The Carolina Hurricanes found a gem.
A 6-4 win over the Vancouver Canucks allowed goaltender Brandon Bussi to make history once again. He recorded his 25th win in just 29 games, becoming the fastest goalie in the NHL to reach that mark.
The Canes (39-16-6) and the Canucks (18-36-7) took turns holding the lead, but ultimately, the Canes were too much to handle. Sitting 31st in goals per game with 2.51, Vancouver nearly doubled its average and almost came out with a win, but couldn’t find the back of the net.
The game-winner and the game-tying goal came less than a minute apart from one another. The game-winner, the second goal of the night for winger Nikolaj Ehlers, was set up by defenseman Sean Walker. Sending the puck across zones, he found Ehlers on the move. Showcasing his stick-handling skills, Ehlers skated around the defense and let off a slap shot from the circle into the back of the net.
57 seconds prior, the Hurricanes took possession and counterattacked into their offensive zone. Keeping the puck out of reach from the Canucks, the Canes passed around the zone until they found an open lane. Center Seth Jarvis placed the puck on the stick of center Sebastian Aho, who backhanded it past goaltender Kevin Lankinen. After scoring its fourth goal, Vancouver’s coach tried to spark a change by pulling Lankinen and putting in goaltender Nikita Tolopilo.
Winger Andrei Svechnikov lit the lamp for Carolina just 77 seconds after the opening whistle. A tripping penalty to center David Kämpf gave the Canes an opportunity on the man advantage that they didn’t let go to waste. Svechnikov, crashing the net, received the puck from Jarvis and hammered a one-timer past Lankinen.
Late in the first period, defenseman Alexander Nikishin was called for interference and sent to the box, giving Vancouver its first power-play. The Canucks capitalized, passing around the defense until they had a lucky break. Center Marco Rossi, from the goal line, threw the puck into the paint. Defenseman Jaccob Slavin, in an attempt to clear the puck, mishandled it and knocked it through the legs of Bussi, giving Vancouver its first goal.
With less than a minute left in the second period and defenseman Jalen Chatfield in the penalty box for tripping, defenseman Filip Hronek and Rossi connected passes before finding winger Brock Boeser across the paint. Boeser, on a one-timer, slammed the puck past Bussi to score the Canucks’ second power play goal.
In attempts to tie the game and force overtime, Vancouver pulled the goalie to bring on an extra skater. Ehlers took advantage and netted his third of the night, recording his seventh-career hat trick with 11.6 seconds remaining —- his second hat trick of the season.
The Hurricanes continue their road trip and head to Edmonton to suit up against the Oilers on Friday, March 6, at 9 p.m.
