Hurricanes Start 7-0, Beat Flyers 4-1 Behind Alex Bump
alex bump collided with Frederik Andersen during the second period, but Carolina still left Philadelphia with a 4-1 win and a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series. The Hurricanes are now 7-0 in the playoffs, putting them on a short list of NHL teams to begin a postseason that way.
Carolina’s 4-1 edge
The result came Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Philadelphia, where the Hurricanes controlled the series with another one-sided finish. Their 3-0 lead leaves the Flyers with the steepest possible margin, because only three teams in NHL history have come back from that deficit to win a playoff series.
Jordan Staal set the tone after the win with a blunt read on what comes next: “The fourth one is the hardest one to win. No one wants to go home.” Carolina has put itself one victory from ending the series, and it has done it without losing a game in this postseason.
Andersen and Game 4
Frederik Andersen was scheduled to start Game 4 for Carolina on Saturday, giving the Hurricanes a chance to push the series to the edge while protecting the only goal that matters now: keeping the unbeaten run alive. A win would also move them to 8-0, the first team to start the playoffs that way since 1985.
That path is rare enough to change the conversation around the series. The Hurricanes are the 13th team in NHL history to open a postseason with seven straight wins, and eight of the first 12 teams to do it won the Stanley Cup.
Brind’Amour’s Saturday approach
Rod Brind’Amour said before Game 4, “I would anticipate we’re going to give it our best, because we’re going to need to,” which matches the position Carolina has earned with three straight wins in the series. Philadelphia now has to solve a team that has not trailed in the postseason for a single game.
For the Flyers, the next step is simple and brutal: stop the streak or face elimination in a series that has already swung fully to Carolina’s side. For the Hurricanes, Saturday carries the chance to finish what Thursday started and move one game closer to the kind of playoff opening only a few teams have ever matched.
