Recap: Power-Play Prowess Propels Canes Past Pens

PITTSBURGH - Spearheaded by three power-play goals, the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins for the third time in two weeks with a 5-1 victory at PPG Paints Arena on Sunday.

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Scoring in the game's first minute for the sixth time this season, Carolina got an early boost from Sebastian Aho, whose seeing-eye shot on the man advantage provided a lead the Canes carried through the first intermission.

Going right back to 5-on-4 work in the middle frame, Nikolaj Ehlers wired a one-timer past Stuart Skinner to double the lead at 6:24. Jalen Chatfield then found twine with a shot through traffic just under three minutes later, potting the team's lone even-strength goal of the affair. Wrapping up a prolific second period, Seth Jarvis joined the fun with another man-advantage marker at 17:20, finishing a perfect feed from Ehlers.

Pittsburgh's Egor Chinakov eventually broke Frederik Andersen's shutout bid with a late goal, but Mark Jankowski ensured there would be no miracle with an empty-net tally in the final minutes. Andersen, meanwhile, finished with 18 sterling saves for his fifth consecutive victory between the pipes.

Stats & Standouts

• Forward Sebastian Aho scored to become the first player in franchise history with eight career 25-goal seasons. He bested the previous mark set by Ron Francis (7).
• Forward Seth Jarvis tallied his fourth three-point game of the season and pushed his point streak to three games (1G, 5A). 
• Forward Nikolaj Ehlers notched a goal and an assist for his second multi-point performance in his last two games against the Penguins.
• Goaltender Frederik Andersen posted his fifth straight victory, marking his longest run of consecutive wins since a seven-game stretch in March/April of last season. 
• Carolina's power play scored three or more power-play goals for the second time this season, joining the 9-1 win over Florida on Jan. 16 (4 PPGs).

They Said It...

Frederik Andersen following the victory...

“I think our overall game, I liked a little bit better than the last few. We’ve been playing well against them, and it’s a good team. Divisional games are always important, and you always want to try to do your best against teams you see a lot. We’ve seen them a lot lately, and it was a good effort today.”

Nikolaj Ehlers on his team scoring in the opening minute for the sixth time this season...

“You always want to start out the right way, and I think we really did that today. I think if you can keep that going into the start of the second and the start of the third, you set yourself up for a good game, and I think we played great today.”

Rod Brind'Amour talking about the power play's three-goal day...

“It’s nothing that we hadn’t been doing; we just got some shots that found their way to the back of the net. That happens. I think we’ve been due for that. As a power-play group, we’ve been getting one per night here or there, but you’re going to have those (big) nights. We hadn’t had one really all year, so it’s nice to see.”

Nikolaj Ehlers on a massive afternoon for the power play...

“Even the one we didn’t score on there at the end, we had a ton of chances. Going in with that attacking mindset and getting pucks to the net, that will create some chaos and get them running around a little bit. That’s where you sometimes score the goals. I think we’ve done a good job of just keeping the attack mindset.”

Rod Brind'Amour discussing the importance of holding a high-powered team like Pittsburgh to just 19 shots...

“That’s the key. Basically, until the end, they had 12 [shots]. In the last little bit, they pulled the goalie and all that, but I just thought, in general, that’s a good number because you’re not going to score three, four, or five a night, you’ve got to try and limit the other team. I thought we did a pretty good job.”

Nikolaj Ehlers discussing what the team can take from today as they close out the trip in Montreal on Tuesday...

“The way that we kept playing the same way for all 60 minutes. We played fast, we got the pucks deep, we got shots to the net, kept them from bigger chances, and were just able to shut them down. And Freddie was great in net. We’ve got a lot that we can build on here.”

What's Next?

• The Canes will fly to Montreal post-game and are scheduled to practice on Monday. They'll get back in game action on Tuesday against the Canadiens.
• Next Game: Tuesday, March 24 at Montreal | 7:00 p.m. ET | FDSNSO
• Next Home Game: Saturday, March 28 vs. New Jersey | 5:00 p.m. ET | FDSNSO | Tickets | Parking