Even though he was still a week away from getting drafted into the NHL when Carolina won its lone Stanley Cup in 2006, Jordan Staal seems to know what it will take for the Hurricanes to capture the championship again.
“It’s every single shift,” the Carolina captain said. “There can’t be a single breath when you’re on the ice. It’s every little play. It’s what we’ve been doing this whole playoff run and the guys understand that. We’re going to reinforce that again and again. As we play the game, we’re going to keep reinforcing it.”
Staal helped move the Hurricanes within one victory of raising the Stanley Cup when he scored for the fifth straight game as Carolina earned a 4-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 on Thursday in Raleigh, N.C.
The Hurricanes own a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series and will try to clinch the title in Game 6 on Sunday in Las Vegas.
“The fourth (victory) is always the toughest, and we’ve got to find a way,” Staal said of Game 6.
Andrei Svechnikov scored two power-play goals and Sebastian Aho also tallied for the Hurricanes, who netted four consecutive goals after giving up the first of the night. Carolina’s Nikolaj Ehlers had three assists, Shayne Gostisbehere contributed two assists, and goalie Brandon Bussi made 23 saves in his second straight start.
“We’ve got one more in us,” Svechnikov said.
Pavel Dorofeyev scored two goals, Jack Eichel logged two assists and Carter Hart made 20 saves for the Golden Knights, who have lost two in a row after taking a 2-1 series lead.
“We’re just going to get ready for our next game,” Vegas coach John Tortorella said. “We’ll be back here (in Raleigh for Game 7 on Wednesday). We’re just going to do it in a different order. We’ve got to find a way. I’m going to leave my clothes here. That’s for sure. They’ll be in the hotel.”
The Golden Knights scored on the first power play of the game after Ehlers sent the puck over the glass for a delay-of-game penalty.
Eichel drove through the right circle on a zone entry and centered a pass to an unmarked Dorofeyev racing through the left circle. Dorofeyev chipped the puck into the net from in close for a 1-0 lead at 6:52 of the first period.
Staal scored for the fifth straight game when he redirected a shot pass from Ehlers over the outstretched left pad of Hart to tie it 1-1 at 11:46 of the first.
Staal is the first player to score in the first five games of the Stanley Cup Final since Hall of Famer Jean Beliveau did so for the 1956 Montreal Canadiens.
One second after Vegas killed a second-period roughing penalty on Jeremy Lauzon, Carolina went back on the power play following a cross-checking penalty on Brayden McNabb.
After receiving a pass above the right circle from Gostisbehere while on the man advantage, Svechnikov spun and fired the puck into the far side of the net to give the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead at 11:58 of the second.
Aho made it 3-1 at 17:51 of the second. He used his skate to stop a diagonal pass from Sean Walker at the bottom of the left circle, then fired the puck over Hart’s right shoulder and into the net.
Golden Knights forward Mark Stone was called for a double-minor high-sticking penalty on Jalen Chatfield at 8:38 of the third period, and Svechnikov scored on the second penalty off a feed from Ehlers to make it 4-1 at 11:08.
Dorofeyev got to a rebound in the crease and scored his second goal of the game to pull Vegas within 4-2 at 13:49.
Ehlers sent the puck over the glass for another delay-of-game penalty with 2:13 left and Vegas pulled Hart for a 6-on-4, but Carolina withstood the pressure.
“It’s going to be hard,” Svechnikov said of the looming Game 6. “That’s the hardest trophy to win, and we’ve just got to play our game, keep the pressure on and hopefully we’re going to keep the momentum.”
Vegas forward William Karlsson left with an apparent left arm injury midway through the second period and did not return. Karlsson likely will not be available the rest of the series, Tortorella said.
–Field Level Media
