Hurricanes 4, Oilers 1
RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes became efficient during the middle of the game and scored four consecutive goals on the way to defeating the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 on Wednesday night at PNC Arena.
Centers Jordan Staal, Elias Lindholm, Jeff Skinner and Andrej Nestrasil scored for the Hurricanes, who gave up the first goal and then locked down. Nestrasil's goal was an empty-netter.
Goaltender Cam Ward made 30 saves.
Carolina (8-10-4) was 1-2-4 in the previous seven games. The Hurricanes won for the first time in eight games this season in a game decided by three goals or more.
Left winger Benoit Pouliot scored for the Oilers (7-14-1), who've won only once in a six-game span.
Oilers goalie Anders Nilsson made 23 stops.
The Hurricanes won for only the third time in 12 games in which the opponent scored first.
Lindholm scored midway through the second period to lift Carolina to a 2-1 lead. That gave Lindholm, who skated in from the left side, seven points in five career games against Edmonton.
Skinner scored with 3:19 left in the second period, creating a two-goal edge with his redirection of defenseman Justin Faulk's delivery.
The Oilers scored first when Pouliot converted on a power play just 7:34 into the game. He redirected center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' slap shot after the Oilers collected the puck following an initial shot on the sequence.
Pouliot picked up his 100th career goal. The assist for right winger Nail Yakupov gave him 100 career points.
Jordan Staal drew the Hurricanes even with an unassisted goal with 16 seconds left in the first period. It was his first goal in an eight-game stretch and it came as he skated from behind the net and flipped the puck toward the crease, with it bouncing off an Edmonton player.
NOTES: Hurricanes C Nathan Gerbe was placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a lower-body injury suffered last weekend against the Los Angeles Kings. ... Oilers D Oscar Klefbom had a couple of stitches near his right eye after taking a stick to the face in the previous game from Washington Capitals C Nicklas Backstrom. "I got lucky," Klefbom said. "It could be worse, a lot worse." ... Oilers D Andrej Sekera played 131 games for the Hurricanes across the previous two seasons. ... Hurricanes D John-Michael Liles turned 35 on Wednesday. ... The Carolina and Edmonton franchises played a memorable seven-game Stanley Cup Finals series 10 seasons ago, with the Hurricanes claiming the 2006 Cup. ... The teams meet again Jan. 4 in Edmonton. ... This was the second stop on a five-game road trip for the Oilers, with Friday night's game at Detroit next on the docket. ... This game wrapped up a nine-game home slate in November for the Hurricanes, who go to Buffalo on Friday night.