Hurricanes lose first game without Hamilton, Steel scores for Ducks in OT

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes lost their first game playing without Dougie Hamilton when Sam Steel scored 1:36 into overtime to give the Anaheim Ducks a 2-1 win at PNC Arena on Friday.

Jakob Silfverberg took a turnover by Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov and passed to Steel for a short breakaway. He scored over the blocker of James Reimer.
"Your first instinct is to try to create space," Steel said. "I tried to get my feet moving. I knew (Silfverberg) was going to hit me, then after that, you try to take what's given. I tried to put it there and it worked."
WATCH: [All Ducks vs. Hurricanes highlights]
Erik Gudbranson scored, and Ryan Miller made 25 saves for the Ducks (19-24-5), who defeated the Nashville Predators 4-2 on Thursday.
"We do have to play a highly detailed and almost non-mistake game," Anaheim coach Dallas Eakins said. "If that's our circumstance, that's our circumstance. It's what we have to do. We got on the right track with the game in Nashville, but tonight was exactly how we have to play."
Sebastian Aho scored, and Reimer made 35 saves for the Hurricanes (27-18-3), who have lost three straight.
"The start was fine, then they took over really," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "I thought they were the much better team. We couldn't get out of our own end clean. Just spent too much time trying to defend."

Hamilton had surgery Friday after he broke his left fibula in a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday. He is out indefinitely.
"[Hamilton] is a heck of a player, so we're going to miss him anytime he's out," Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin said. "With the power play, he makes it a heck of a lot better. Some of the offensive plays he has, he's a shooter and a great passer, so his presence is missed all over the ice."
Aho tipped Joel Edmundson's wrist shot from the right point to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead at 3:59 of the first period.
Anaheim tied it 1-1 with 1:42 remaining in the period. Gudbranson pinched from the right circle, took Ryan Getzlaf's pass from the left corner and beat Reimer five-hole.
"I think they got a little lethargic and a little bit comfortable in their end, and I was able to sneak in the back side," Gudbranson said. "Obviously, [Getzlaf] being the great passer he is, he found me."

Anaheim limited Carolina to six shots on goal in the second period and four in the third.
"I thought we were just getting above the puck," Miller said. "They weren't getting their usual rush chances. We got through that first period where they were cycling a little bit, just kept pushing the puck out. It had a lot to do with the neutral zone and good, responsible play in their end."

They said it

"We won the game within the game. We took care of the middle of the ice. We always reset, everybody backchecked well. We never got puck-focused, we knew where guys were going. We made it difficult for them to enter the middle of the ice. You have that, with Ryan Miller stacked behind you, and it's a good recipe for a win." -- Ducks defenseman Erik Gudbranson
"It's just the little details that have been hurting us. It's a simple game that we know we've seen work. We're just not buying in right now." -- Hurricanes forward Jordan Staal

Need to know

Slavin will replace Hamilton on the Metropolitan Division team at the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Game, to be played Jan. 25 in St. Louis. ... Miller (382-280-83 with one tie) needs two wins to tie Mike Vernon for 15th in NHL history. ... The Ducks are 7-1-0 in the past eight and 10-2-0 in the past 12 against the Hurricanes. They have won six straight here. ... Staal won 19 of 23 face-offs (82.6 percent). ... Anaheim begins its NHL-mandated break and does not play again until after the All-Star Game.

What's next

Ducks: At the San Jose Sharks on Monday, Jan. 27 (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, PRIME, NHL.TV)
Hurricanes: Host the New York Islanders on Sunday (5 p.m. ET; ESPN+, FS-CR, MSG+, NHL.TV)