Kreider's 3rd-period hat trick lifts Rangers into Eastern Conference Final with win over Hurricanes
Chris Kreider had a third-period hat trick to help the New York Rangers erase a two-goal deficit and beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 to close out the second-round playoff series in six games and advance to the Eastern Conference Final.
Hurricanes score 4 in third period, rally to beat Rangers 4-1 in Game 5 to avoid elimination
Jordan Staal and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 3:06 apart in the third period, and the Carolina Hurricanes got four goals in the third period for a 4-1 win over the New York Rangers in Game 5, staving off elimination for the second straight game.
Andersen, Noesen help Hurricanes push past Islanders 3-1 to open 1st-round NHL playoff series
Stefan Noesen grabbed a loose puck atop the crease and pushed it past Semyon Varlamov early in the third period to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders 3-1 to open their NHL playoff series.
![Staal, Niederreiter lift Hurricanes past Predators 5-2](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/WhRrJcS4_OYLZE4tCRwM1966zns=/800x533/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65):fill(FFF)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/DDZL6O2WCRE5VIK4RB36FK6HRU.jpg)
Staal, Niederreiter lift Hurricanes past Predators 5-2
Jordan Staal scored twice and Nino Niederreiter beat Juuse Saros for the go-ahead goal early in the third period, helping the Carolina Hurricanes to a 5-2 win over the Nashville Predators in the first game of the teams' first-round playoff series.
![Necas lifts returning Hurricanes past Lightning 1-0 in OT](https://www.ksat.com/resizer/TJFAfpi0QEnhBY55Gf0nmJztYX0=/1600x1066/smart/filters:format(jpeg):strip_exif(true):strip_icc(true):no_upscale(true):quality(65)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gmg/MHP4UHNZAVE6LLKEJPZETT6RFI.jpg)
Necas lifts returning Hurricanes past Lightning 1-0 in OT
The Carolina Hurricanes take the opening faceoff against the Tampa Bay Lightning in an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)RALEIGH, N.C. โ Martin Necas beat Andrei Vasilevskiy at 1:12 of overtime and Carolina beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 1-0 on Thursday night in the Hurricanes' return from a pause due to COVID-19 concerns. Necas scored off a perfect feed from Jordan Staal on the left side, charging in to put the puck past Vasilevskiy's attempted save. Tampa Bay goaltender Curtis McElhinney remained the only Lightning player on Thursday's list. UP NEXTLightning: Tampa Bay visits Nashville on Saturday to start a two-game set.