Hurricanes Hand Flyers Record Seventh Straight Opening Loss

Philadelphia opened its season with a franchise-record seventh consecutive loss Sunday, falling 4-1 to the defending champion Carolina Hurricanes at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov each recorded a goal and an assist as Carolina secured its fifth straight victory, while the Flyers remained winless at 0-5-2.

According to NHL.com, Carolina improved to 5-1-1 and extended its streak of earning at least one point in Philadelphia to 12 consecutive games. The Flyers, meanwhile, have been outscored 28-8 through seven games, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Svechnikov opened the scoring at 10:16 of the second period, capitalizing on a turnover by Philadelphia rookie defenseman Oliver Bonk. Former Flyer Sean Walker recovered the puck and passed to Svechnikov, who fired past goaltender Joseph Woll.

Shayne Gostisbehere doubled Carolina's lead at 13:45, finishing a pass from Aho. Both of Gostisbehere's goals this season have come against Philadelphia, according to Sportsnet.

Christian Dvorak pulled the Flyers within one at 15:26, redirecting a shot from Nick Seeler past Carolina goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov. Aho restored the two-goal advantage at 16:54 after receiving a pass from William Carrier, completing a three-goal second period for the Hurricanes.

Aho has recorded 11 points, including six goals and five assists, during a six-game point streak, according to NHL.com. Carrier contributed two assists, while Kochetkov stopped 18 of Philadelphia's 19 shots.

Mark Jankowski sealed the 4-1 victory with a third-period goal at 15:09. The forward extended his goal streak to four games and scored his fourth goal of the season, according to NHL.com.

Bonk endured a difficult NHL season debut after being called up from the American Hockey League's Lehigh Valley affiliate. NBC Sports Philadelphia reported that the 2023 first-round pick was on the ice for all three of Carolina's second-period goals and committed two penalties in the first period.

Philadelphia coach Rick Tocchet acknowledged the responsibility that comes with the team's poor start and said he understood the scrutiny surrounding his position.

"Sure, as a coach or a player, you hate to hear the outside noise, but that's part of the whole deal," Tocchet said before the game. "That's the business we're in, it comes with the territory. We owe the fans a better product on the ice and we haven't given it to them yet. When that doesn't happen, it's on me, I've got to take the blame on that."

After being asked about handling pressure, Tocchet described his approach to preparing the team amid its struggles.

"You've just got to be confident in what you're doing," Tocchet said. "Obviously when things don't go well, you look at the head coach. It's my responsibility.

So I've got to figure ways to make sure I can keep the players comfortable, where it doesn't affect their play. Give them a couple of things tonight, don't give them a lot of stuff, concentrate on two things."

Philadelphia also played without Travis Konecny, Rasmus Ristolainen and Cam York because of injuries. Konecny was placed on injured reserve Sunday after missing two games with a lower-body injury, while York was day to day with an upper-body injury and Ristolainen had missed four games after injuring his left hand.

Carolina captain Jordan Staal also missed Sunday's game because of a lower-body injury. The Hurricanes will host Washington on Tuesday, while Philadelphia is scheduled to welcome Seattle that night.