CHICAGO (Interstat) — Jackson Blake and Jordan Martinook each had a goal and an assist, Brandon Bussi made 24 saves and the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on Saturday at United Center. Mark Jankowski, Sebastian Aho and Taylor Hall also scored for the defending Stanley Cup champions, who improved to 4-2-0 and won their fourth consecutive game. Chicago dropped to 1-5-0. The Hurricanes, the visiting team, outshot the Blackhawks 39-26 and won the majority of faceoffs. Attendance was 18,120.

Carolina opened the scoring late in the first period after controlling much of the early play. Sebastian Aho won the opening faceoff against Anton Frondell, and William Carrier set a physical tone with a hit on Ian Cole. Jordan Staal also won an early draw against Oliver Moore. Chicago’s first scoring chance came when Jordan Greenway’s wrist shot was saved by Bussi. The teams traded blocked shots and giveaways through the middle of the period. Mike Reilly had a wrist shot saved by Spencer Knight, and K’Andre Miller put two shots on net. Wyatt Kaiser was called for tripping against Jackson Blake at 5:58, giving Carolina the first power play, but Chicago’s penalty kill held. Later, William Carrier was penalized for interference-keeper against Knight at 10:46. Mark Jankowski finally broke through at 19:03 with a wrist shot, assisted by Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Eric Robinson. After the goal, Taylor Hall produced three quick chances, including a wrist shot, a poke attempt and a backhand that went wide. Chicago won several faceoffs in the period but could not beat Bussi.

The Hurricanes broke the game open in the second period. Aho made it 2-0 at 4:09 with a wrist shot from K’Andre Miller. Jackson Blake then scored at 6:28, converting a wrist shot with assists from Logan Stankoven and Jordan Martinook. Chicago answered at 8:40 when Roman Kantserov scored an unassisted wrist shot to cut the deficit to 3-1. Carolina regained momentum before the period ended when Taylor Hall scored on a slap shot at 12:05 from Blake and Mike Reilly. That goal restored a three-goal cushion and capped a period in which Carolina generated most of the quality chances. Chicago had brief pressure, including an Artyom Levshunov wrist shot and a Nick Lardis attempt, but Bussi was positioned well. Carolina also killed a Jordan Martinook tripping penalty earlier in the period. Levshunov was later called for holding against Blake at 18:53, giving Carolina another power play. The Hurricanes kept pressing, with Logan Stankoven and Mark Jankowski creating chances. Chicago’s Ryan Greene and Dominic Toninato won faceoffs, but the Blackhawks struggled to sustain offense. Bussi denied Patrick Kane and Nick Lardis in the period, while Knight faced a heavy workload at the other end.

Jordan Martinook extended the lead in the third period. He scored on a backhand at 15:00 with assists from Nikolaj Ehlers and Mike Reilly, making it 5-1. Chicago kept pushing and got a late goal from Oliver Moore, who scored on a wrist shot with assists from Wyatt Kaiser and Ryan Donato. The Blackhawks pulled Knight for an extra attacker after Moore’s goal, but Bussi denied Patrick Kane and Roman Kantserov during a late flurry. Carolina’s defense blocked several shots in the final minutes, with Jaccob Slavin, Jalen Chatfield and K’Andre Miller among those disrupting Chicago’s attempts. Jordan Staal also hit the left post on a wraparound attempt. Mark Jankowski had a wrist shot saved by Knight and later hit the right post. Chicago’s best late chances came from Kane, Kantserov and Donato, but Bussi held firm. The Hurricanes held on for their fourth straight win. The Blackhawks finished with 26 shots on goal and could not convert enough of their late pressure.

Bussi earned the win with 24 saves on 26 shots. Blake finished with one goal, one assist and two shots. Martinook had one goal, one assist, one shot, two penalty minutes and one hit. Aho added one goal, six shots and one hit. Stankoven had one assist, two shots and one hit. Hall scored once and put four shots on net. Reilly contributed two assists, two shots and one hit. Jankowski scored once and recorded three shots and one hit. K’Andre Miller had one assist, four shots and one hit. For Chicago, Oliver Moore scored once and had two shots. The Blackhawks also received a strong effort from Knight, who faced 39 shots. Bussi entered the game after recent outings that included a 16-save win at Montreal, a 22-save loss to Washington and a 19-save overtime loss to Florida. Carolina’s recent form includes a 7-2 home win over Vancouver, a 6-4 win at Montreal and an overtime win at Philadelphia before this victory. Chicago has now lost five of six to open the season, with its only win coming at home against St. Louis. The Hurricanes will next play at Philadelphia. Chicago will host Pittsburgh. Carolina’s upcoming schedule also includes a home game against Washington and a road trip through Winnipeg, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton and St. Louis. Chicago’s upcoming slate includes home games against Pittsburgh, Winnipeg, Dallas, Montreal, Florida and Los Angeles, plus road games at Detroit, Boston, Colorado and Florida.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Carolina 4, Chicago 1. Interstat’s ELO system gave Carolina an 83 percent probability to win. Carolina had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5. The combined total of seven goals went under the over-under line of 5.5.