Rangers win Game 3 in OT, push Hurricanes to brink

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Artemi Panarin scored at 1:43 of overtime, and the New York Rangers defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Second Round at PNC Arena on Thursday.

New York leads the best-of-7 series 3-0. Game 4 will be here Saturday (7 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Panarin won it with a between-his-legs redirection in front after Vincent Trocheck fed him with a backhand pass from the right face-off circle.

“I was so happy, a lot of emotion,” Panarin said. “I can’t really explain to you. I guess I [could] not really understand what happened. It’s nice to see a puck go in the net, especially in that game.”

Trocheck had two assists and has a seven-game point streak to start the Stanley Cup Playoffs (12 points; five goals, seven assists).

“I just got on the ice,” Trocheck said. “[Alexis Lafrenière] noticed that we were making a change and [it was] a smart move by him rimming the puck to the guys coming on the ice. I think (Hurricanes defenseman Dmitry) Orlov, the puck bounced off his stick and I just saw a little bit of daylight. I saw ‘Bread’ (Panarin) crashing the net, and it was a great tip by him.”

Andrei Svechnikov had tied it 2-2 for Carolina with 1:36 remaining in the third period and goalie Pyotr Kochetkov pulled for the extra attacker, scoring on a rebound from the right hash marks.

“That was kind of a second life we got there,” Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho said. “But we had plenty of chances to win that game before that.”

Chris Kreider and Lafreniere scored, and Igor Shesterkin made 45 saves for the Rangers, who are the No. 1 seed from the Metropolitan Division and are 7-0 in the playoffs. Panarin also had an assist.

“It's unfortunate they pull the goaltender, you're a minute and a half away from walking away from it,” New York coach Peter Laviolette said. “But the reality is we really liked the way we were playing the game, and we kind of rode that out into the overtime.” 

Jake Guentzel scored for the Hurricanes, who are the No. 2 seed from the Metropolitan Division, and Kochetkov made 22 saves in his first game of the playoffs.

Kochetkov had not played since making 14 saves in a 4-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 14. Frederik Andersen played the first two games against the Rangers and all of Carolina’s five-game series against the New York Islanders in the first round.

“It hurts, you’ve got to be realistic,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “They’re probably as down as they’re ever going to be. You’ve got to feel that. That’s the keep-it-real part of it. But you’ve got to pick yourself up and come back tomorrow. We’re still playing.”

The Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead at 10:14 of the first period when Guentzel set up in the slot and redirected a pass from Orlov.

Kreider tied it 1-1 with a short-handed goal at 8:30 of the second period. He drove to the net and scored through the five-hole on the backhand off a pass from Mika Zibanejad, who started the play when he poked the puck around Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burns inside the Rangers blue line.

Lafreniere put New York in front 2-1 from the high slot at 6:25 of the third, one-timing a backhand pass from Panarin.

“[Lafreniere] has got unbelievable habits for a young guy,” Kreider said. “The way he shows up at the rink, the way he works at his craft. He just wants to get better, wants to have an impact, wants to win.”

The Hurricanes went 0-for-5 on the power play and are 0-for-15 in the series.

“We’re not executing very well,” Brind’Amour said. “You’ve got to give them credit. They’re doing a great job on the kill. That’s three games in a row, same story. I hate it for the guys because we’re playing really well. You take that part out of it, they’ve done everything we’ve asked the guys to do.”

Rangers forward Filip Chytil, who had not played since sustaining an upper-body injury Nov. 2, returned to the lineup and had one shot on goal in 12:02 of ice time. He replaced Matt Rempe, who was scratched after playing 4:03 in Game 1.

“We’re so happy to get him back, get him back in the fold, get him back around the team,” Kreider said of Chytil. “Obviously, it’s kind of a long, frustrating road for him, so it’s been amazing having him come in and buzz around out there and have a positive impact.”

NOTES: Zibanejad has a seven-game point and assist streak to start the playoffs (12 points; three goals, nine assists). … The Hurricanes’ past eight playoff losses have been by one goal dating to Game 1 of the 2023 Eastern Conference Final against the Florida Panthers. … Aho has six assists in the past three games.