Carolina 4, Pittsburgh 0
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 4, 2018
Where: PPG PAINTS Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Referees:
T.J. Luxmore, Brad Watson
Linesmen:
Shandor Alphonso, Brad Kovachik
Attendance:
18595
By Field Level Media
Jeff Skinner's unassisted goal in the second period snapped a scoreless tie Thursday night, as the Carolina Hurricanes bounced back from consecutive one-goal losses with a 4-0 blanking of the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.
It was the fifth win in seven games for Carolina (19-13-8), which is now holding down the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference after a slow start. The Penguins dropped to 20-19-3 and continued their inconsistent form.
Skinner took the puck away and potted his 13th marker of the season at 6:50 for the only goal the Hurricanes required. But they kept adding on to make things easier for goalie Cam Ward.
Teuvo Teravainen notched his 11th goal at 16:53 to make it 2-0, with Sebastian Aho and Jaccob Slavin drawing assists. For Aho, it was his 20th helper of the season.
Aho sealed the result in the third period with a pair of goals. With Jordan Staal and Brett Pesce helping out, Aho scored at 9:14 for a three-goal cushion. At 12:33, Aho tallied his 13th of the season, with Teravainen and Pesce bagging assists.
Ward (11-2-2), who's wrested the starting job from offseason signee Scott Darling, made 21 saves for his first shutout of the season.
Pittsburgh goalie Matt Murray (14-12-1) stopped 29 of 33 shots in the losing cause. The Penguins have lost eight of their last 12 matches.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Carolina |
|
Pittsburgh |
Sebastian Aho 3 |
Points |
N/A |
Sebastian Aho 2 |
Goals |
N/A |
Brett Pesce 2 |
Assists |
N/A |
N/A |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Cam Ward 1.000 |
Save Percentage |
Matt Murray .879 |
Cam Ward 21 |
Saves |
Matt Murray 29 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Carolina
|
33 |
4 |
0-1 |
2-2 |
4 |
23 |
Pittsburgh
|
21 |
0 |
0-2 |
1-1 |
2 |
31 |
Upcoming Games
-
Pittsburgh will play their next game on the road against NY Islanders. The Penguins have a W/L % of .400 after a win and .545 after a loss.
-
Carolina will play their next game on the road against Boston. The Hurricanes have a W/L % of .474 after a win and .476 after a loss.