RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Rookie Jackson Blake scored his first NHL goal and Pyotr Kochetkov made 23 saves in his season debut as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New Jersey Devils 4-2 on Tuesday night.
Seth Jarvis, Shayne Gostisbehere and Sebastian Aho also scored for the Hurricanes, who played their second game of the season after an opening loss to Tampa Bay on Friday.
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New Jersey Devils' Simon Nemec (17) and Seamus Casey (24) watch the shot by Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook (48) with Hurricanes' Jordan Staal (11) nearby during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
New Jersey Devils' Johnathan Kovacevic (8) battles with Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook (48) for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov (52) freezes the puck in front of New Jersey Devils' Erik Haula (56) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes' William Carrier (28) has his shot swallowed by New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov (52) blocks the shot of New Jersey Devils' Paul Cotter (47) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Jake Hughes and Nico Hischier scored for the Devils, who had a two-game winning streak halted. Jacob Markstrom stopped 30 shots.
Blake, a 21-year-old out of the University of North Dakota who was drafted 109th overall by Carolina in 2021, redirected a shot from Dmitry Orlov at 10:16 of the third period to extend the Hurricanes' lead to 3-1.
Hughes scored on a shot through Kochetkov’s legs 1:16 into the second period to give the Devils a 1-0 lead, and was the 10th goal scorer for New Jersey this season.
Devils: New Jersey was in its second set of back-to-back games this season after a home win against Utah and didn’t show much energy by the latter part of the game. The Devils had more than 30 shots in three of their first five games. They had 24 against Carolina.
Hurricanes: Carolina scored four goals in the last 30 minutes of the game.
The Hurricanes killed a third-period penalty after Hischier’s 5-on-3 score to preserve the lead. Carolina allowed two power-play goals in the opener against Tampa Bay.
Hurricanes forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi helped set up Gostisbehere’s go-ahead goal and earned an assist on the sequence for his 100th career point. It came in his 400th NHL game. There was also a milestone for Aho, who skated in his 600th game and scored into an empty net.
The Devils visit Ottawa on Thursday night, while the Hurricanes begin a six-game trip Friday night at Pittsburgh.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
New Jersey Devils' Simon Nemec (17) and Seamus Casey (24) watch the shot by Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook (48) with Hurricanes' Jordan Staal (11) nearby during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
New Jersey Devils' Johnathan Kovacevic (8) battles with Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook (48) for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov (52) freezes the puck in front of New Jersey Devils' Erik Haula (56) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes' William Carrier (28) has his shot swallowed by New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov (52) blocks the shot of New Jersey Devils' Paul Cotter (47) during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
DALLAS (AP) — Republican Sen. Ted Cruz and Democratic Rep. Colin Allred met for their only debate Tuesday night, trading attacks over abortion and immigration in a closely watched race that could help determine which party wins control of the U.S. Senate.
Nationally, Democrats view Texas as one of their few potential pickup chances in the Senate this year, while Cruz has urged Republicans to take Texas seriously amid signs that the former 2016 presidential contender is in another competitive race to keep his seat.
From start to finish in the hourlong debate, Cruz sought to link Allred to Vice President Kamala Harris at nearly every opportunity and painted the three-term Dallas congressman as out of step in a state where voters have not elected a Democrat to a statewide office in 30 years.
Allred, who would become Texas' first Black senator if elected, hammered Cruz over the state's abortion ban that is one of the most restrictive in the nation and does not allow exceptions in cases of rape or incest. The issue is central to Allred's underdog campaign and his supporters include Texas women who had serious pregnancy complications after the state's ban took effect.
Pressed on whether he supports Texas' law, Cruz said the specifics of abortion law have been and should be decided by the Texas Legislature.
“I don’t serve in the state Legislature. I’m not the governor,” he said.
Cruz later blasted Allred over his support of transgender rights and immigration polices of President Joe Biden and Harris, accusing him of shifting his views on border security from the positions he took when he was first elected to Congress in 2018.
“What I always said is that we have to make sure that as we’re talking about border security, that we don’t fall into demonizing,” Allred said.
Allred accused the two-term U.S. senator of mischaracterizing his record and repeatedly jabbed Cruz for his family vacation to Mexico during a deadly winter storm in 2021 that crippled the state’s power grid.
The last time Cruz was on the ballot in 2018, he only narrowly won reelection over challenger Beto O'Rourke.
The debate offered Allred, a former NFL linebacker, a chance to boost his name identification to a broad Texas audience. Allred has made protecting abortion rights a centerpiece of his campaign and has been sharply critical of the state's abortion ban. The issue has been a winning one for Democrats, even in red states like Kentucky and Kansas, ever since the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in 2022 to strip away constitutional protections for abortion.
Cruz, who fast made a name for himself in the Senate as an uncompromising conservative, has refashioned his campaign to focus on his legislative record.
Allred has meanwhile sought to flash moderate credentials and has the endorsement of former Republican U.S. Reps. Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney.
The two candidates alone have raised close to $100 million, according to the most recent reports from the Federal Election Commission. Tens of millions more dollars have been spent by outside groups, making it one of the most expensive races in the country.
Despite Texas' reputation as a deep-red state and the Democrats' 30-year statewide drought, the party has grown increasingly optimistic in recent years that they can win here.
Since former President Barack Obama lost Texas by more than 15 percentage points in 2012, the margins have steadily declined. Former President Donald Trump won by 9 percentage points in 2016, and four years later, won by less than 6. That was the narrowest victory for a Republican presidential candidate in Texas since 1996.
“Texas is a red state," said Mark Jones, a political science professor at Rice University in Houston. “But it’s not a ruby-red state."
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, addresses supporters during a campaign event, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Keller, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, waves to supporters at a campaign event at Tulips FTW, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/Desiree Rios)
This combination photo shows Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago, left, and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Sept. 27, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo)
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, top left, and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, greet each other at the beginning of a U.S. Senate debate, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, top left, takes notes as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, left, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, left, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, right, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, right, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, bottom, speaks during a U.S. Senate debate with Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Dallas. (Shelby Tauber/Texas Tribune via AP, Pool)
