In Raleigh, Sebastian Aho hit for a hat trick on Friday night including one goal off the power play, and the Hurricanes downed the Buffalo Sabres, 5-3.
“I’m not going to lie, it felt good to get the hat trick,” Aho said. “[Martin Necas, Andrei Svechnikov and Jesperi Kotkaniemi] have been bailing our line more this season than us to them. It’s kind of nice to return the favor there.”
Antti Raanta made 22 saves in the Canes win.
Carolina improved to 6-2-1.
“We’re a confident group, that’s for sure,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “What I see is just consistency with [Aho’s] play. Every night is pretty much the same. Elite players, that’s how they go. Every night, if they’re not your top guy, you notice them and they’re impactful.”
Buffalo took the lead just 28 seconds into the first period when Jacob Bryson put home the go-ahead marker.
Aho tied it up, 1-1, but Victor Olofsson scored to give the Sabres the lead, 2-1.
“We weren’t as sharp tonight, and I would say there were a handful of guys that didn’t look like themself,” Buffalo coach Don Granato said. “It happens. They tried to fight through. I don’t question their compete, I don’t question their effort.”
Aho’s second goal of the first period tied it, 2-2, on the power play.
In the middle frame, Martin Necas put the Canes up for good with a marker and 3-2 lead.
“It wasn’t easy but, obviously, we scored a goal pretty early there and got the confidence going,” Aho said. “My line was pretty good today, so it definitely helped me.”
In the third, Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored for a 5-2 advantage to the Canes.
“Everybody knows what kind of player he is,” Necas said. “Great shot by him, great pass. His pass was a little nicer [than mine].”
Aho completed his hat trick for a 5-2 lead.
“They had us on the ropes there early. We were clearly not ready to go at that pace,” Brind’Amour said. “Because we had a couple high-end plays, we were able to kind of toss that period out. It didn’t kill us.”
Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin hit for a power play goal whit one second left on the penalty for the 5-3 final.
“Their skill players took advantage of some situations they got in,” Granato said. “Some of our younger guys that are gaining experience as they go, they’ll have to take a look at film. These are the games you want to play against top players in a building like this. You’ll learn from mistakes.”
Buffalo dropped to 7-4-0.
Craig Anderson made 28 saves. in the Sabres loss.
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