Entering the contest on a three-game losing streak, the Carolina Hurricanes had one game left to earn some points before heading into the 4 Nations Face-Off break. Before representing Team Canada and Team Finland, centers Seth Jarvis and Sebastian Aho made sure the Canes left on a good note with a four and three-point game, respectively, in a 7-3 win over the Utah Hockey Club Saturday afternoon at Lenovo Center.
“It’s nice to go out on a positive note,” said head coach Rod Brind’Amour. “What we’ve gone through the last few games where we’ve played well and have nothing to show for it, they finally got rewarded for the work they put in here.”
After some questioned his Team Canada selection, Jarvis silenced all doubters with a two-goal, two-assist outing, making him the only Hurricane with multiple four-point games in 2025.
“He was the difference tonight,” Brind’Amour said. “The type of plays that were made, they weren’t banked in or something. They were high-end plays. That’s what he can do. It’s a no-brainer for him to be on [Team Canada].”
Jarvis was quiet in the first period but made his presence known early in the second. On a Carolina power play, right wing Andrei Svechnikov found defenseman Brent Burns near the blue line. Burns slid a cross-ice pass to Jarvis, who knocked it past Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka for a one-timer goal.
“All we’ve heard about is how bad our power play’s been, and it’s true,” Jarvis said. “Nice to see one go in and have a little success there.”
Aho for Team Finland, on the other hand, was a no-brainer. With his two goals on the afternoon, he became just the fifth-active player to record 20 goals in each of his first nine seasons. Wearing an “A” on his jersey as an alternate captain for Team Finland, Aho knows he doesn’t need to do anything different when he dons the blue-and-white.
“It’s an honor to just represent your country, but especially wearing a letter,” Aho said. “I guess I’m just going to try and be myself. I don’t try to be any different if I wear a letter or not.”
The Finn joined Jarvis with a two-goal period in the second, one on a giveaway Jarvis forced and the other on a pass Jarvis made behind his back.
Two minutes after Jarvis netted his goal on the man advantage, he and Aho combined to put the Canes up by two. Charging down the ice for a loose puck, Jarvis forced Vejmelka into making an error, playing the puck right to Aho, who outwaited his fellow Finn and tucked in his 19th of the year.
The lethal duo proved deadly again in the period when Aho netted his 20th of the year while shorthanded. Working along the end-boards, Jarvis threw the puck towards the slot with his back turned, where Aho deked Vejmelka again.
“Me and Fishy definitely have a good chemistry, especially in those situations,” Jarvis said. “Knowing being on the other side of it that when you’re on the power play you’re a little more relaxed not worrying about defense as much, knowing we could take advantage of them.”
Jarvis wasn’t done making noise in the second period. With under a minute remaining, the teams found themselves locked in a neutral zone face-off. Though Utah prevailed, right wing Jackson Blake and Jarvis jumped the gun, giving the Canadian a one-on-one opportunity with Vejmelka. With one nifty move, Jarvis lit the lamp for the second time in the 20-minute frame and tallied his third point of the evening.
“The way we play, we generate opportunities,” Brind’Amour said. “If you look at any one of those periods, you could have got three or four goals. Tonight, it just did finally. Can’t put my finger on it, but as long as we’re getting the opportunities, you have the chance of this happening.”
The Canes’ four-goal second period gave them a comfortable lead to sit on but Utah wasn’t deterred from getting pucks to the net. By the end of the game, it peppered netminder Pyotr Kochetkov with 39 shots, only three of which found the back of the net.
Utah center Clayton Keller beat Kochetkov twice and right wing Josh Doan fired one past him on the power play but other than that, Kochetkov was a brick wall. A flurry of pad saves and a scuffle with Utah led directly to the faceoff that Jarvis scored off.
All game, Carolina’s stout defense resulted in efficient offense, epitomized by defenseman Jalen Chatfield’s opening goal halfway through the first period. Chatfield forced the puck from Utah in Canes territory and flew down the ice, where center Jordan Staal found him as he buried it in the back of the net.
Jarvis earned his fourth point when left wing Jordan Martinook put one in an empty net following the conclusion of a penalty kill. Center Jack Roslovic made it seven in his 500th NHL game with 1:26 remaining while falling to the ice in front of the net.
The Canes get a nearly two-week-long break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, returning for an away matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, Feb. 22. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.
