Recap: Big Third Period Lifts Canes Over Senators

OTTAWA - The Carolina Hurricanes scored four unanswered goals, including a pair of power-play goals, in the third period en route to a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators.
Teuvo Teravainen tallied two goals, and Micheal Ferland recorded three points (1g, 2a) to help the Canes finish 4-1-0 on their longest road trip of the season.
Here are five takeaways from a snowy night in Ottawa.

One
The Hurricanes saved their best period of the game for the third, and the final 20 minutes was the difference in the game.
For the first time this season, the Canes won a game when trailing heading into the third period (1-17-3), which helped the team finish 4-1-0 on the trip and match its most successful five-game road swing in franchise history (Feb. 28-March 8, 1998).
"We got better," Teravainen said. "We've had some good last periods. We're trying to keep those good habits and keep believing in our game. We don't have to do anything special."
"The third period was our season," Ferland said. "We were the hungrier team."
Two
The comeback began on the very first shift of the third period, when Dougie Hamilton fed a pass to Ferland along the near side of the net for the easy tap-in just 16 seconds in.

That set the stage for what was to come offensively, and the Canes rolled from there.
"We weren't happy with our first two periods. We wanted to come out with a big push at the beginning of the period," Ferland said. "I thought as a team we had good jump in the third period. That's what we needed."
"Coming out in the third period and getting one right away settled everybody down. After that, I thought we played a pretty good game," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "The first shift really set the tone for the third period."
Three
With the score equal at one in the third period, the Canes were given 94 seconds of a 5-on-3 advantage when Nino Niederreiter was on the receiving end of an errant high stick in the slot.
On the ensuing advantage, Justin Williams, with time and space to shoot, ripped a shot bar down to give the Canes a one-goal lead.

"We knew we needed that one," Ferland said.
With plenty of power-play time still to work with, the Canes were able to strike again on the man advantage and stretch their lead to two goals. Williams dished off to Niederreiter down low, and Niederreiter gave it to Teravainen in the slot for the bang-bang goal.

"Moving the puck. Shooting the puck," Teravainen said of what the power play did well. "Willy had a great shot. We made a nice, low play there, and I got a goal. Good plays."
"Every game, the power play has a chance to be a difference," Brind'Amour said. "It came up big tonight."
The Hurricanes power play was 2-for-4 on the night and is 13-for-58 in 2019. That's a 22.4 percent conversion rate, which ranks in the top 10 of the league.
Teravainen added his second goal of the game with 3:50 left in regulation, when the Canes forced a turnover and Ferland spun a pass to Teravainen, whose shot beat Anders Nilsson blocker side.

"I've been getting lucky around the net, I feel like," Teravainen smiled.
"We try to get him to shoot more because he does have a great shot," Brind"Amour said.
Four
There isn't much to take away from the first two periods, except that it wasn't all quite there for either team, really.
"It wasn't a great first two periods. It wasn't terrible, but we were just a little off," Brind'Amour said. "Offensively, it wasn't a great game in the first couple of periods. Both teams were just kind of meh. There wasn't a lot going on."
Mark Stone opened the scoring in the first period when he whacked a rebound out of the air and floated the puck over the shoulder of Curtis McElhinney.

The Canes caught a break in the second period when an apparent goal for Jean-Gabriel Pageau was taken off the board due to a distinct kicking motion.
It was an easy review and an easy call, really. While jockeying for a rebound along the near side of the net, Pageau attempted to kick the puck to his stick. Brett Pesce had said stick tied up, though, and the puck bounced in off McElhinney's pad. Rule 49.2 (i) plainly states that, "A kicked puck that deflects off the body of any player of either team (including the goalkeeper) shall be ruled no goal," so that was an easy reversal, and the game remained 1-0, setting up the third period comeback.
Five
What a road trip for the Canes, who are 9-3-1 on the road in the new year. Taking home eight of a possible 10 points keeps the Canes in position to continue to push for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with 25 games remaining in the regular season.
"Every game is big," Teravainen said. "Especially on the road, points are harder to get, I feel like, so it was a really good battle level."
"If we play the way we know we're capable of playing, we know we can beat any time any given night," Ferland said.
Up Next
Time to go home. The Hurricanes host the Oilers and Stars on back-to-back nights this weekend.
"We're trying to scratch and claw and get ourselves in the mix," Brind'Amour said. "We're moving on to try to get the next one."