3 Takeaways From Hurricanes’ 3-2 Overtime Win Over Flyers

The Carolina Hurricanes are officially in the win column for the 2026-27 season. After dropping the first two games in regulation and in overtime, they finally broke through on Saturday night against the Philadelphia Flyers. For the second time in three games, 60 minutes of regulation wasn’t enough to decide a winner. Unlike Tuesday, Sept. 29, against the Florida Panthers, the Hurricanes were on the winning side. After securing the first point, they claimed the second, winning 3-2 in part to a Shayne Gostisbehere game-winning power-play goal.

1. Aho & Gostisbehere Lead the Way

Before Gostisbehere’s game-winning overtime goal, Sebastian Aho led the way in regulation. It only took 10 seconds for the Finnish forward to give the Hurricanes their first lead of the game. It was the second-fastest goal in team history, only one second behind Shane Willis’ that he set back in Nov. 2000 against the Ottawa Senators. Plus, he passed Eric Staal for first all-time in team history with 50 game-opening goals.

Aho’s second goal was in the third period, on the power play, tying the game 2-2. That gave him his first multi-goal game of the season and his third goal in two games. His multi-point night didn’t end there as he tallied the secondary assist on the Gostisbehere goal.

Gostisbehere’s game-winning goal helped secure the Hurricanes’ first win of the season, giving them a 1-1-1 record. Following the win, he stated when asked about the team’s first win of 2026-27, “The first two games weren’t what we do. It wasn’t the way we play. We just got back to that a little bit tonight. Obviously, there are some smaller things to clean up, but obviously (it was), a good outcome.”

2. Special Teams’ Massive Impact

Special teams will be a big factor for the Hurricanes this season, as they were tested once again on the power play and penalty kill. The power play went 2-for-4 after goals from Aho and Gostisbehere, leading to a game-tying and game-winning goal. After scoring on the manadvantage (misspelled & no hyphen needed) over the last two games, the Hurricanes sit 15th in the NHL on the power play (18.8%), going 3-for-16 in three games.

During the 2025-26 season, it took the Hurricanes until December to get the power play clicking. At one point, they were almost dead last in the league. They went on a run the rest of the way, finishing fourth heading into the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Fair to say that this is a much better start for the Hurricanes’ power play to begin 2026-27.

When asked about the power play’s early success, Aho stated, “Obviously there’s a pre-scout; you try and look a little bit at what they’re going to do, what their tendencies are, but I’ve always said it comes down to execution, the passes and the shots. There’s always plays that you think you’re going to run, but it’s hockey, you know? You’ve got to play hockey, and there’s a reason why you’re on the power play. Fly, for example, on that pass in the slot for me- it was elite. Happy to be good in that department too.”

Regarding the penalty kill, the Hurricanes were perfect 4-for-4 against the Flyers on Saturday night. As of now, they are 11th in the NHL on the penalty kill (92.3%), going 12-for-13. While it’s still early in the season, it’s a good sign to see the penalty kill already clicking.

3. Kochetkov Shines in First Start Since Dec. 2025

Another positive to take from the win is that Pyotr Kochetkov won in his first start since Dec. 20, 2025. After playing in nine games in 2025-26, he missed the rest of the regular season due to hip surgery. Fast forward to Oct. 2026, and he secures his first win of the season in his first start. He went on to save 16 of 18 shots, earning an .889 save percentage and a 1.91 goals-against average in 62:51 of ice time.

When asked about winning in his first game since December, Kochetkov stated, “Not bad. It was a good start for us. The second period was not so good for me. I’m very happy the guys just continued to play well. Give credit to the Flyers goalie, (Joseph) Woll. He did unbelievable today. I’m very happy we won today.”

All in all, it was a much-needed win for the Hurricanes. They secured both points for the first time in the 2026-27 season, giving them three out of a possible six. They sit at 1-1-1 through three games, with their next game on Oct. 6 on the road against the Montreal Canadiens.