Hurricanes’ Nikolaj Ehlers completes hat trick in rout of Panthers

The Carolina Hurricanes made a statement Friday night, cruising to a 9-1 victory over the Florida Panthers at the Lenovo Center. Forward Nikolaj Ehlers led the charge with his sixth career NHL hat trick and his first as a Hurricane after signing a six-year, $51 million contract in the offseason. He also contributed an assist.

Carolina controlled the game from the outset, despite a close first period that ended with the Hurricanes up 1-0. Ehlers opened the scoring at 18:35 of the first period, finishing off a slick pass from captain Jordan Staal while skating through the slot. This was the first game Ehlers played on a line with Staal and Jordan Martinook, who anchor Carolina’s checking line.

Florida responded early in the second, as Uvis Balinskis tied the game 1-1 with a one-timer from the top of the circle, assisted by Sandis Vilmanis, who earned his first NHL point. The Hurricanes wasted no time regaining control, with Mark Jankowski scoring on a backhanded rebound off Alexander Nikishin’s shot at 13:10. Nikishin then stretched the lead to 3-1 with a power-play one-timer from the right point at 16:28, assisted by Sebastian Aho.

Carolina exploded in the third period, scoring six unanswered goals. Andrei Svechnikov initiated the surge with a power-play goal, his 400th NHL point, at 4:08. Ehlers added his second goal on a 5-on-3 advantage at 11:17, followed just 21 seconds later by Taylor Hall’s power-play tally. Ehlers completed his hat trick at 13:03 off a one-timer from Logan Stankoven, pushing the score to 7-1. Hall found the back of the net again at 18:23, and Eric Robinson finished the scoring at 18:35 for the 9-1 win.

The Hurricanes were the better team in all aspects of the game, outshooting the Panthers 33-16, winning 66% of faceoffs, and outhitting Florida 30-19. Carolina’s special teams were exceptional, converting four of five power-play opportunities while holding the Panthers scoreless on five chances. Goaltender Brandon Bussi made 15 saves, earning his 17th win of the season, while Sergei Bobrovsky allowed a career-high nine goals on 26 shots.

The Hurricanes last scored nine goals back in 2009, when they blanked the New York Islanders 9-0. With the win, Carolina improved to 29-15-4 on the season and 5-1-1 in their last seven games. The Hurricanes will look to carry this momentum into Saturday’s matchup against the New Jersey Devils in Newark.

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