RALEIGH, North Carolina (AP) Finnish winger Sebastian Aho seems to be coming along nicely in his rookie season with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Aho scored his second goal of the game 1:34 into overtime to lift Carolina to a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins in the NHL on Sunday.
It was the second two-goal game of the season for the slender second-round pick from the 2015 draft, who has been a key reason Carolina has been so dominant (12-4-1) at home this season.
”He’s a good player and a smart player,” Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said. ”He’s had a steady progression in his development. Hanging onto pucks, making plays. It would be nice if he became a little more selfish, took it to the net more and looked to be a shooter. But he’s a 19-year-old kid and his progression is right where you expect it. And he’s responsible defensively. He doesn’t have to cheat to generate offense, and he’s got pride away from the puck.”
Derek Ryan and Jay McClement also scored for the Hurricanes, and Cam Ward finished with 32 saves. Carolina won two of the three meetings between the teams, with all three going beyond regulation.
Tim Schallar, David Backes and Brad Marchand scored for Boston and Zane McIntyre stopped 26 shots in his first career appearance against Carolina.
Marchand tied the score at 7:43 of the third period as he beat Ward through traffic on an assist from Patrice Bergeron. That came just 23 seconds after McClement had given the Hurricanes a 3-2 lead, taking a pass from Viktor Stalberg from behind the goal line and flicking it around McIntyre.
Boston led 1-0 after the first despite being outshot 13-8. Schaller put the Bruins ahead on a spin move from the right of the crease with 6:50 left.
Aho tied it from the doorstep at 2:57 of the second, redirecting a blast from Jaccob Slavin up and over McIntyre as Aho and defenseman Brandon Carlo tangled in the crease. The Bruins challenged for goaltender interference on the play, but the goal stood.
”I just tried to be patient with the puck and get it to go in,” said Aho, who has 10 goals and 13 assists and is a plus-6 on the season. ”Sometimes you need to score dirty ones in the NHL. But it’s always fun to score.”
Ryan then put the Hurricanes ahead with 5:32 left in the second, beating McIntyre glove side on a rush with Jordan Staal on the helper.
Backes tied it 2-2 at 5:49 of the third, following a shot from Kevan Miller into an open glove side of the net.
Fellow Finn Teuvo Teravainen had his 12th assist of the season on Aho’s game-winner, which lifted Ward to 15-12-6.
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