Carolina Hurricanes off to best start in franchise history after five-goal effort

Tommy McArdle

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Carolina Hurricanes off to best start in franchise history after five-goal effort image

The Carolina Hurricanes can lay claim to the top spot in the NHL after their 5-2 victory over the New York Islanders on Friday night. They lead the league with 10 points thanks to a 5-0-0 start.

This is the first time in franchise history the team has won the first five games of its season — the previous season-opening win streak was set in 1995-96, when the team played in Hartford as the Whalers.

The hot start represents further improvement on the Hurricanes' late-season success in 2018-19. The team made the playoffs for the first time in a decade and introduced a widely popular postgame celebration.

Here's a breakdown of all five of Carolina's goals against the Islanders that earned — for the moment — the franchise's place atop the league:

First goal: Teuvo Teravainen

The Hurricanes scored the game's first goal Friday when Teravainen and Dougie Hamilton charged down the ice in a two-on-one. When Islanders defender Ryan Pulock went down on all fours to block a pass across the crease, Hamilton went around him and slipped the puck to No. 86, who tapped it in.

Second goal: Brett Pesce

Pesce managed to get off a shot in tight space after a set-up pass by Andrei Svechnikov, and the puck slipped through Islanders goalie Thomas Greiss' pads.

Third goal: Erik Haula

Haula, who joined the Hurricanes from Vegas in the offseason, skated directly at Greiss from a bad angle and then shifted to his left, catching defenseman Adam Pelech off-guard. Haula found room to snap the puck home for his fourth goal of the season.

Fourth goal: Dougie Hamilton

Hamilton tied a franchise record with his slap shot through traffic at the end of the second period. With three goals and four assists thus far, No. 19 matched Mark Howe and Risto Siltanen for most points by a Whalers/Hurricanes blueliner through the season's first five games.

Fifth goal: Andrei Svechnikov

Nothing too fancy here: The 19-year-old Svechnikov picked up the puck after a defensive zone faceoff, carried it down the ice and put it into an empty net to seal the victory.

Of course, no Hurricanes home win would be complete without the celebratory "Storm Surge," which Haula led Friday:

The Hurricanes next play Oct. 12 against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Tommy McArdle