The Carolina Hurricanes emphatically took Game 1 in their first round series opener against the New Jersey Devils, with a 4-1 win Sunday afternoon at Lenovo Center.

The Hurricanes just took it to the Devils for 40 straight minutes before locking it up in the final frame, as the team nearly doubled them up in shots (45-24) in a dominant performance.

The two teams wasted no time getting the physical ball rolling though, with multiple players laying hits off the opening draw — the game finished with 93 combined hits — but it was the Canes who really used that to generate momentum.

"I think the boys were ready to go," said captain Jordan Staal. "Obviously no one likes losing at the end of the year and all that stuff, but I knew everyone was focused on what was already ahead of us. It was a big Game 1 and a big start to the series for us." 

The Canes really got the building into a frenzy though when Jalen Chatfield put the team up 1-0 less than three minutes in, as his shot from distance found its way past Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom.

Jack Roslovic won the offensive-zone draw, Eric Robinson picked it up and then got it over to Chatfield while William Carrier set the screen in front.

"We called that play and run it a lot," Chatfield said. "It's just about getting pucks to the net. We did a good job of getting in front and causing chaos. ... When you get pucks to the net, good things happen."

'Everyone Was Chomping At The Bit': Rod Brind'Amour, Jordan Staal, Jalen Chatfield, Logan Stankoven, Frederik Andersen On Game 1 Win Over Devils The Carolina Hurricanes came out of the gates strong in their first round series against the New Jersey Devils, taking Game 1 4-1 Sunday afternoon at Lenovo Center.

After that, the Hurricanes just started rolling, piling on chance after chance on the Devils. 

"Just getting the momentum, the building was already rocking before, but after we got the first one, it got even louder," Chatfield said.

There was a bit of worry on if the Hurricanes would be rusty, with how the regular season ended and with how much the team started to rest players, but it was clear that they were ready to go.

"You always worry that you come out a little sluggish or whatever, but obviously that wasn't the case,' said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour. "And we were a healthy group, so it was a calculated risk, maybe, but obviously, at least after Game 1, that was the right decision."

Not even a New Jersey power play could slow the Canes down in that opening period, as they just went ahead and put up multiple shorthanded chances during that span as well.

In all, the Canes kill went a perfect 2-for-2 against what was the league's third best power play heading into the postseason.

However, even with all the pressure the Canes were generating, Markstrom was doing all he could to keep his team in the game, turning aside 16 shots in the first period alone.

But eventually the flood gates started to burst in the second period, with Logan Stankoven leading the way with a pair of goals.

After Nico Hischeier turned the puck over behind his own net, Jordan Martinook quickly found Stankoven streaking in for the first tally.

Then the rookie picked up his second on the power play as he sniped home a superb cross-ice feed by Taylor Hall.

"I love playing in the big games and meaningful hockey," Stankoven said. "I think I'm motivated to try and contribute in any way possible and it's always a nice feeling to get on the score sheet."

Stankoven became the just the second player in franchise history to score twice in his playoff debut with the team as well as becoming the team's fifth rookie with a two-goal game in the postseason.

The Canes will hope to be able to build on the power play success too as that's been a area of weakness for team year after year in the playoffs.

"It's obviously a big part of the game," Brind'Amour said. "I thought all of our power plays looked good tonight and had good looks and that's really the key, but there's no moral victories at this time. You have to make it happen. That was a big goal at that time. Kills were good too. Chalk it up, but it's one game and we're turning the page."

Despite the lopsided nature of the game through the first two periods, New Jersey was able to cut the lead at the tail end of the second period at 4v4, as Hischier went post-and-in on a rush up the left-side.

Following that, the Devils got a little bit of swagger back and came out of the locker room with a much fiercer intensity for the third period, but Frederik Andersen and the Canes were just too tight defensively for New Jersey to break through.

"You never really know what a game is going to bring, but you just have to stay ready for that next shot and try to stay in the moment and stay present with it no matter what the score is or what's going on in the game," said Andersen, who made 23 saves on the day. "Try to react to what's in front of you and focus up for that next shot."

Andrei Svechnikov would hit the empty net at the end to seal the game as the Hurricanes took a 1-0 series lead.

"For us to win, we're going to need 20 guys chipping in and after a game going, 'Okay, I contributed someway, somehow,'" Brind'Amour said. "I think that's what we got tonight."

"They knew we were coming in the first game and they're going to come back and regroup and we're going to do it all over again," Staal said. "It's just one game. Hopefully we'll have a long run in front of us here, but we'll take the win."

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