The Carolina Hurricanes practiced shootouts at length during training camp. After a wild 65 minutes of hockey, that practice was put to good use, with the Canes opening the 2017-18 season with a 5-4 shootout win over the Minnesota Wild at PNC Arena on Saturday night.
Carolina started well, with Derek Ryan and Jeff Skinner picking up their chemistry where they left off last season. A couple of minutes into the game, Ryan nearly tipped home a point shot but was denied by a sliding Alex Stalock, who then got across to prevent Skinner from tapping in the rebound.