As Martin Necas returned to the Carolina Hurricanes bench, he playfully brushed something off his back, signaling the end of his scoring slump.
“That was just how I felt in the moment,” Necas explained.
Necas broke an 18-game goal drought with a crucial score, helping the Hurricanes secure a 3-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Sunday night.
“I tried not to think about how long it had been since my last goal,” Necas said. “I’ve never gone that long without scoring in my career.”
Necas hadn’t found the back of the net since January 15. He capitalized on a loose puck near the crease, falling away as he fired in his ninth season goal.
“I just saw my teammates celebrating,” Necas said. “I didn’t even see the puck go in.”
With this goal, Necas is now tied for the team lead with five game-winning goals, ending the longest scoring slump of his NHL career, which spans parts of five seasons.
“If you’re going to break a slump, that’s the kind of goal you want,” said Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour.
Nino Niederreiter and Teuvo Teravainen added power-play goals in the second period for the Hurricanes, who extended their home-ice points streak to 11 games. Antti Raanta made 28 saves in the win.
Necas’ goal stood out not just for its timing but also for the player who scored it.
“We need everyone contributing and feeling good,” Teravainen said.
Alex Wennberg and Calle Jarnkrok scored for Seattle, but they are now losing back-to-back games to start a five-game road trip. Philipp Grubauer made 30 saves but suffered his eighth consecutive loss (0-7-1).
The Kraken have now lost nine of their last 10 games (1-8-1).
“There’s a lot of positives, but we’re not getting the results we want,” Wennberg said. “I felt like we had momentum and were pushing.”
Wennberg opened the scoring 3:12 into the second period with Seattle’s first power-play goal in eight games. Niederreiter equalized for the Hurricanes about four minutes later.
Seattle regained the lead just 66 seconds later when Jarnkrok capitalized on a Carolina turnover for his second goal in three games.
Teravainen tied the game again with 2:38 left in the second period, scoring just four seconds into a power play.
Seattle has allowed a goal on four of its last five penalty kills over the past two games.
“We’ve got to win the special teams battles,” Wennberg said. “That’s what it came down to.”
Despite their efforts, the Kraken managed only nine shots in the third period.
“When we took the lead, I think we played pretty smart,” Raanta said.
MILESTONES AND INJURIES
Teuvo Teravainen, Carolina’s left wing, played in his 500th NHL game, with the last 385 games being with the Hurricanes.
“Of course, reaching 500 games is pretty cool,” he said. “Hopefully, I can play many more.”
On the Kraken side, defenseman Mark Giordano was back on the ice just one night after playing his 1,000th NHL game in Washington.
ANDERSEN SIDELINED
Carolina’s top goalie, Frederik Andersen, was a late scratch due to a day-to-day injury. Alex Lyon was called up from the AHL to serve as the backup.
Andersen, who leads the NHL in wins, has been less active recently, only appearing in one of the last four games. He holds a 29-8-2 record this season. Raanta made consecutive starts for just the third time this season.
UP NEXT
- Kraken: Visit Toronto on Tuesday night.
- Hurricanes: Host Colorado on Thursday night.
