For the last time during the 2024-25 regular season, the Carolina Hurricanes played the Vancouver Canucks after defeating them 4-3 in overtime back on Oct. 18 in Vancouver, Canada. This time, it was back home in the familiar confines of Lenovo Center in the City of Oaks, Raleigh, NC. The Canucks were looking to even the two-game season set while the Hurricanes looked for the sweep. As the final horn sounded, the Hurricanes defeated the Canucks with a 2-0 win.
Game Recap
The first period saw the Hurricanes take the lead over 14 minutes into the game, as once again Jordan Staal scored for the home side. It was his fifth goal in five periods and his seventh point in three games. The Canucks tried to clear but couldn’t and Dmitry Orlov got the puck by the blue line and shot it on the net. Thatcher Demko for the Canucks got the initial save, but the rebound went out to Staal in the between the circles, and he was able to get it past Demko to put Carolina up 1-0. This week, his scoring touch has gone up a notch to kick off January. The Hurricanes outshot the Canucks 7-5 in the first 20 minutes of play.
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The second period saw a quicker goal for the Hurricanes as Andrei Svechnikov added his name to the scoresheet. Just 1:37 into the period, Staal got the puck to Svechnikov behind the Canucks’ net, he circled the net and with some great edge work got to the goal. He then did the NHL equivalent of an NBA dunk as he scored between three defenders and Demko right in front of him. It gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead early in the middle frame. The shots were even at five each in the second period, but the Hurricanes led the Canucks 12-10 after 40 minutes. Staal’s assist on the Svechnikov goal put him two points away from 700 NHL points in his career.
The third period saw very few shots as both teams blocked a plethora of attempts. Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis at one point had three chances to make it a 3-0 game for the Hurricanes but no dice as Demko stood tall. On the other side of the ice, if any pucks did get on the Hurricanes’ net, Dustin Tokarski was ready for it. Despite not seeing many shots all game, he found a way to stay dialed in right from puck drop.
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As the game ended, the Hurricanes were able to sweep the Canucks in the two-game season set after a 14-save performance from Tokarski. That was the third NHL shutout of his career. Carolina outshot Vancouver 20-14 after 60 minutes of hockey to claim their 26th win of the season.
All Eyes on Sunday
All eyes for Hurricanes fans (26-15-2) will turn to Sunday, Jan. 12, when they will honor former captain and Stanley Cup winner Eric Staal at his jersey retirement ceremony against the Anaheim Ducks (17-19-5). The puck drop is set for 5 p.m. Eastern following the jersey retirement ceremonies. Regarding the Canucks (18-13-10), they travel to Toronto to take on the Maple Leafs (27-14-2) for their second half of a back-to-back on Saturday, Jan. 11. That game is set to start at 7 p.m. Eastern.
