Hurricanes 6, Canadiens 4: Five in the First, Hall Twice, Then an Empty Net

October 6, 2026 - Montreal - Five goals in the first 13 minutes of a home opener. Taylor Hall tipped the first one. Zachary Bolduc scored twice before the period was half over. Bell Centre came for a party. It left with a 6-4 loss.

The Carolina Hurricanes beat the Montréal Canadiens 6-4. Carolina is 2-1-1 after winning two straight. Montreal is 1-1-1, two losses in a row, first regular-season home game since last spring's Eastern Conference Final. The NHL recap noted Carolina won that series in five and then the Stanley Cup. Shots were 34-20 Carolina. Attendance was 20,962.

Sebastian Aho had a power-play goal and two assists. Brandon Bussi stopped 16 of 20. Jakub Dobes stopped 28 of 33.

A 3-2 first that would not sit still

Hall opened it at 2:25. The AP recap said Juraj Slafkovský turned it over in front of his own net. Jackson Blake spun a wrist shot. Hall got to his feet in the crease and redirected it. 1-0.

Bolduc tied it at 3:23, a backhand off a rebound of Phillip Danault's deflection of Alexandre Texier. Nick Suzuki made it 2-1 at 4:27, a snap from Chris Kreider over Bussi's blocker. Three goals in 2:02.

Eric Robinson tied it at 9:22, deflecting Jalen Chatfield from the point. Robinson is not seeded on AthX player pages, so that name stays unlinked. Bolduc scored again on the power play at 12:54. 3-2 Montreal after a period Montreal won 3-2 on the scoreboard and lost 12-6 on shots.

Montreal's 17-4 second, then Carolina's lead

The NHL recap said Montreal was outshot 17-4 in the second and allowed two. Aho tied it at 3:56 on the power play from Nikolaj Ehlers and Shayne Gostisbehere. Mark Jankowski put Carolina in front at 13:24, a backhand across the crease. The AP recap called it a Noah Dobson giveaway. 4-3.

Hall's second at 12:21 of the third made it 5-3, from Jaccob Slavin and Aho. Slafkovský pulled it to 5-4 at 16:57 from Kreider and Suzuki. Andrei Svechnikov hit the empty net at 18:45 from Aho and Slavin. 6-4.

Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour told NHL.com he liked the first two periods, including kills of a couple of 5-on-3s, and did not like the third. Suzuki, in the same recap: power play, penalty kill, and 5-on-5 all had to be better. Ivan Demidov missed it. Montreal announced two to four weeks, lower body.

Carolina hosts Vancouver on Thursday. Montreal hosts Nashville the same night.

AthX Engine on a 6-4 home-opener board

AthX Engine (our projection and scoring system) scored Aho at 10.80 and Bolduc at 10.80. Hall is 9.40. Jankowski is 7.70. Suzuki is 7.20. Robinson is 7.10, unlinked. Bussi's win on 16 saves and four goals against is 4.60. Dobes is 5.20 in a loss.

Carolina's team line is 21.20. Montreal's regulation loss is 2.80.

Fantasy points measure the box. Price is what traders will pay for a Hurricanes group that just won in the building where last spring ended, and for a Canadiens club that scored three times in the first and still went home 1-1-1. They are not the same number.

Track Aho, Hall, Suzuki, and both clubs on the marketplace.

*Sources: AP recap (ESPN), ESPN box score, NHL.com recap, NHL.com scoreboard. AthX Engine fantasy points scored from NHL gamecenter box 2026020045. Information only; not financial advice.*