Stefan Noesen seized control of a loose puck near the goalie’s net and nudged it past Semyon Varlamov early in the third period, helping the Carolina Hurricanes secure a 3-1 victory over the New York Islanders on Saturday in the opening game of their NHL playoff series.
The second game of this best-of-seven first-round series is scheduled for Monday night.
Noesen’s crucial goal, scored at 3:44 of the period, finally gave Carolina the lead, followed by Martin Necas’ empty-net goal from long range with 1:32 remaining.
These goals capped a hard-fought game for the Hurricanes, who relied on several key saves from Frederik Andersen to maintain their lead at home.
Andersen ended the game with 34 saves, facing consistent pressure from the Islanders, who outshot the Hurricanes by nine.
His saves included a remarkable one in the middle of the third period, where he fell backward after the puck hit the post and then made a glove save on Noah Dobson’s close-range shot while nearly seated in the crease.
Evgeny Kuznetsov also contributed to Carolina’s victory by scoring a power-play goal just 95 seconds into his playoff debut with the team.
