Ehlers leads Hurricanes to 5-2 win over Devils

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Nikolaj Ehlers had a goal and assist to lead the Carolina Hurricanes to a 5-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

Shayne Gostisbehere, Jackson Blake, Jordan Staal and Seth Jarvis also scored for the Hurricanes, who won for the fourth time in five games. Brandon Bussi stopped 17 shots to win his second straight start after losing his previous three.

Timo Meier and Evgenii Dadonov scored for New Jersey and Jacob Markstrom had 29 saves. It was only the second loss in seven games for the Devils.

Ehlers, who has has seven goals and 10 assists in 13 games this month, fueled a three-goal second period for the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes signed Ehlers to a six-year, $51 million contract in the offseason.

After not scoring a goal in the first 11 games of the season, Ehlers has 23 goals in 61 games. The 30-year-old left wing spent the first 10 seasons of his NHL career with Winnipeg. He has found a role in Carolina on a checking line with Staal, the Hurricanes’ captain, and gritty veteran winger Jordan Martinook.

Ehlers’ power-play goal at 10:10 of the second period tied the game at 1-1. Blake fooled New Jersey defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler on a goal that gave Carolina a 2-1 lead at 13:48. Ehlers set up Staal at 15:13 to make it 3-1.

Gostisbehere returned after a nine-game absence due to lower-body injury. He added a goal at 15:25 in the third and Jarvis tacked on an empty-net goal.

Meier finished a pretty play by Dawson Mercer to give New Jersey a 1-0 after the first period.

Carolina out-shot New Jersey 34-20.

Devils: Host Chicago on Sunday.

Hurricanes: Host Montreal on Sunday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Carolina Hurricanes' Taylor Hall (71) has his shot blocked by New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' William Carrier (28) tries to take the puck from New Jersey Devils' Lenni Hameenaho (29) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Logan Stankoven (22) tries to play the puck in front of New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

New Jersey Devils' Dougie Hamilton (7) takes the puck away from Carolina Hurricanes' Logan Stankoven (22) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Hundreds of employees at one of the U.S. Navy’s biggest shipbuilding contractors voted Saturday to approve a contract deal with Bath Iron Works, ending a weeklong strike.

Members of the Bath Marine Draftsmen’s Association ratified a new four-year collective bargaining agreement that goes into effect immediately, the shipyard said. That followed an hourslong union meeting at a high school.

“We look forward to working together once again to deliver the Navy’s ships on time to protect our nation and our families,” Bath Iron Works, known for the slogan “Bath built is best built,” said in a statement.

The shipyard and the union negotiated for three weeks without resolving differences before the strike began last Monday, Bath Iron Works spokesperson David Hench said.

He said previously that the shipyard, which has built ships for the Navy for more than a century, “proposed a number of historic wage and benefit options” to bring the union and the company closer together.

The Bath Marine Draftsmen’s Association is affiliated with the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, which is commonly known as the UAW and is one of the country’s largest unions. The BMDA members at Bath Iron Works are employed as designers, nondestructive test technicians, technical clerks, laboratory technicians and associate engineers, the union said.

Representatives of the Maine AFL-CIO confirmed the ratification vote via text messages to The Associated Press.

The union local said that while not all of its goals were reached, the deal includes improvements that are a win for workers. It did not give specifics of the agreement.

“Establishing not only a better contract foundation for the next negotiation but also developing an engaged and motivated membership; that now has this experience to bring to bear in any future negotiation or organizing activity,” it said in a statement.

The strike began several weeks after a morale-boosting appearance in which U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth touted the need to boost defense manufacturing. It also took place during the U.S. war effort in Iran.

Bath Iron Works is a major shipbuilder for the Navy and was awarded a multiyear contract to make several Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers in 2023. Navy officials call the Arleigh Burke the “backbone of the Navy’s surface fleet” and last year exercised an option last year to add an additional destroyer to the contract.

The company did not respond to questions about whether the strike slowed production.

The Navy accepted delivery of the future Arleigh Burke-class USS Harvey C. Barnum, Jr., last year, and it is due to be commissioned next month, Hench said.

The shipyard had said on its website that salaried personnel, subcontractors and other employees who elected to come to work could be used to continue business operations during the strike. The shipyard’s total workforce is about 6,800 people, Hench said.

Associated Press writers Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, and Amy Taxin in Santa Ana, Calif. contributed.

FILE - Striking workers stage picket line outside Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, on Monday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrique Ngowi, File)