Hockey roundup: Hurricanes on verge of Cup final; U.S. to face Canada at worlds
· Yahoo Sports
The visiting Hurricanes scored three times in less than three minutes in the first period and Frederik Andersen made 18 saves, lifting Carolina to a 4-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday.
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The Hurricanes hold a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. Carolina can punch its ticket to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in franchise history with a win in Game 5 on Friday in Raleigh, N.C.
Sebastian Aho scored a power-play goal and captain Jordan Staal and Logan Stankoven also converted in a 2:47 stretch late in the first period. Andrei Svechnikov added an empty-net tally late in the third period.
Andersen turned aside three shots in the third period to preserve his eighth career postseason shutout and fifth with the Hurricanes, surpassing Cam Ward for the most in franchise history. Andersen has three shutouts this postseason, one in each round.
Nikolaj Ehlers and defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere each notched two assists for the Hurricanes, who became the seventh team in NHL history to win each of its first six road games of a postseason.
Jakub Dobes made 39 saves on his 25th birthday for the Canadiens, who have lost four in a row at home and six of eight overall in Montreal during the playoffs.
Carolina opened the scoring for the fourth time in as many games in this series after Aho's one-timer from the right circle beat Dobes inside the near post with 5:01 remaining in the first period.
Aho's 11th career power-play goal in the playoffs eclipsed former captain Eric Staal for the most in franchise history.
The Hurricanes doubled the advantage 68 seconds later after defenseman K'Andre Miller skated below the goal line and backhanded a centering feed that caromed off the stick of Jordan Staal and into the goal. Montreal's Josh Anderson was attempting to fend off Jordan Staal in front of the net.
Gostisbehere blocked a shot by Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson, setting up a 2-on-1 rush that saw Jackson Blake feed Stankoven for his team-leading eighth goal of the playoffs 1:39 later.
Dobes extended his left pad to deny Blake on a breakaway to keep the game scoreless just over two minutes into the game.
Canada vs. U.S. in world quarterfinal
Team USA will face Canada in the quarterfinals of the world hockey championship on Thursday in Bern, Switzerland (10:20 a.m., The Hockey Network).
It's the third time they'll meet at the worlds. In 2001, the U.S. edged Canada, 4-3 in overtime. Derek Plante, the father of Red Wings prospect Max Plante, was on that U.S. team.
Max Plante has one goal with seven shots and a minus-one rating in six games for Team USA.
In the 1995 quarterfinals, Canada beat the U.S., 4-1.
PWHL team in Hamilton picks coach
The new PWHL team in Hamilton, Ontario, has made its big acquisition.
Coach of the Year finalist Kris Sparre, who just led the Boston Fleet to a league record-tying 62-point regular season, has jumped to become Hamilton's first coach. PWHL Hamilton general manager Meghan Duggan made the announcement Wednesday.
"I'm thrilled to have Kris as the first Head Coach in PWHL Hamilton history, bringing a combination of hockey knowledge, leadership, and player development expertise that make him an ideal fit," Duggan said in a news release.
Sparre, 39, has extensive ties to Ontario. The Mississauga native grew up playing in the Ontario Hockey League and earned his first coaching job in the OHL. He and his family live in Burlington, Ontario, roughly 15 miles from Hamilton.
Sparre took over the Boston Fleet prior to the 2025-26 season and directed the team to a 16-5-4-5 record. That was a league-record 18 points better than the year before.
"I'm excited for the opportunity to build a foundation in Hamilton alongside Meghan, and moving closer to home and being near family makes this the right step for me personally and professionally," Sparre said.
PWHL Hamilton was introduced as an expansion franchise on May 13.
The league also has announced plans to add teams in Detroit, Las Vegas and San Jose to boost membership to 12 teams for the 2026-27 season.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Carolina Hurricanes took a 3-1 lead on the Canadiens in East final