Recap: Canes Snag Point in OT Loss to Panthers

SUNRISE - The Carolina Hurricanes saw a two-goal lead disappear in the third period but held on to grab a point in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Florida Panthers.

HIGHLIGHTS | PHOTO GALLERY | STATISTICS

The Difference

Early in the third period, the Canes put themselves in prime position to come away with a victory and punch their ticket to the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
They stretched their lead to 3-1 when Brett Pesce's point shot rattled off Gustav Forsling (but apparenlty not then Andrei Svechnikov's skate?) three minutes into the third period.

But then the Panthers clawed their way back with two goals in 92 seconds to tie the game at three. Forsling netted the first goal, a one-timer off a cross-ice feed from Jonathan Huberdeau.
"We had the game 3-1 and were in a great spot. The next shift can't be that," head coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "That goal got the momentum for them, and we didn't really recover."
Then, the Panthers crashed the crease shorthanded, and Alex Wennberg chipped in the game-tying tally. Sam Bennett hit the post shortly after, and Florida had all the momentum.
"You're looking to put the game away on the power play, and then you give it up," Brind'Amour said. "That's tough. That's a tough pill to swallow."
The Panthers out-shot the Canes 13-6 in the third period and more than tripled them up in scoring chances (14-4), according to NaturalStatTrick.
"We definitely have to be better playing with the lead and have that killer instinct," Dougie Hamilton said. "It wasn't a very good third."
Aleksander Barkov then slipped a shot past Alex Nedeljkovic just 24 seconds into overtime to end the game.

Plus/Minus

Plus: Dougie Hamilton
In his 599th career NHL game, Hamilton led the way offensively for the Canes with two goals, his first multi-goal game of the season. It took him only two shifts before he got the Canes on the board first.
Sebastian Aho and Steven Lorentz worked to cycle the puck deep to Svechnikov, who then fed Hamilton at the point. Hamilton's one-timer deflected up off the stick of Patric Hornqvist and eluded Chris Driedger through traffic.

Early in the second period, Jordan Staal won the first faceoff of his team's second power play of the game. The Canes worked the puck around from high to low: Hamilton to Svechnikov to Trocheck to Aho and back to Hamilton, all quick touches that culminated in Hamilton's one-time rocket from the top of the right circle.

"It's obviously nice when it goes in," Hamilton said. "I don't think too much about if it actually goes in or not. It's more about the process of trying to get shots."
Minus: Injuries piling up
The Canes' injury list continues to swell as the physical effects of a compressed schedule take a toll. Jordan Martinook left Thursday's game with a lower-body injury, and Jesper Fast was ruled out of Saturday's rematch with a lower-body injury.
"He didn't feel right," Brind'Amour said. "We would have liked to have him, obviously. Maybe it makes a difference, but guys don't have to play right now with injuries. We just don't need to do that."
In the absence of Martinook and Fast, Max McCormick and Drew Shore were elevated from the taxi squad to the lineup. The forward lines, then, were shuffled and juggled and shuffled again.
The depleted Canes still managed to get a point out of the game and leave the state of Florida still in first place in the Central Division with six of a possible eight points through two-thirds of this road trip.
"That's a win for us in a lot of ways,' Brind'Amour said. "[The Panthers] were better than us tonight, for sure, but somehow we managed to get a point out of it, and I think that says a lot about our group."

Stats Pack

6-0-2: The Canes close out their regular-season series with the Panthers with a 6-0-2 record and 14 of a possible 16 points.
21: With two assists, Aho, the Canes' leading scorer, now is better than a point-per-game producer in his career against Florida with 21 points (9g, 12a) in 20 games.

Quote of the Night

"That kind of cost us." - Andrei Svechnikov on the Panthers' shorthanded, game-tying goal

Up Next

Dallas marks the final leg of this six-game road trip, as the Canes and Stars will face off on back-to-back nights.