By NICOLE KRAFT, Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio — COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Kirill Marchenko tied it late in the third period with his second goal of the game, Sean Monahan had the only score in a shootout, and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-4 on Saturday night for their third straight win.

Dmitri Voronkov had a power-play goal and Dante Fabbro also scored for Columbus. Elvis Merzlikins made 32 saves, including stopping all three shots he faced in the shootout to help the Blue Jackets get their third straight win for the first time since March 11-16, 2022.

Sebastian Aho had a power-play goal and an assist, and Jack Roslovic, Jalen Chatfield, and Jackson Blake also scored for Carolina, which dropped a point behind first-place New Jersey in the Metropolitan Division. Pyotr Kochetkov made 27 saves before leaving the game with two minutes left in overtime after colliding with Zach Werenski. Spencer Martin made one save in relief.

Carolina Hurricanes: Carolina let slip the chance to beat a Metropolitan Division rival and instead lost for the third time in four games on its road trip. The Hurricanes still have the highest point percentage in the Eastern Conference.

Blue Jackets: The Blue Jackets had a pair of leads and a four-minute third-period power play but could not close the door on Carolina until the shootout.

Marchenko’s goal with 1:06 left in regulation sent the game to overtime, where the Blue Jackets ultimately found a way to win.

Martin Necas had two assists to give him 22 on the season, tying him for third in the league. He leads Carolina and is third in the NHL with 33 points.

Hurricanes host Dallas on Monday to open a three-game homestand, and Blue Jackets host Montreal on Wednesday.

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Source: wralsportsfan.com