Recap: Canes Hold Off Bolts In Return To Action

RALEIGH, N.C. - Led by a quartet of multi-point efforts, the Carolina Hurricanes returned from the Olympic break to knock off the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-4 at Lenovo Center on Thursday.

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Two goals in the first three minutes sparked a dominant start for Carolina. Nikolaj Ehlers started the scoring with a snipe off the rush, while Logan Stankoven joined the fun 1:13 later as he put away a give-and-go with Taylor Hall.

Shortly thereafter, it was Hall's turn to light the lamp. Converting a slick setup from Jackson Blake, Hall lifted the Canes to a 3-0 lead at 6:41. But a talented Tampa Bay team found its footing from there, striking three times in a span of 5:28 on either side of the first intermission to cancel out Carolina's early advantage.

Restoring a bit of momentum to the home club as the game neared its midway point, Seth Jarvis made it 4-3 with a shot from the slot off an Andrei Svechnikov dish from the corner. Undeterred, Tampa Bay answered once more with a power-play marker, setting up a winner-take-all final frame.

A power play awaited each team within the first seven minutes of the third, and after killing off the Bolts' bid, Carolina converted its own to take the lead for the third and final time. Sebastian Aho bagged the eventual game-winner with a fluttering one-timer that snuck over Lightning goalie Jonas Johansson and under the crossbar.

With the team ahead of him limiting the Bolts to just six shots in the third, Brandon Bussi picked up his 24th win of the campaign with 24 saves on 28 shots.

Stats & Standouts

• Forward Logan Stankoven scored on his birthday, joining Taylor Hall as the only Hurricanes to do so this season. Logging an assist as well, the now 23-year-old posted his career-best seventh multi-point performance of the season.
• Forward Nikolaj Ehlers opened the scoring to stretch his point streak to three games (1G, 2A) and mark his 10th point in his last 11 games.
• Forward Seth Jarvis potted his 26th goal of the season, tying Eric Staal (07-08) for the third-most by a Hurricanes player through the first 50 games of a campaign. Only Staal (31 in 05-06) and Jeff O'Neill (27 in 00-01) have recorded more in that span.
• Forward Sebastian Aho netted the game-winner with his 73rd career power-play goal, matching Pat Verbeek for the third-most man-advantage markers in franchise history behind Ron Francis (132) and Eric Staal (105).
• Goaltender Brandon Bussi recorded his second winning streak of at least eight games this season, joining Andrei Vasilevskiy (TBL) and John Gibson (DET) as the only NHL netminders with multiple such runs during the 2025-26 campaign.
• Alongside Stankoven and Jarvis, forwards Andrei Svechnikov (2A) and Taylor Hall (1G, 1A) also recorded two points apiece, marking the sixth time this season that four or more Hurricanes have posted multiple points in the same contest.
• The Hurricanes scored three times in the opening 6:41, marking the fastest three goals to start a game in more than eight years for the franchise, and sixth-fastest overall for the club, behind Jan. 23, 1988 (3:47), Nov. 9, 2010 (4:10), Feb. 5, 2016 (4:33), Dec. 21, 2017 (4:47) and Nov. 13, 1999 (6:22).
• With wins in four straight, Carolina has now recorded at least a point in its last 11 contests (9-0-2), tying the fifth-longest point streak in franchise history and the fifth-longest in the NHL this season.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour summarizing the wild nature of his team's win in their first game back from break....

"Everything that went on in that game, you knew it was coming. We just got off to a good start... (Nikita Kucherov) certainly had a good game, but I thought we battled back hard. The start was the key... I thought the game went a little better in the third. I liked our game, not giving up as much... We were giving up too many good looks (early on). But in the third, I thought we'd settle down a little bit and got to our game a little better."

Taylor Hall offering his perspective on the victory...

"It was probably entertaining for the fans who were here and watching. [It was] a little bit back and forth, not really the style that we're accustomed to playing, but at the end of the day, we get a win against a team that played last night. They probably got some rust out last night, and for us, that's a long time without playing, so we'll take the win. A lot of really good individual performances - Stank, Jarvy, Bussi - we'll take it."

Sebastian Aho keeping it simple...

"Good win. Obviously, we wanted to start the right way, and we were able to win versus a good hockey team. Scoring a goal is a bonus. We were looking for the two points, and we got it."

Logan Stankoven after scoring a goal on his birthday...

"It was nice, for sure. I was hungry to get back out there and contribute. It was nice to see the puck go in and for our line to have some success."

Rod Brind'Amour on the line of Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven, and Jackson Blake, who combined for five points...

"They were huge tonight. A lot of pretty goals. We don't always see that, but that line in general creates a lot for us. They're not always on the scoresheet, but they're always around it, and they have the potential every shift to make something happen. They were obviously our best line."

What's Next After This Game?

• The Canes are scheduled to be off on Friday. They'll return to game action on Saturday at home against Detroit.
• Next Game: Saturday, Feb. 28 vs. Detroit | 7:00 p.m. ET | FDSNSO | Tickets | Parking