The Carolina Hurricanes turned Saturday night in Raleigh into a record show. Carolina scored four goals in the first period, seven in the first two, and beat the Chicago Blackhawks 9-2 at Lenovo Center. The nine goals tied the franchise record for a single game since the team moved from Hartford to North Carolina in 1997.
Four goals before the first intermission
Chicago never really got started. Seth Jarvis opened the scoring early in the first period, Jackson Blake added another, and then Jordan Martinook took over the period. Martinook scored at 10:54 on a rush, finishing a pass from Jesperi Kotkaniemi, and he struck again at 19:27 by putting in a rebound in front of the net. Both of his goals were set up by Kotkaniemi and Eric Robinson, and Carolina went to the locker room up 4-0.
Martinook had scored only two goals in his first 18 games of the season. He matched that total in less than nine minutes on Saturday, and the Hurricanes were just getting warmed up.
Seven goals, and a goalie change for Chicago
The second period brought more of the same. Andrei Svechnikov made it 5-0 at 4:43, taking the puck after a Chicago turnover, moving around a defender in the slot and scoring on his own rebound. Sebastian Aho followed with a goal on a two on one rush, and that was the end of the night for Chicago goaltender Spencer Knight. He was pulled with 9:24 left in the period after allowing six goals on 17 shots, with Arvid Soderblom coming on in relief.
The change did not slow Carolina down. Alexander Nikishin, playing his first game of the season, scored late in the period to make it 7-0 through 40 minutes. By then, the only real question left was how many goals the Hurricanes would finish with, and whether the record would fall.
A record night, and a rare week
Chicago finally broke through in the third period, when Roman Kantserov and Connor Bedard scored to cut into the lead. Carolina answered with two more goals anyway. Shayne Gostisbehere scored, and Svechnikov added his second of the game in the final minute to close out the 9-2 final and tie the record.
The scoring was spread all over the lineup. Fifteen Carolina skaters recorded at least one point, and goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov needed only 18 saves at the other end. It was also Carolina’s second straight home win by a seven goal margin. According to Chicago Hockey Now, the Hurricanes are the first NHL team since the St. Louis Blues in February 1990 to win two games by seven goals in a seven day span. Carolina also outscored Chicago 14-4 across the two meetings between the teams this season.
Chicago’s captain runs out of patience
For the Blackhawks, the numbers keep getting worse. Chicago fell to 4-13-1 and has lost six games in a row, going 0-5-1 during the skid. Bedard, the team captain, finished with a goal and an assist, but he did not hide his feelings after the game. He called the loss “embarrassing,” and he described a team thinking about its record and the hole it has dug from the moment it wakes up to the moment it goes to bed. Reports out of Chicago said the players held a players only meeting after the game.
Carolina now heads overseas. The Hurricanes travel to Helsinki, Finland, to face the Seattle Kraken in the NHL Global Series on November 12 and 14, and they will make the trip playing some of the best hockey in the league. Chicago goes home still searching for answers. For more scores and stories from around the league, visit our Sports coverage.
Sources: Reuters game recap, November 7, 2026; Associated Press game recap; NHL.com game recap; Chicago Hockey Now.