Hurricanes defeat Mammoth, extend lead in Eastern Conference

SALT LAKE CITY –- Jordan Staal scored to reach the 20-goal mark for the first time since 2015-16, and the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Utah Mammoth 4-1 at Delta Center on Saturday.

“I'm not necessarily known for my offensive skills, but I always want to chip in that way and it's always nice to score goals,” said Staal. “(Nikolaj Ehlers) was looking for me in the first, I think I could have had three or four and was able to get one there. … It always feels good and I'll take it.”

Staal also had an assist, and Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov and Sean Walker also scored for the Hurricanes (52-22-6), who have won six of their past seven games. Frederik Andersen made 26 saves.

“I thought it was a good effort,” said Staal. “There was a little lull in our game, probably in the second. Freddie came up big and he made some big saves throughout the whole game, but he was really good in the second for us to keep it at bay. Then the boys grinded in third.”

Carolina, which has clinched the Metropolitan Division title, extended its lead in the Eastern Conference to four points ahead of the Buffalo Sabres.

“I thought in the third period, we increased our effort level,” said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour.  “You look at the little things, (Staal) winning all the face-offs, getting a big goal by (Aho) there and then (Andersen) made some big saves. That's the end of the day. That's the game. The goalie made some saves for us, and we're able to sneak out of here with the win.”

Dylan Guenther scored for his first 40-goal season in the NHL, and Karel Vejmelka made 26 saves for the Mammoth (42-31-6), whose five-game winning streak ended.

“It feels good. Definitely something that I was eyeing down the stretch,” said Guenther. “So really great play by those guys again (Clayton Keller and Mikhail Sergachev). And it's definitely nice to hit over the course of this game.”

Utah, which has clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, is three points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings for the first wild card from the Western Conference.

“There were some moments of frustration at some points where we needed to stay even-keeled,” said Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny. “They are a pretty tight checking team. I liked the way that we progressed in the game of playing against that style. … I like the way we generated in the second half of the game. Generate that way, and that was positive. So there's a few takeaways.”

Svechnikov gave Carolina a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 4:25 of the first period, collecting a rebound in front of the net and lifting a backhanded shot past Vejmelka to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead. He set an NHL career high with his 31st goal of the season.

Staal scored at 13:23, firing a one-timer past the glove of Vejmelka off a pass from Ehlers to extend the lead to 2-0.

“His game hasn’t changed at all,” said Brind’Amour. “We're playing him a little more and obviously, I think you add (Ehlers) to his wing, that makes a big difference, too. That line now has a different dynamic. It's obviously paying dividends.”

Keller looked to have scored at 16:19, flipping a backhanded shot past Andersen. The Hurricanes challenged, and video review determined that the Mammoth were offside prior to the goal.

Guenther scored a power-play goal at 2:42 of the third period on a one-timer past the blocker of Andersen from a pass by Keller to cut the lead to 2-1.

“I think we didn't necessarily do all the right things tonight,” said Guenther. “When we do the right things, they're one of the best teams in the League. And I thought that we outplayed them for bits and parts of the second. And if we do that, I think we'll be in a good spot.”

Aho scored at 15:31, tipping in a shot from Shayne Gostisbehere to give the Hurricanes a 3-1 lead.

Walker added an empty net goal at 19:38 for the 4-1 final.

“Everyone, just kind of came in ready to play,” said Andersen. “Some new guys got some opportunities to show what they’ve got, and I thought they've been doing really well. It's been really fun to see. … It sometimes can be a little bit tricky for the guys, but I think we handled it well.”

NOTES: Forwards Logan Stankoven, William Carrier, Jackson Blake, Taylor Hall and Mark Jankowski, and defensemen Jalen Chatfield and K'Andre Miller were all scratched for Carolina for undisclosed reasons. …  Mammoth defenseman John Marino was scratched and is listed as day to day with an upper-body injury. No update was given on his status after the game. … Guenther (13 points; six goals, seven assists), Keller (16 points; four goals, 12 assists), and Sergachev (12 points; 12 assists) all extended their point streaks to seven games for Utah.