By MATTHEW COLES Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Jordan Staal scored and reached 20 goals in a season for the first time in a decade, and the Carolina Hurricanes killed four of five penalties in a 4-1 win over the Utah Mammoth on Saturday for their sixth win in seven games.
Andrei Svechnikov, Sean Walker and Sebastian Aho also scored for Metropolitan Division champion Carolina. Frederik Andersen made 26 saves. Shayne Gostisbehere and Nikolaj Ehlers had two assists apiece.
Aho returned to the lineup after sitting against Chicago on Thursday.
The Hurricanes are within one point of securing the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Any loss by Buffalo or any point earned by Carolina will clinch it.
Utah’s Dylan Guenther scored his 40th goal of the season and Karel Vejmelka stopped 26 shots for Utah, which had won five straight and scored at least four goals in six consecutive games.
After the Hurricanes killed the first three penalties, Guenther scored from a tough angle at 2:42 in the third period.
The Hurricanes scored first, 4:25 into the game, when Svechnikov scored on a power play. It was Svechnikov’s 31st of the season, a career high, and also gives him a new high in points with 70.
Staal, Carolina’s captain, scored his 20th goal on a wrist shot from the slot with 6:37 left in the first period. Now, seven Hurricanes have 20 goals this season. Staal hasn’t found the net this often since the 2015-16 season. Staal also tallied 23 faceoff wins — the most for a player in the NHL this season.
The Mammoth clinched their first ‘official’ playoff berth with a 4-1 win over Nashville on Thursday night. In their second season in Utah, they did it with a foundation of players who moved with the team from Arizona.
Carolina is 37-2-2 when it has the lead after two periods.
Up next
Hurricanes: Visit Philadelphia on Sunday for the third of a four-game trip to end the season.
Mammoth: Visit Calgary on Sunday for their final road game.