting the deficit to 5-3. The Hurricanes were scrambling for much of the final period until Burns’ empty-net tally. “That third period wasn’t great, but we got the job done,” Jarvis said. The Oilers are hoping to build off their third period, when they put 11 shots on goal and dictated pace. “We played fast and aggressive and a lot of good plays,” Knoblauch said. “We have to have more of that.” Carolina had 15 players with either a goal or an assist, marking the most on the scoresheet for the franchise since it relocated from Hartford in 1997. Fast’s first goal in 13 games came 9:17 into the game. Just 35 seconds later, Drury notched his first goal of the season on a second effort from near the net. The Oilers converted five seconds into a power play late in the first period on Hyman’s first goal of the night. That ended an 0-for-11 string on power plays covering the previous three games. Ekholm scored short-handed in the second period. Chatfield’s contributions were notable as he has been a healthy scratch for the previous three games. “We needed to get him going,” Brind’Amour said. “Tough to sit out for too long. He didn’t look like he missed a beat.” UP NEXT Oilers: At Washington on Friday. Hurricanes: Host Tampa Bay on Friday night. ___ AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl 25-24
