LDN - Sports

Penguins blast Hurricanes, 7-1

[January 21, 2017] RALEIGH, N.C. -- It's not just the quantity of goals recently for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

It's the timing, too.

Conor Sheary scored twice and the Penguins produced their second huge offensive output of the week in a 7-1 romp past the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night at PNC Arena.

"We've been pretty opportunistic," Sheary said. "We're getting goals at key times of games to get momentum."

This time, the Penguins never gave it back.

"Obviously, we're pleased," Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. "The first 10 minutes I thought Carolina really pressed and then we played really well."

Trevor Daley, Carl Hagelin, Chris Kunitz, Phil Kessel and Evgeni Malkin also scored as the Penguins (29-11-5) won back-to-back road games for the first time since Dec. 8 and 10.

The Penguins reached the seven-goal level in five games this season, though this was the first time on the road.

"We limited chances and we've played well offensively," said Sheary, who has seven goals in an eight-game stretch. "When we started playing in their end, that got us going."

Penguins goalie Matthew Murray made 27 saves and took a shutout into the third period.

Pittsburgh, which has a three-game winning streak, won 8-7 on Monday over the Washington Capitals at home before a 4-1 road victory over Montreal on Wednesday night.

Carolina goalie Cam Ward, who made his 21st consecutive start, had three rebounds pushed between his pads. He finished with 34 saves.

Viktor Stalberg scored a short-handed goal with 12:51 remaining with the Hurricanes trailing 6-0.

"The team that worked the hardest won the game," Carolina coach Bill Peters said.

The Hurricanes (21-17-7) went pointless in consecutive games for only the second time since late November. This result came at the start of a weekend that includes the fathers of Carolina players making the trip for Saturday's game to Columbus.

It was only the team's second regulation loss in the last 17 home games (14-2-1).

"We made our players well aware of how well they're playing at home," Sullivan said.

The Penguins went into attack mode for a 5-0 lead after two periods.

A wild first period that included 25 total shots ended up with Pittsburgh holding a 1-0 lead.

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Daley intercepted Carolina defenseman Teuvo Teravainen's clearing attempt, gloving the puck above his head near the blue line, then dropping it and, after a couple of strides, launching a shot. The maneuver resulted in his first goal since Dec. 12.

"(This game) was a grind," Peters said. "We probably started OK, but then it was a grind after that."

It nearly became 2-0 with 4:10 remaining in the opening period when Patric Hornqvist converted, but the goal was waved off. After an extensive video review, it was determined the net had been dislodged and the goal was disallowed.

Pittsburgh's first second-period goal came from Hagelin, who collected Cameron Gaunce's rebound and put the puck between Ward's pads. It was Hagelin's first goal in eight games, delighting thousands of Penguins fans in the visiting building.

There was more to come.

Sheary and Kunitz scored within an 18-second span, with each goal on rebounds with the shots delivered between Ward's pads.

Kessel scored on a power play with Jeff Skinner in the penalty box for unsportsmanlike conduct.

"It's tough to take a penalty like that," Skinner said. "That's what I got. I hurt the team because they scored on a power play."

NOTES: This was the second of four meetings between the teams this season. ... Carolina, which was averaging a league-low six penalty minutes per game, wasn't called for a penalty in last month's meeting at Pittsburgh. ... Penguins C Matt Cullen, a former Carolina player, missed the second game of what might be a monthlong absence with a foot injury. ... G Michael Leighton returned to the backup role for the Hurricanes after a recent assignment to Charlotte of the American Hockey League. G Alex Nedeljkovic, who made his NHL debut in relief of G Cam Ward on Tuesday night, was sent back to the Checkers. ... The Hurricanes play Saturday at Columbus in their second visit there in less than a week. ... The Penguins are back in action Sunday at home against the Boston Bruins.

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