Recap: Power Play Ignites Canes in Win Over Flyers

The Carolina Hurricanes scored two power-play goals in a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon.
Justin Faulk tallied the game-winning goal on the power play in the third period, while Teuvo Teravainen got the Canes on the board on the man advantage in the first.
Here are five takeaways from a Saturday matinee in Raleigh.

One
On New Year's Eve, the Hurricanes were 15-17-5 and in desperate search for a victory.
They got one in a 3-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers, jumpstarting what's been one of the league's best stretches in the last half of the season.
This week, the Hurricanes lost consecutive games to the Metropolitan Division-leading Washington Capitals. Again, in search of a victory.
They got one in a 5-2 win against these same Flyers, who were officially eliminated from playoff contention in the loss.
"These games mean a lot for us," said Petr Mrazek, who was named the second star of the game after making 30 saves on 32 shots.

"We're living in the moment right now," Justin Williams said. "We're playing important hockey games."
"They come to play and give you what they can," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "The effort, I really haven't had to worry about it too much. Guys were giving it everything they had, and I thought we deserved that one."
Two
Igniting the Hurricanes to victory was special teams play, and in particular the power play, which has hobbled the Canes in the month of March.
The Canes came into Saturday's game 0-for-15 on the man advantage in the previous nine games. They needed it to make a difference somehow, some way.
It wasn't pretty, but it was a power-play goal.
And it was exactly what the Hurricanes needed, both in the big picture and at the very moment, considering the team had fallen behind 1-0 early.
The Hurricanes didn't have much sustained possession in the first minute of the man advantage, but a scramble sequence ended with the puck in the back of the net. Amidst a chaotic battle for the puck in the slot, Teravainen whacked in the loose biscuit for his 20th goal of the season.

A quick note on Teravainen's goal: He's reached the 20-goal mark for the second straight season. The Hurricanes have five players on their roster who have scored at least 20 goals this season: Sebastian Aho (30), Williams (22), Nino Niederreiter (22, including 13 with Carolina) and Andrei Svechnikov (20). It's the first time since 2009-10 that the team has had four players score 20 goals in a Hurricanes uniform.
On the power play in the third period, Faulk accepted a pass at the point from Teravainen and hammered home a one-time blast to put the Canes ahead 3-1 with 8:03 left in regulation.

Two power plays, two power-play goals.
"The power play came through big," Williams said. "Hopefully it will be a stepping stone to better things. Seeing the puck go in today was important."
On the other side of the special teams coin, while the Hurricanes gave up a power-play goal in the third period, they also put the game away with a shorthanded empty-netter late in regulation. On a 6-on-4 disadvantage, Jaccob Slavin fired the puck the length of the ice into the empty net. Mrazek, who made two sharps save on the sequence prior and earned the secondary assist on the goal, jumped into the celebratory hug.

"Special teams, we know how important they are, and tonight that was the difference, really," Brind'Amour said.
Three
Just 21 seconds after Teravainen evened the score, Dougie Hamilton put the Hurricanes ahead on another scramble play. Having joined the rush and crashed the net, Hamilton circled around the back of the cage. As he came around the far side, the puck popped to him on a rebound, and he scored on a quick snapper.

That's a lead the Hurricanes would hold onto until Faulk stretched his team's advantage in the back half of the third period.
"The first two periods were really good," Brind'Amour said. "I wished we were up by another one. It was a little too close for comfort. It was a pretty good game all the way."
Four
The Hurricanes dominated the first five minutes of the game.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Michael Raffl skated down the ice on a breakaway. The first shot Mrazek faced was a big test, and he passed it.

"That could change the whole outlook of the game," Brind'Amour said. "We had a real good first period, going well, and then we gave up one of those. Shouldn't happen, but it does. When the goalie makes a save like that, it's a vote of confidence."
The win was Mrazek's second this season against his former team.
"Really good, key saves. We just seem to expect it. I love our goalies' competitive fire," Williams said. "They've been phenomenal for us."
Five
With the win, the Hurricanes' magic number to clinch a playoff berth moves to six. If all goes well later on this evening, that number could be four by the end of the night.
The Canes still won't be able to clinch until Tuesday at the earliest, but they're moving ever so closer to ending the longest active playoff drought in the NHL.
"It's exciting to be in the playoff race and play meaningful hockey games. This is what us as players enjoy and love to do," Williams said. "It was an important game today. Bigger one tomorrow. Probably bigger one the next day after that."
Up Next
The Hurricanes head to Pittsburgh to face off with the Penguins at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
"It doesn't get easier. We know that," Brind'Amour said. "It gets tougher and tougher. It's great. We're playing meaningful games. That's why you do this."