Raleigh, NC (Sports Network) - Tuomo Ruutu had a goal and three assists as the Carolina Hurricanes took a 6-3 win over the New Jersey Devils at RBC Center.
Jeff Skinner and Sergei Samsonov each scored twice while Zac Dalpe notched the other goal for the Hurricanes, who have won three straight. Cam Ward stopped 25 shots in the win.
"That was a real good first period we had," said Carolina head coach Paul Maurice. "It's a work in progress to get everybody to do it consistently, but it worked out tonight and it's a good way to start the new year."
Rod Pelley, Travis Zajac and Patrik Elias each scored a goal for the Devils, who were coming off a win over Atlanta on Friday but have lost seven of their last eight.
Martin Brodeur started the game in net, but was pulled after eight minutes as he allowed three goals on seven shots. Johan Hedberg finished the contest between the pipes and stopped 15-of-18 shots.
It was all Carolina in the first period as the team scored the first four goals of the game in the frame to take command of the contest.
The first goal came 1:48 in on the power play as Joe Corvo threw a shot on net from the high slot that Ruutu tipped past Brodeur.
At the 4:28 mark, Skinner scored as he backhanded home a rebound off a Tim Gleason shot and Samsonov made it a 3-0 game at the eight-minute mark when he slipped home a rebound from the left side to chase Brodeur from the net.
Hedberg took over, but the Hurricanes continued to attack as Dalpe scored the first NHL goal of his career on a one-timer from the right circle with 6:18 left in the period.
"I didn't know what was going on cause there was alot of things going through my mind," said Dalpe about his goal. "I've worked hard to get up here and it's nice. I think my parents want the puck."
The Devils stemmed the bleeding with 3:08 to play in the frame when Pelley's turnaround shot from the right circle got past Ward and Zajac made it a 4-2 game 49 seconds into the second with his sixth goal of the year.
Samsonov's second goal of the game came at 8:42 of the second on a 5-on-3 when he jammed the puck home as it sat on the doorstep for a 5-2 advantage.
Elias made it a two-goal game 2:36 into the third, but New Jersey was unable to cut further into its deficit.
Skinner's second goal of the game came with 2:26 to play to account for the final score.
Carolina hosts Florida on Monday...New Jersey hosts Minnesota on Tuesday...The Devils took three of four over Carolina last season...The Devils' only winning streak of the season was a pair of wins over Washington and Calgary on November 22 and 24...New Jersey hasn't scored more than three goals in a game since its 5-0 win over Washington on November 22.