Sebastian Aho, defense boost Hurricanes past Flyers

RALEIGH, N.C. --Rookie forward Sebastian Aho got his first NHL hat trick, and the Carolina Hurricanes limited the Philadelphia Flyers to 16 shots on goal in a 5-1 win at PNC Arena on Tuesday.
"When you score, it's easier to score the next one," Aho said. "You get some confidence. It's always easier once you get the first one."
The win ended a five-game losing streak for the Hurricanes (22-20-7), who got goals from Jeff Skinner and Justin Faulk. Elias Lindholm and Teuvo Teravainen each had two assists.

The Flyers (25-20-6), who had six shots on goal midway through the third period, had their three-game winning streak come to an end.
WATCH: All Flyers vs. Hurricanes highlights
"There's a lot of things to be disappointed with today," Philadelphia coach Dave Hakstol said. "Obviously, I didn't do a very good job preparing this group yesterday and through the day today. It's one game. That's the thing that's got to be kept in perspective. We will answer the bell and go back to work tomorrow."
Aho, who has scored nine goals the past 14 games, had an assist on Faulk's goal for the first four-point game of his NHL career.

The 19-year-old scored to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead at 7:11 of the first period. After strong work on the forecheck, Jordan Staal connected with Aho, who cut through the slot and scored at the left post.
Aho made it 2-0 with 3:23 left in the first on a nice setup from Lindholm. Aho started a give-and-go inside the blue line before one-timing a cross-ice pass by goalie Steve Mason.
"The first couple (Hurricanes goals) were turnovers by us," Flyers defenseman Brandon Manning said. "When you're turning the puck over and not getting it deep, not much good is going to come of that. If we had simplified a little more and tried to get into the game, it makes it a little easier on you. It just wasn't there tonight."
Skinner extended the lead to 3-0 with 3:32 left in the second period when he took a pass from Lee Stempniak and scored from the left faceoff circle.

Aho completed the hat trick on the power play with 55 seconds left in the second. With Claude Giroux in the penalty box for roughing, Aho took a pass from Lindholm and shot under the crossbar to the far post for his 15th goal and a 4-0 lead.
"He does a lot of things that are pretty impressive for his age, because he's only going to get better," Skinner said. "When you see some of the things he does with the puck, it's fun to watch."
The Flyers struggled to generate offense through the first two periods; they had four shots in the first and two in the second, when they took four minor penalties.

Faulk scored on a 5-on-3 power play to make it 5-0 at 4:10 of the third. With Matt Read (roughing) and Nick Cousins (slashing) in the box, Faulk beat Mason with a slap shot from above the right circle.
Brayden Schenn's power-play goal at 10:27 of the third made it 5-1 and ended Cam Ward's shutout bid. It came on the Flyers' seventh shot.

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Goal of the game

Aho's first showcased his skating and puck-handling. He took the puck from his forehand to his backhand before cutting to the far post to set up the forehand finish.

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Save of the game

At 7:47 of the first period, Ward lunged across the crease to make a right-pad save on Michael Raffl, who was looking for the redirection at the back post.

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Highlight of the game

Aho's second goal was nearly as impressive as his first. He was drifting backward into the bottom of the right faceoff circle when he converted the one-timer.

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Unsung performance of the game

Hurricanes forward Brock McGinn had a game-high six hits and two shots on goal in 12:31

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They said it

"Credit to him at a young age to get acclimated to the NHL game and get acclimated to North America. He's a smart player, a competitive kid with a real good skill set, and he can play multiple positions and up and down the lineup. He's coming on, for sure."-- Hurricanes coach Bill Peters on Sebastian Aho
"You can't throw games out at this point in time. There's no excuse. They were ready, we weren't. We did not deserve to win that hockey game. If we play like that, we're not getting into the playoffs." -- Flyers goaltender Steve Mason
"We have to be better than that. We knew coming in here that they are a good home team and they come out hard. Most of the time we executed poorly or (we) were not quick enough. We turned the puck over a few times, and you can't do that against a speedy and skilled team."-- Flyers defenseman Mark Streit

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Need to know

Aho's hat trick was the first by a Carolina rookie since Erik Cole on Dec. 21, 2001. ... Skinner had gone six games without a point. ... Sixteen Carolina players got time on the power play.

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What's next

Flyers: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; RDS, SNE, CSN-PH, NHL.TV)
Hurricanes: Host the Edmonton Oilers on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET; SN, SN1, FS-CR, NHL.TV)