Another NHL playoff game, another Hurricanes win as historic run continues

Chip Alexander, The News & Observer on May 7, 2026

Published in Hockey

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The Carolina Hurricanes keep on winning playoff games.

The Canes made it seven straight Thursday, taking a 4-1 victory over the host Philadelphia Flyers in Game 3 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series.

The Hurricanes, who swept the Ottawa Senators in four games to start the playoffs, will look to close out the Flyers in Game 4 on Saturday at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.

Goaltender Frederik Andersen continued his torrid run for the Canes, winning for the seventh time, and special teams were the difference, as they often are in the playoffs.

Canes captain Jordan Staal had a power-play goal in the first period for a 1-0 lead, and winger Andrei Svechnikov scored a 4-on-3 power-play goal in the third — his first of the playoffs. Then there was defenseman Jalen Chatfield, whose short-handed goal in the second period pushed the Canes in front 2-1 and was the winning goal.

Chatfield became the third defenseman in franchise history to score shorthanded in the playoffs. The other two: Brendan Smith in 2022, and Mike Commodore in the 2006 run to the Stanley Cup.

The Canes, protecting a one-goal lead late in the second period, killed off a 5-on-3 power play by the Flyers, allowing one shot. The Flyers were 0 for 5 on the power play in the game.

Winger Nikolaj Ehlers made it a 4-1 Canes lead with an even-strength goal seven minutes into the third, quieting the arena.

Trevor Zegras had the Flyers’ goal in the second period, tying the score 1-1.

The Flyers again played without injured forward Owen Tippett and will be without injured Noah Cates the remainder of the series. The Hurricanes, in turn, had defenseman Alexander Nikishin return to the lineup after his concussion in Game 4 against Ottawa.

There was some chippiness that surfaced late in the second period, and the Canes ended up with the best of it.

Taylor Hall began it with a hit on Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim along the boards that left Sanheim down on the ice. It was first called a five-minute major penalty, but after a lengthy review reduced to a two-minute boarding call.

The Flyers went to the power play, but it took the Canes 11 seconds to strike shorthanded as Chatfield took a pass from Staal and scored his first of the playoffs for the 2-1 lead with 4:01 left in the period.

The power play continued and soon was a 5-on-3. When the Canes’ Seth Jarvis was called for high-sticking and the Flyers’ Jamie Drysdale for holding, Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour was highly animated on the bench and picked up an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

The Zegras goal came after a fortunate bounce for the Flyers. Emil Andrae’s shot hit a body in front of the crease, the puck bouncing to Zegras to Andersen’s left and the net open.

The Canes played a solid first period punctuated by Staal’s power-play goal. Staal collected the carom of an Andrei Svechnikov shot, the puck bouncing hard off the end boards, to jam the puck past Vladar.

The Flyers, playing on home ice, had plenty of jump and every chance to score the first goal and take an early lead.

Porter Martone hit the post. Martone then set up Alex Bump on a two-on-none play that had everyone sensing a score, but Andersen anticipated the Martone pass and moved quickly to his left to stop the Bump shot.

Andersen got a big assist from Jaccob Slavin late in the period — the defenseman with another alert play and quick stick as he scooped the puck off the line behind Andersen.