Recap: Canes Clinch Eastern Conference Title In Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA - The Carolina Hurricanes earned the necessary point to secure their first-ever regular-season Eastern Conference crown on Monday, before falling to the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in a shootout.

GAME SUMMARY | BOX SCORE | BUY PLAYOFF TICKETS

Needing Brandon Bussi to guide them through an early Philadelphia push, the Canes made the most of their limited first-period chances. Beginning with Bradly Nadeau putting home a no-look setup from Nikolaj Ehlers, the advantage was then doubled when Ehlers put one home himself on the man advantage.

However, as fruit-bearing as the first period was for the Canes, the hosting Flyers received the same fortune in the middle stanza. Striking twice in a span of 2:33, goals from Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras reset the score, where 2-2 would hold until the end of regulation.

With no winner decided in overtime, it took four rounds of a skills competition to find a victor, as Philadelphia's Tyson Foerster struck gold.

Although he played a critical role in keeping his team in the game, Bussi suffered his first loss in net since Mar. 17. He finished with 19 saves over 65 minutes of play, plus an additional three in the shootout.

Stats & Standouts

• For a third consecutive game, the Canes went into battle with a makeshift lineup, allowing several regulars to get some much-needed rest ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Sebastian Aho, Shayne Gostisbehere, Seth Jarvis, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, and Andrei Svechnikov all took in the game from above.
• Nikolaj Ehlers posted his second straight multi-point performance (1G, 1A) to reach 70 points (25G-45A—70P) for the first time in his career, joining Cory Stillman (21-55—76 in 2005-06) as the second player to do so in their first season with the Canes.
• Recording his 45th assist of the season tonight, he also tied Pat Verbeek (1989-90) for the fifth-most by a player in their first season with the franchise.
• Ehlers is one of just two players to collect at least 70 points on a new team this season, doing so alongside Vegas’ Mitch Marner (23-56—79).
• Bradly Nadeau nabbed his third goal in 11 games this season while logging 16:16 TOI — his most in a game since his NHL debut in 2024.
• Logan Stankoven extended his career-best point streak to seven games with an assist on Ehlers' goal. The 23-year-old has notched 10 points (7G, 3A) in that span.
• Jackson Blake also kept his point streak rolling, posting an assist to move his run to six straight games (1G, 7A).

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour giving his assessment of the contest...

"Considering who we're missing and the stakes of the game, I thought, to be honest, we probably deserved the two points. Pretty good effort for 60 minutes. (The Flyers are) going to make their plays, they had a few and Bus made some really good saves. We just didn't cash in in overtime. I thought we had a lot of good looks, it just didn't happen... Overall, really happy with the way we played."

Jordan Martinook echoing his coach's thoughts...

"I thought we were good. I thought we competed really hard. Obviously, you knew what that game meant to (the Flyers), and for us, I felt like we probably had the better of the chances. Proud of the guys that were playing tonight; we gave it our best. Whenever it gets into a shootout, it's kind of a flip of a coin, so I was happy with it."

Rod Brind'Amour on locking in the top seed in the Eastern Conference...

"That's a huge accomplishment that nobody really cares about. But it says you had a real good year and that you came to play every night. You can't luck into that. We've got one more game here to finish this part of the marathon, and then we get to bigger and better things."

Jordan Martinook praising the guys that have come into the lineup...

"It just shows the depth that the organization has set up. It's impressive that you can kind of put guys into our system and our team, and whoever comes in, it's just status quo. They pull on the same rope as everybody else. Really impressed with everybody."

Rod Brind'Amour on the shifting cast of skaters continuing to play well...

"We just kind of hung in there; tonight was probably the best game of all of those that we've played [without several lineup regulars]. It looked like how we should play it. We just didn't get the extra point, but we certainly had our opportunities."

Jordan Martinook on Brandon Bussi's performance...

"I thought Bus was great. I felt like our first period, we didn't have a ton of shots, but I felt like we were playing well and in their end. The second [period], they obviously do their push. It sucks we couldn't have pulled it out for him, because I thought he was really good."

What's Next?

The Canes will fly to Long Island post-game and wrap up their regular season schedule on Tuesday against the Islanders.

Next Game: Tuesday, April 14 at NY Islanders | 7:00 p.m. ET | FDSNSO
Next Home Game: Round 1, Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs | TIME TBD | TV TBD | Tickets | Parking