Hurricanes defeat Blues with late goal by Smith

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Brendan Smith scored the go-ahead goal for the Carolina Hurricanes with 2:57 remaining in a 3-2 win against the St. Louis Blues at PNC Arena on Saturday.

Sebastian Aho had a goal and an assist, Andrei Svechnikov and Tony DeAngelo each had two assists, and Alex Lyon made 27 saves in his debut with the Hurricanes (11-2-0).
Smith took a cross-ice pass from DeAngelo inside the blue line and scored on a slap shot for his first goal in his fourth game with Carolina.
"[DeAngelo's] passes are so perfect. They're right on your tape, but they're putting you in a position to make a play," Smith said. "I was able to walk into a slap shot. We had a good screen in front. I'm obviously very excited. It's a moment I'm never going to forget."
Lyon signed with the Hurricanes as a free agent July 30 and was recalled from Chicago of the American Hockey League on Nov. 7. It was the 23rd NHL game for the 28-year-old.
"Coming up to the NHL is something I've battled for a long time, just trying to find my way," Lyon said. "Hopefully I'm good enough to be up here. I feel like every time I play up here, it gets a little easier."
Pavel Buchnevich and Vladimir Tarasenko scored, and Robert Thomas had two assists for the Blues (8-3-2). Joel Hofer made 21 saves in his second NHL start.
"It was a good game, a tight game, but you hate giving up that goal late in the third period like that," St. Louis coach Craig Berube said. "I thought the second half of the game, we looked really good. In the end, you've got to find a way to get three goals."

Brady Skjei gave the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead at 1:15 of the first period when he scored from the left face-off circle off a pass from Aho. Svechnikov started the play when he stripped the puck from Thomas in the neutral zone.
Aho scored on the power play for a 2-0 lead at 3:44 of the second period when he one-timed a shot in the right circle off a pass from DeAngelo from the left point.

The Blues cut the lead to 2-1 with a power-play goal at 12:30. Lyon made the save on a shot by Jordan Kyrou, but Thomas fed Buchnevich for a shot into an open net.
Tarasenko tied the game 2-2 48 seconds into the third period after Ivan Barbashev chipped the puck to him in front of the net.
"In the room, going out for the third, I think we were excited," St. Louis captain Ryan O'Reilly said. "We knew we were going to find a way to put ourselves back and find a way to win a hockey game. We came out strong and had momentum."
Lyon was sharp in the second period, when eight of 13 shots on goal for the Blues came on the power play. He came across the crease to deny James Neal at the right post at 14:49 with the Hurricanes shorthanded, then made the save on a slap shot by Jake Walman from between the circles at 5-on-5 at 17:15.
NOTES: Defenseman Justin Faulk had one shot on goal and four hits in 24:36 in his first game against the Hurricanes since they traded him to the Blues on Sept. 24, 2019. He played his first eight NHL seasons for Carolina. … It was Svechnikov's fifth multipoint game this season, and the third for DeAngelo. … The Hurricanes tied their season low for shots on goal in a game with 24 (also in 3-0 win against Boston Bruins on Oct. 28). … Skjei played 25:06, his second-most ice time in three seasons with Carolina (25:50 against Dallas Stars on Jan. 31, 2021).