Hurricanes stretch win streak to 4 games

Published 12:00 am Sunday, October 24, 2021

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Vincent Trocheck had two goals and an assist to lead Carolina to a 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night, the Hurricanes’ fourth straight win to open the season.

Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho added power-play goals, and Jesper Fast also scored for Carolina. Frederik Andersen stopped 27 shots in his fourth straight win.

Columbus captain Boone Jenner scored, and Joonas Korpisalo finished with 28 saves.

Fast put Carolina on the board at 7:11 of the first period, scoring off a behind-the-net pass from Staal after a Columbus turnover.

Carolina made it 2-0 at 13:35 of the first when a left-circle wrister from Andrei Svechnikov ricocheted off Trocheck’s back and past Korpisalo, just six seconds into a Columbus double-minor penalty for high sticking.

Korpisalo lost his second straight game, and the Blue Jackets absorbed their first defeat at home in four games this season.

Jenner took advantage of a 5-on-3 shift, the result of a pair of Carolina penalties in the second period, forcing the puck past Andersen from in front of the crease at 7:19 of the second to make it 2-1.

The goal was Jenner’s team leading fourth in five games and kept alive his three-game point streak. Jakub Voracek’s assist was his 100th as a member of the Blue Jackets and his third in as many games.

But Carolina was not done, pulling ahead 3-1 on a power-play goal by Staal, dribbling his first score of the season past Korpisalo at 15:57 of the second with just eight seconds left on a Voracek hooking penalty. Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s assist was his first for the Hurricanes, after three years with Montreal.

Aho made it 4-1 at 7:05 of the third, with 22 seconds left in Columbus’ fourth penalty of the game. Trocheck’s second goal came at 16:13 off a give-and-go from Svechnikov.

UP NEXT

Caroline: Hosts Toronto on Monday.

Columbus: Hosts Dallas Monday.

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