Recap: Canes One Win From The Cup After Game 5 Victory - NHL.com

Staal extends historic goal streak; Bussi stops 23 for second win in as many starts © Josh Lavallee/Carolina Hurricanes RALEIGH, N.C. - Highlighted by a pair of goals from Andrei Svechnikov and a three-assist showing from Nikolaj Ehlers, the Carolina Hurricanes toppled the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 on Thursday to take a 3-2 series lead in the 2026 Stanley Cup Final. GAME SUMMARY | BOX SCORE | BUY PLAYOFF TICKETS | PLAYOFF HUB An early delay-of-game penalty cost the Canes as Vegas took the first lead at 6:52, but the hosts remained unfazed. Just under five minutes later, Jordan Staal found twine for the fifth straight game, deflecting Ehlers' feed from the blue line to send the teams to intermission deadlocked at one. Second periods had been a struggle for the Canes in recent games, but with the game hanging in the balance as it rounded the midway mark, two of their top dogs stepped up to flip the script. First, it was Svechnikov electrifying the Raleigh faithful with a power-play snipe through the legs of Carter Hart at 11:58. Six minutes later, it was Sebastian Aho's turn. Taking a Sean Walker seam pass off his skate, Aho quickly worked the puck to his stick for a top-shelf finish at the side of the net. Svechnikov's man-advantage magic came through again in the third period, after a scintillating setup from Ehlers in the high slot left him all alone for a tap-in and Carolina's largest lead of the night. Vegas' Pavel Dorofeyev tucked home his second of the contest to cut that advantage back to two shortly after Svechnikov's double, but Brandon Bussi and Co. kept their opponent off the scoreboard the rest of the way. Notching his second career playoff win in as many starts, Bussi finished with 23 saves on 25 shots. Come for Nikolaj Ehlers' spinning setup, stay for Andrei Svechnikov's second goal of the night! 😁 pic.twitter.com/g3S4qI6yjk "I didn't think we had a great first period, that's for sure. But then we kind of got our game going. I didn't like a lot of the stuff we were doing at times, but I think Bus had a lot of poise. He looked pretty calm in there and obviously played a great game for us." Nikolaj Ehlers discussing the two-goal second period, after Vegas had dominated second periods thus far this series... "Our second periods up until today have been not good. Obviously, there were some things that we needed to change. I think today we were able to play a little more simple, making sure pucks were getting deep, and making sure we don't just change without looking behind you. I think that worked out pretty well." Andrei Svechnikov after scoring two power play goals... "I think we got to the simple things. The shooting mentality. Staalsy, the big horse just tipping pucks. We had a shooting mentality, looking for rebounds. I think we've got the chemistry going on." Jordan Staal when asked about another goal-scoring performance... “It feels great. It’s a good time to get hot. I’m trying to contribute any way I can and just win games. The puck’s been going in, and I’ll continue doing all the things I have to do to help win games.” Brandon Bussi following a second win in as many starts... "We like our game right now. It's fun to be a part of. We work hard, we sacrifice, we care about the guy next to each other. a good win tonight for us. We'll enjoy tonight, and tomorrow we move on to Game 6." Sean Walker on being one win away from the Stanley Cup... "It's pretty crazy. But, it's one win away. We'll just go into Vegas with the same mindset that we've had all playoffs, play our game, and hopefully get the result we want." "It's been a lot of fun." 🙂Brandon Bussi speaks with the media following his second win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs pic.twitter.com/qAObjwrnpQ The Canes are scheduled to travel on Saturday ahead of Sunday's Game 6 in Vegas. Next Game: Sunday, June 14 | SCF, Game 6 at Vegas | 8:00 p.m. ET | How To Watch | Watch Parties Next Home Game (if necessary): Wednesday, June 17 | SCF, Game 7 vs. Vegas | 8:00 p.m. ET | How To Watch | Tickets | Parking Lenovo x CanesLenovo is the official technology partner of the Carolina Hurricanes. Learn more about a fun new way Lenovo and the Canes are teaming up.