June 11 (UPI) — Brandon Bussi was a spinning spider and appeared equipped with limbs to match the arachnid, turning pucks into prey and dominating in net to lead the Carolina Hurricanes to victory Thursday in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.
The rookie goalie, who drew his second start in place of benched net minder Frederik Anderson, stopped 23 of the 25 shots he faced in the 4-2 victory in Raleigh, N.C. Andrei Svechnikov scored twice for the Hurricanes. Fellow forwards Jordan Staal and Sebastian Aho also found the net.
“This was the biggest game of my life, personally,” Svechnikov told reporters. “Thank God we won that game. Obviously, it’s in our mind that we have one more game to do it. We are focused for the next game.”
With the victory, the Hurricanes took a 3-2 series lead and moved to within one win of their second Stanley Cup. Game 6 of the best-of-seven game series will be Sunday in Las Vegas.
“We’ve gotta find a way,” Golden Knights coach John Tortorella said.
Pavel Dorofeyev drew first blood 6:52 after puck drop when he scored off a Golden Knights power play. Fellow forwards Jack Eichel and Tomas Hertl assisted the goal.
Staal tied the score about five minutes later, starting a surge of four consecutive Hurricanes goals. Staal’s goal made him the first player since 1956 to score in each of the first five games of a Stanley Cup final.
Svechnikov gave the Hurricanes their first lead by scoring off a power play 11:58 into the second frame. Aho beat Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart for a third time with 2:09 remaining in the bridge frame.
Svechnikov scored his second goal off a power play 11:08 into the third period. Dorofeyev lit the lamp for the Golden Knights about less than three minutes later, cutting the Carolina lead to two.
But Bussi and the Hurricanes defense held up down the stretch, denying an assault of shots. They also managed to kill a Golden Knights power play in the final seconds.
Hurricanes forward Nikolaj Ehlers tallied three assists in the victory. Defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere logged two assists for the Hurricanes. Eichel chipped in two assists for the Golden Knights.
Fellow Golden Knights forward William Karlsson, who appeared to sustain a hand injury, missed the majority of the second period and the entire third. Tortorella did not provide a specific injury update on Karlsson at his postgame news conference, but said he probably won’t play in Game 6.
“He’s an important piece to us,” Tortorella said. “Up the middle of the ice, penalty killer, power play guy. He is a winner. But having said that, it’s all good stuff. He’s not going to be with us, probably. We’ve got to find a way to fill that void.”
Hart stopped 20 of the 24 shots he faced. Tortorella said he did not consider benching Hart, who allowed four goals in each of the five Stanley Cup Final starts, for backup Adin Hill during Game 5.
Game 6 will be at 8 p.m. EDT Sunday in Las Vegas. Game 7, if necessary, will be Wednesday in Raleigh.
“It’s huge, obviously,” Ehlers said, when asked about Game 6. “It’s going to be really hard. It’s going to be a really tough game, but we are excited for it. We are ready for it. This team has been working all year for moments like these — especially this moment.”
