Hurricanes defeat Sharks for 8th straight win

SAN JOSE -- Sebastian Aho scored the go-ahead goal in the third period, and the Carolina Hurricanes won their eighth straight game with a 3-1 victory against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Thursday.

Seth Jarvis and Sean Walker also scored for the Hurricanes (42-22-4), who are eight points ahead of the New Jersey Devils for second place in the Metropolitan Division. Frederik Andersen made 24 saves.

"I thought it was a solid game," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "We were pretty solid and [had a] good third period. Made a couple of plays, put the puck in the net."

William Eklund scored the only goal for the Sharks (18-42-9), who are 1-4-0 on an eight-game homestand. Georgi Romanov made 26 saves in his first NHL start.

"I didn't mind our game," San Jose coach Ryan Warsofsky said. "I think the three goals [against] were preventable, that was the frustrating part."

Eklund gave the Sharks a 1-0 lead at 13:00 of the first period with a short-handed goal. Skating in on a 2-on-1, Eklund was tripped up by the stick of Brent Burns as he attempted to toe-drag the defenseman. Eklund then went crashing into the post, but the puck also went into the net past the left pad of Andersen.

"I had no clue when it went in," Eklund said. "Strangest goal I've ever scored, but yeah, those count."

Jarvis tied the game 1-1 at 10:31 of the second period. He roofed a shot blocker side from the left hash marks after Shakir Mukhamadullin turned the puck over to him while trying to clear the zone.

Aho put the Hurricanes ahead 2-1 at 4:58 of the third period. Jackson Blake spun away from Mukhamadullin and fed Aho for a one-timer glove side from the high slot.

Walker made it 3-1 at 14:18. Taylor Hall sent a pass from along the right boards to the center point, where Walker scored with a one-timer through the five-hole of Romanov.

"Hall made a great play. He's a high-end player," Walker said. "We preach all the time getting pucks to the net. That's all I'm really trying to do."

NOTES: Burns played in his 911th consecutive game, passing Patrick Marleau for the fifth-longest streak in NHL history. ... Aho factored in on a go-ahead goal in the third period for the 43rd time in his career, passing Eric Staal (42) for third most in Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers history. ... Sharks defenseman Luca Cagnoni played 23:15 in his NHL debut.