Recap: Aho's Late Goal Lifts Canes Past Bruins

RALEIGH, N.C. - Sebastian Aho scored 10:19 into the third period to break a 1-1 deadlock and lift the Carolina Hurricanes to a 2-1 victory over the Boston Bruins at Lenovo Center on Tuesday.

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A goal for each side bookended a penalty-laden first period, with Pavel Zacha potting the first on a Boston power-play 91 seconds in and Jackson Blake answering for Carolina at the other end, just 52 ticks before the buzzer. In between, Nic Deslauriers and Tanner Jeannot dropped the gloves for a marathon bout that riled up a capacity crowd catching its team in action for the first time in two weeks.

Steering clear of the penalty box in the second period, Carolina enjoyed more of a territorial edge with an 8-2 shot advantage in the middle frame, only to be thwarted by Boston's Jeremy Swayman. In the Canes' own end, a Jesperi Kotkaniemi goal-line clearance ensured the contest was tied entering the third period.

As the battle rounded the midway mark of the third period, the league leaders finally had their way and broke through. Just one minute after Boston rang iron at the other end, Andrei Svechnikov broke into the zone and sent a centering feed that William Carrier slowed up just enough for Aho to swat home from close range.

Playing from in front for the first time, Carolina went to work defending its lead for the ensuing 9:41. Back-to-back late penalties threatened to allow the Bruins back into the contest, but the Canes' killers held strong to help the team pick up points for the fourth straight game (3-0-1).

At the forefront, Pyotr Kochetkov finished with 14 total saves on 15 shots to move to 8-0-0 between the pipes this season.

Stats & Standouts

• Pyotr Kochetkov picked up his eighth straight victory with 14 saves, matching Frederik Andersen's franchise record for the longest season-opening winning streak by a goaltender.
• Kochetkov's eight-game run is tied for the fourth-longest season-opening streak in NHL history. Only Jack Campbell (11 with TOR, 2020-21), Carey Price (10 with MTL, 2016-17) and Felix Potvin (9 with TOR, 1993-94) have begun a campaign with a longer string of consecutive victories.
• Jackson Blake tallied his third goal of the season to extend his active point streak to four games (2G, 4A). It's Blake's second run of that length this season, alongside a five-game streak he posted from Oct. 2 - Oct. 10.
• Sebastian Aho scored his franchise record-extending 69th career game-winning goal to stretch his point streak to three games (2G, 3A).
• Nikolaj Ehlers notched an assist and found the scoresheet for the fourth straight game (3G, 3A). 
• Mark Jankowski returned from a four-game absence (lower-body) to skate 17:16 and go 7-for-15 in the faceoff dot.

They Said It...

Rod Brind’Amour on patience being the key to success in a way over the Atlantic Division leaders…

“We knew coming in that was the way the game was going to go. So, having the right mindset [was key]. They’re a good team for a reason, and they stick to what they’re doing. We had a game plan, and that’s why we stuck with what we had to do. We should have had more [goals], but it doesn’t always work that way, and then we got the one late. It was a pretty good game by this group.”

Sebastian Aho talking about picking up a win after two weeks on the road…

“It was a good game. They were playing good hockey, and it was a good battle. Obviously, after a long road trip, you want to start the homestand the right way, and we were able to do that. We’ll definitely take the two points.”

Jaccob Slavin on a four-for-four night for the penalty kill…

“That’s our game. We want to shut down those opportunities. It’s never fun to kill penalties, especially against a power play like that, late in the game, but it was a great unit of four. Kooch made some great saves there at the end too, and you need that on good penalty kills - you need your goalie sometimes to be your best penalty killer. It was just a team effort all the way through tonight.”

Pyotr Kochetkov after improving to 8-0 with a 14-save win…

“We always have this type of game, where I don’t have lots of (work). It’s just my job. The guys played well, and I’m happy today.”

What's Next?

The Canes will not practice on Wednesday. They'll be back in game action at Lenovo Center on Thursday, taking on the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Next Game: Thursday, Oct. 29 vs. Columbus | 7:00 p.m. ET | Hurricanes Hockey Network | Tickets | Parking