Recap: Rangers Take 3-0 Series Lead After Another Overtime Victory

RALEIGH, NC. - For a second consecutive game the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers needed overtime, and for a second consecutive game, the Presidents' Trophy winners came out on top.

This time it was Artemi Panarin serving as the hero, giving his team a 3-2 win.

Desperate Start...

With the series shifting back to Raleigh for the first time, Rod Brind'Amour elected to make a pair of changes to his lineup.

Going with Pyotr Kochetkov in net for the first time since April 14, the head coach also decided to reinsert Evgeny Kuznetsov after he was a healthy scratch in Game 2.

Carolina knew they needed to come out hungry, both because their Game 1 start was detrimental and they were hoping to avoid falling down three games to none.

Setting the tone with physicality, the Canes outhit the Rangers 16-3 to start the night.

Andrei Svechnikov was a big part of that, leading the way with five. He was also a big part of the game-opening goal, picking up a secondary assist on Jake Guentzel's third goal in two games.

Bumping into a few Rangers before beating Erik Gustafsson to a loose puck in the corner, Svechnikov then distributed the puck out high to Dmitry Orlov. Orlov's shot-pass was redirected by Guentzel past Igor Shesterkin, engaging the home crowd in a big way early.

New York Pushes Back...

Aside from coming up empty-handed on their power play chance, it was an all-good start to the night for Carolina. The second period belonged to the Rangers though.

Not only did the Canes go 0-for-2 on the power play, but they allowed three breakaways and a shorthanded goal, as New York tied the game.

Chris Kreider worked in on a two-on-one with Mika Zibanejad for the equalizer, and the latter placed a perfect pass onto the tape of his teammate, who poked it through Kochetkov.

As a whole, Carolina did not have the same juice that they did to start the night and at the end of 40 minutes, it was a 1-1 game and all of their momentum from their stellar first had been wiped away.

Not Dead Yet...

Going to the finish, the Canes needed to find a way to get back to the game that made them successful to start the night.

They needed to be resilient as well after New York claimed their first lead of the night 6:25 into the frame.

Alexis Lafrenière, like Guentzel, cashed in with his third goal in three games, putting his club ahead 2-1.  Working in transition, Lafrenière took a pass from Artemi Panarin and put a shot past Kochetkov that the Canes' netminder had no chance on.

Thrusting the Rangers in control for most of the third, Brind'Amour resorted to pulling his goalie in the final three minutes.  It worked out just as he hoped though.

On the next possession, a Brady Skjei shot from the point got through traffic and was tipped net-side by Sebastian Aho.  Hopping off of Shesterkin's pads, Svechnikov then swooped in to pick up the loose change and score, evening the contest at 2-2 with 1:36 left in regulation to force OT.

A Sudden & Brutal End...

Giving Carolina hope going to the extra session, unfortunately, that did not last long.

Only 1:43 in, on New York's very first shot, Panarin gave his team a three-game lead in the series.

A rimmed puck in the corner hopped over the stick of a Canes defender, giving Vincent Trocheck possession.  Putting one to the front of the net, Panarin was there to change its direction past Kochetkov, ending the night in shocking fashion for Carolina.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour following the loss...

"We're focusing on how bad we're playing, but we're really playing pretty damn good. I look at that. I'm separating it. There's two games going on here. If you want to write the right story, that's what's going on. We're losing one (the special teams one) badly, but we're doing pretty damn good on the other one. It's just how can we figure out how to make (the special teams) story a little better? That's the difference."

Brind'Amour continuing on the power play...

"We're not executing very well. You have to give them credit, they're doing a great job on the kill. I thought the first two-and-a-half power plays were actually quite good. A lot of good looks. Then we gave up that shorty and then we got away from what we were originally trying to do. Obviously that's three games in a row of the same story. I hate it for the guys because we're playing I think really well. If you take (special teams) out of it, they've done everything that we've asked our guys to do... Our special players have to be special at the right times and that's during the power play. That's what's missing here right now."

Jordan Staal offering his thoughts...

"It's a broken record.  Obviously, our special teams have got to be better.  Our power play has to sneak in a couple of goals, or a goal, or two to get us in a better position to end games.  The five-on-five game has been good.  Have we completely buried teams?  No, they're a good team too.  There are a few things on the special teams side I think we can get better at.  We'll start with getting better at it tomorrow and then we'll find a way to win a game."

Staal on how the team moves forward now in a 3-0 hole...

"We're excited about tomorrow.  We're excited about getting better and finding ways to beat this team.  It's going to be a new day tomorrow.  It's going to hurt tonight.  I won't get much sleep, but we'll have a new day tomorrow and we'll find a way to win one game.  It's been our motto here for a long, long time, and we'll start with that..."

Andrei Svechnikov showing support for Kochetkov, who played his first game in almost a month...

"He was the best player out there for us.  He made lots of saves.  Obviously not playing for a month, that's pretty hard.  He probably was nervous, but he was unbelievable today."

What's Next?

The Canes are scheduled to practice on Friday before returning to action on Saturday for Game 4.

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