Hurricanes’ happy homecoming continues with win over the Stars after Necas OT winner
Martin Necas said he never felt tired Saturday. And it showed.
With the Carolina Hurricanes in overtime against the Dallas Stars, the winger first fought for the puck in the Canes’ zone, then quickly pushed it up the left wing on the rush.
Necas’ backhand pass found Andrei Svechnikov, whose backhander was stopped by goalie Scott Wedgewood. But Svechnikov kept the puck alive, centered it and Necas knocked in the winner at 2:19 of the OT as PNC Arena erupted.
That came not long after Canes goalie Antti Raanta had made a scrambling save and stopped the clock. It allowed a very tired Jordan Staal, Brent Burns and Jaccob Slavin to make a change after a shift that lasted 1:53 — and left the three Canes exhausted — and brought a fresh Necas, Svechnikov and Brett Pesce on the ice.
“It’s always hard at the end of the game like that,” Necas, who had his ninth multi-point game of the season, said of the long shift. “But the guys stuck with it and ‘Rants’ made a great save.”
Svechnikov and Seth Jarvis both scored scintillating goals with drives to the net while Stefan Noesen and Teuvo Teravainen converted on power plays for the Canes (18-6-6), who extended their point streak to 10 games.
After playing in seven straight games for Carolina, including six starts, rookie goalie Pyotr Kochetkov was given the night off and Raanta took over the net, finishing with 26 saves.
Joe Pavelski and Jamie Benn had power-play goals for the Stars (18-8-6). Tyler Seguin and Jani Hakanpaa each scored even-strength goals in the third as Dallas rallied to tie it after the Jarvis goal made it 4-2.
“We just kept playing,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “It didn’t matter. Whatever happened, it was ‘Just go play.’ Obviously we liked the win.”
Takeaways from the game:
▪ Teravainen has to be one relieved guy. As he played his 20th game, he was still without a goal this season. No longer. He ripped a shot from low in the right circle on a 5-on-3 power play in the second period, the puck going off Wedgewood’s left shoulder. His smile after the goal said it all.
“It’s been while,” Teravainen said. “It was a nice pass to me and a lucky goal.”
▪ Svechnikov came out of the penalty box in the first period like a force of nature, taking the puck and blowing down the right wing to whip a shot past Wedgewood for his 17th of the season. Let’s just say the power forward was running hot, on full power.
“That’s what he can do, right?” Brind’Amour said. “Every team has these special players. There’s a reason they’re special and there’s not much you can do about it.”
▪ Super play and goal by Jarvis in the third. No. 24 would not be denied, using his speed to get past Seguin on the left wing and his skill to beat Wedgewood, who appeared surprised the puck was in the net.
“He’s developing into being a special player, too,” Brind’Amour said.
▪ Noesen has good instincts around the net, especially on the power play. His deflection on a first-period power play gave the Canes their first goal and was his fourth power-play score this season. Noesen, who had 48 goals in the AHL last season, converted a penalty shot against Seattle on Thursday.
▪ Coaches say it all the time: One way to stop the other team’s stars is make them work in their own zone. Few do it better than the Jordan Staal line, with Jesper Fast and Jordan Martinook. They started the game Saturday and spent the first minute in the Stars zone, making Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson and Pavelski work.
▪ Svechnikov is the only player in the NHL to twice score on lacrosse-style moves, and he keeps trying to get his third “Svech.” He tried again Saturday in the first, but couldn’t quite load it up. He’ll keep trying.
▪ An injured Sebastian Aho watched another game Saturday from the top level of PNC Arena. If you know Aho, he’s antsy to get back, and Brind’Amour said he did some skating Saturday as he recovers from a lower-body injury. There’s no one on the Canes more competitive than No. 20, so sitting has to be killing him.
This story was originally published December 17, 2022 at 9:58 PM with the headline "Hurricanes’ happy homecoming continues with win over the Stars after Necas OT winner."
