Stankoven scores again, Hurricanes complete 4-game sweep of Senators

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Logan Stankoven scored the go-ahead goal in the third period as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated Ottawa 4-2 to sweep the first-round series.

Taylor Hall added a goal and an assist before Sebastian Aho buried two pucks into the empty net. Frederik Andersen made 25 saves. Seth Jarvis chipped in two assists.

“Whatever way the game goes, our group can handle it,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “I love just the compete level of our group from Game 1 — all the way through. Pretty impressive.”

Drake Batherson, with a goal and an assist, and Dylan Cozens replied for the Senators, who never led against the Hurricanes. Linus Ullmark stopped 26 shots. Rookie defenseman Carter Yakemchuk added two assists in his playoff debut.

“We battled against a good team,” said Batherson, who finished with three of his team’s five goals in four games. “On paper it’s 4-0, but it felt like it was a lot closer.”

Of the 213 NHL teams to fall behind 3-0 in a seven-game series, just four have come all the way back to win — the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1980 New York Islanders, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers and 2014 Los Angeles Kings.

Ottawa also trailed last spring’s first-round matchup with Toronto 3-0 after seven years outside the postseason tournament before eventually falling in six games.

“Really tight series,” said Brady Tkachuk, who finished without a point against the Hurricanes. “They’re a great team, play hard, don’t give you much.”

Stankoven scored his fourth goal in as many games at 9:10 of the final period on a power play off a rebound from the end boards.

Batherson came close to equalizing again with six minutes to go before Carolina was whistled for too many men. But Ottawa’s anemic power play again couldn’t generate any quality looks against a high-pressure penalty kill.

Aho scored into the empty net before Cozens made it 3-2 with 1:49 left on the clock. Aho then sealed the series for good with another empty netter.

Carolina opened the scoring in a physical, nasty second period when Hall beat Ullmark five-hole at 15:15 after Mark Jankowski made a big shot block at the other end.

Ottawa’s power play — 0-for-12 in the series entering play and without much going Saturday — finally broke through when Batherson tipped a Tim Stutzle one-timer.

Emotions boiled over earlier in the period after Senators defenseman Tyler Kleven crushed Hurricanes counterpart Alexander Nikishin with a huge hit that left the Russian dazed and needing help off the ice.

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