Carolina Hurricanes left wing Nikolaj Ehlers (27) looks on during the warmups before the game against the Florida Panthers at Lenovo Center. James Guillory-Imagn Images

Nikolaj Ehlers' hat trick helps Hurricanes dominate Panthers

By Mike J. Asti | Last updated Jan 17, 2026 12:25 AM ET

The Carolina Hurricanes exorcised some demons on Friday night, demolishing the back-to-back defending champion Florida Panthers 9-1.

A big reason for Carolina's statement win was that left wing Nikolaj Ehlers went wild and recorded a hat trick.

It wasn't only about Ehlers' hat trick for the Hurricanes

Ehlers' sixth career hat trick was part of his four-point night, and his three goals came off seven shots. He scored two of his three goals in the third period as the Hurricanes hammered home six unanswered in the final session.

Beyond Ehlers, Sebastian Aho was one goal shy of giving Carolina two hat tricks on the night and goalie Brandon Bussi made a statement of his own, stopping 38-of-41 shots against him.

RELEASE THE HATS! https://t.co/uqGEMJFgQn pic.twitter.com/PWr9IM2Vb6
— NHL (@NHL) January 17, 2026

Carolina's nine goals stand as its highest output of the season

All in all, the Hurricanes picked up one of their most impressive wins of the season and one that means more than just being the most goals they tallied in any game this season.

And despite having a better season so far, convincingly beating the Panthers has to feel good for a group that lost twice to Florida in December, including blowing a 3-0 lead only to lose 4-3 after a shootout.

Panthers have eliminated Hurricanes twice in the past three years

Of course, the Panthers also eliminated the Hurricanes in relatively short order in five games in the 2025 Eastern Conference Final en route to their third trip to the Stanley Cup Final and then capturing consecutive championships.

But winning a game against Florida in last year's Conference Final was actually an improvement from what happened two years prior. During the Panthers' first Stanley Cup appearance of their three-in-a-row, they swept the Hurricanes to win the Eastern Conference in the spring of 2023.

Even though they are in separate divisions — the Hurricanes currently lead the Metropolitan with 29 wins and 62 points while the Panthers are out of a playoff spot and towards the bottom of the Atlantic with only 24 wins and 51 points — the recent playoff battles have turned Carolina and Florida into one of the NHL's top rivalries today.

Carolina now hopes this latest rare win helps to make this rivalry more even moving forward.

Mike J. Asti

Mike Asti is an experienced media personality and journalist with a vast resume and skillset, most notably from time with TribLIVE Radio and WPXI-TV. Asti now serves as the Managing Editor of WV Sports Now, where he leads the coverage of WVU sports. He has also covered the Steelers, Penguins, Pirates and other teams within the Pittsburgh market

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