Recap: Three-Goal Third Helps Canes Double Up Canucks

VANCOUVER, B.C. - Nic Deslauriers, Nikolaj Ehlers and Logan Stankoven each scored twice to lead the Carolina Hurricanes past the Vancouver Canucks 6-3 on Tuesday.

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Building on his hat trick from the clubs' meeting in Raleigh 12 days earlier, Stankoven got the Canes going early at Rogers Arena on a sublime setup by Jackson Blake. A Vancouver equalizer returned the teams to level terms at the midway mark of the period, but Blake's playmaking skills came to the forefront once more to tee up Ehlers at the back post.

Before the visitors could head back to the locker room with some well-earned breathing room on the scoreboard, however, the Canucks snuck in a buzzer-beater on the power play to make it 2-2 after 20 minutes.

Deslauriers' first of the night on the other side of the break put the Canes back in the driver's seat, but the back-and-forth continued with another Vancouver leveler as the contest careened into the third period tied at three despite four Carolina power plays and a penalty shot in the middle frame.

It took Deslauriers 13 games to net his first goal with the Hurricanes, but just 21:41 to bag his second. A nifty backhand feed from Bradly Nadeau found No. 44 alone in front for what would be the game-winner at 4:07 of the third period. Six minutes later, some long-awaited breathing room arrived as Ehlers put on the jets for a breakaway beauty and a two-goal lead. Stankoven then iced the win with a late empty-netter.

Pyotr Kochetkov remained perfect on the year, turning in a 14-save effort to move to 6-0-0.

Stats & Standouts

• Nic Deslauriers picked up his first two goals with Carolina as he found twine for the first time since Apr. 13, 2025. 
• It's the fifth multi-goal game of Deslauriers' career, and his first since Feb. 19, 2022. Oddly enough, three of those five have occurred in Vancouver.
• Jackson Blake notched three assists for his third multi-point performance this season. His 10 helpers on the year lead the team and rank T-6th in the NHL at the time of publication.
• Logan Stankoven potted two goals to bring his total to a team-high-tying six on the year. Five of his markers have come in two games against the Canucks.
• Nikolaj Ehlers scored his second and third goals in his last three games and tied Jackson Blake for the fifth-most multi-goal games (3) on the team since the start of last season.
• Jesperi Kotkaniemi extended his point streak to three games with an assist on Deslauriers' first goal. His last single-season point streak of this length came Jan. 20-28, 2025.
• Juuso Välimäki made his Hurricanes debut on Tuesday, skating 11:29 and recording one assist. Välimäki is the eighth defenseman to appear in a game for Carolina this season.
• The Hurricanes won their sixth straight game against the Canucks dating to Oct. 28, 2024, their longest active run versus one opponent.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour after the win...

“I thought we were good the whole night... Overall, I thought we pretty much had control of what we wanted to do, and we got rewarded for it at the end.”

Nikolaj Ehlers when asked what allowed the Canes to pull away in the third...

"Playing more of the way that we need to play. Getting pucks deep, creating some turnovers, getting offensive zone time and shooting a little bit more. I thought we didn't play a great first 40 (minutes), but we got the win. We've got to take those two points, but we've got a lot better than that."

Nic Deslauriers following his two-goal night...

“It’s great. I’ve said it often, I don’t expect to score goals, but it’s fun when it happens. I know what my job is, and I’m not going to deviate from that and (think) I have to score goals now. It’s not my job, but it’s fun. I think it keeps the guys loose.”

Rod Brind'Amour on getting a pair of goals from a guy like Nic Deslauriers...

“He’s just a character player. He’s not really known for putting the puck in the net, but he had a couple of nice ones - the first one, especially. You root for guys like that to get a little recognition on the other end of things because they do a lot of the heavy lifting. It’s nice to see that happen tonight.”

Nikolaj Ehlers sharing his thoughts on Pyotr Kochetkov improving to 6-0...

"I don't know much about goaltending, but he's a great guy. Excuse my language, but it was a s--- last year for him. We wanted to and were hoping for him to bounce back and feel good, and he's done that. We're happy with him. We're happy with Bussi, obviously. We're very confident in our two goalies."

Rod Brind'Amour offering his assessment on Juuso Välimäki's team debut...

“He played really well for not having played since training camp. There was a lot to worry about [throwing him into the lineup under those circumstances], but I thought he had his hands on the first goal with a nice little quick up pass. I thought he played well. Good on him to contribute.”

What's Next?

• The Canes will fly to Edmonton post-game. They're scheduled to practice on Wednesday and return to game action on Thursday against the Oilers.
• Next Game: Thursday, Oct. 22 at Edmonton | 9:00 p.m. ET | Hurricanes Hockey Network
• Next Home Game: Tuesday, Oct. 27 vs. Boston | 8:00 p.m. ET | ESPN | Tickets | Parking