New York. Frank Vatrano was the star of the night in the NHL.
He completed the hat-trick as Anaheim overcame Carolina with a 6-3 victory.
– It feels great, says the 29-year-old American.
The Southern California Ducks are expected to be in last place again this year, while the Carolina Hurricanes are one of the big Stanley Cup favorites, so the outcome of the encounter at Honda Center last night should have been a foregone conclusion.
but not.
Unlike its rivals, Anaheim was on the back foot from the start, already leading 3-0 in the first half and finally winning 6-3 – after two late goals into an empty net.
1/2Photograph: Jay C Hong/AP
The final goal was scored by Frank Vatrano, completing a hat-trick.
– Of course, it feels great to be able to score three goals, he tells a local TV channel.
– But the important thing is that we won the first match at home in front of these loud fans.
The win was also the first for new coach Greg Cronin.
The Hurricanes looked tough, at least until the shot in the second, and yesterday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings was probably still on the ropes.
On the other hand, it was called running back for the Ducks too…
Finn Teuvo Teräväinen is a real bond with money.
Swedish pick Leo Karlsson has not played for Anaheim, is still suffering from a minor injury and is not expected to make his debut until later this week.
In Ottawa, the Senators earned their second win in as many days, defeating Tampa 5-2.
Brady Tkachuk scored twice and Vladimir Tarasenko scored his first goal for the new club.
– These were two games when we played as we should, says Tkachuk.
– We want other teams to know that we are ready now, we have taken the next step and we are coming after them.
The Lightning, who also lost to Detroit last Saturday, are certainly on their toes right now — especially after a first period in which they gave up shots 17-3.
Then it was goalkeeper Matt Tomkins – a substitute for Jonas Johansson – who kept the visitors in the game.
-Both our goalkeepers were great. “We just need more attacking production and at the same time we need to make sure we don’t miss too many chances,” says coach John Cooper.
Victor Hedman — one of Tampa’s few veterans who looked really good during the start of the series — got another assist and leads the running backs in scoring just under a week later.