Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho each scored, and the Carolina Hurricanes moved back over the playoff line with Tuesday night's 4-1 road win over the Nashville Predators.
The victory elevated Carolina into the second Eastern Conference wild-card slot. The Hurricanes, who are 7-3-1 in their last 11 games, sit only one point behind the Philadelphia Flyers for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
Svechnikov's power-play goal at 3:45 of the second period was his 24th of the season and proved to be the winner. The 19-year-old star extended his point streak to eight games, as Svechnikov has recorded five goals and five assists over that eight-game span.
Aho's team-leading 34th goal stretched his own point streak to 10 games, with 16 points (10 goals, six assists) during the streak.
Justin Williams added two assists for the Hurricanes, and goalie Petr Mrazek stopped 28 shots, improving to 9-1-0 in 10 career games against Nashville.
The loss snapped Nashville's three-game winning streak. The Predators missed their own chance to gain ground in the Western Conference wild-card race and dropped to 3-7-0 over their last 10 home games.
The Predators had their share of chances Tuesday, though the team was thwarted by Mrazek and an 0-for-4 showing on the power play. Nashville has only nine goals over its last 61 chances with the extra attacker.
Jordan Staal gave the Hurricanes the lead 3:23 into the game, taking a pass from behind the net and converting his eighth goal of the season. The goal snapped an 11-game scoring drought for Staal.
The Predators tied the game on a quick goal of their own to begin the second period, just 48 seconds into the frame. A pass intended for Ryan Johansen was deflected into the air en route to the forward, but Johansen put a backhanded tap on the puck to knock it past Mrazek.
Johansen's equalizer was the only second-period highlight for the Predators, as Carolina outshot Nashville by a 13-5 margin over the 20-minute stretch and re-established its lead on goals from Svechnikov and Nino Niederreiter.
Nashville goalie Juuse Saros stopped 26 of 30 shots.
--Field Level Media
