RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Mikko Rantanen had a goal and an assist and the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Thursday night.
Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Taylor Hall and Seth Jarvis also scored for Carolina, which had lost its first two games after the league break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Pyotr Kochetkov made 14 saves.
Alex Tuch and JJ Peterka scored for Buffalo but it was a quick night for goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who gave up two goals in the first eight minutes and was replaced by backup James Reimer, who finished with 26 saves.
Rantanen set up Aho at 7:57 to give Carolina a 2-0 lead in the first period. Rantanen then scored on a power-play goal at 9:41 in the first for his first multipoint game with Carolina.
The Hurricanes led 3-0 and had a 17-3 shot advantage before Tuch scored with 56 seconds left in the first period. Peterka’s goal early in the third cut Carolina’s lead to 4-2.
Takeaways
Sabres: Buffalo had been trending up with wins in six of its previous seven games. A slow start cost them on Thursday with Luukkonen getting chased early and the Hurricanes playing with the urgency of a playoff team. Tuch has 10 points (five goals) in his past eight games.
Hurricanes: Hall, a former Hart Trophy winner, has been overshadowed by the Rantanen portion of the three-team trade with Colorado and Chicago on Jan. 25, but he scored his first goal in nine games with Carolina.
Key moment
Jesperi Kotkaniemi wasted no time trying to add some energy to the Hurricanes’ first home game since Feb. 8 by fighting with Dylan Cozens after the opening puck drop.
Key stat
The Hurricanes improved to 6-0-3 when wearing throwback Hartford Whalers uniforms. Aho leads the team with 11 points, on eight goals, in the retro uniforms.
Up Next
On Saturday night, the Sabres host Montreal while the Hurricanes host Edmonton.
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