Recap: Young Canes Experience A Lesson Learned In Overtime Loss To Florida

SUNRISE, Fla. - The up-and-coming talent of the Carolina Hurricanes came out on the wrong side of a 5-4 score on Saturday, falling to the Florida Panthers in overtime.

GAME SUMMARY | BOX SCORE | TRAINING CAMP GROUPS | PRESEASON SCHEDULE

A quick turnaround after last night's 8-2 thrashing of an inexperienced Panthers roster at Lenovo Center, the Canes were on the other side of the coin this evening, roster-wise. Taking a lineup that included 13 players who have yet to play in a regular season game to Florida, the youthful batch came out of the gate with an impressive start though.

Jackson Blake surged confidence into the group just 2:22 in, recording a must-see highlight reel tally early.

Despite being held without a shot for the first 10-plus minutes, the Panthers would push back and tie the game during the back half of the period, but thanks to Juha Jaaska on a breakaway, the Canes had the lead at the end of 20.

Momentum stemming from the late tally appeared to carry over to the middle frame when Carolina then extended its lead to three. Jack Drury and Gleb Trikozov, making his preseason debut, scored just 24 seconds apart.

In total control ahead 4-1, the Canes then led themselves into some trouble. A few turnovers and mistakes led to three consecutive goals for the Panthers, sending the game to the third tied.

The scoring would come to a complete standstill for the final 20 minutes, forcing the game to overtime.

In the extra session, Florida scored their fifth and final goal, earning a split of the weekend series.

Additional Observations...

• Defenseman Aleksi Heimosalmi continues to impress with his ability to create space and offense with his feet. He's slippery.
• Speaking of the blue line, Panthers forward and NHL mainstay Anton Lundell got to know Bryce Montgomery tonight. Whether it be in Chicago (AHL) or Bloomington (ECHL) this year, the 21-year-old should continue to physically dominate.
• 2023 second round pick Felix Unger Sorum is ALWAYS trying to create when the puck is on his stick. Whether it be with his hands, his body positioning, or dishing it off, he's giving it his all to avoid giving away possession. Sometimes he's guilty of trying to do too much, but his intentions are always good and his level of thinking is high.
• It's too early to say exactly what happens for Jackson Blake, but, what we do know is that three preseason games remain. In at least one of the three, it feels logical that the Canes try and get him in a game playing alongside two guys who he would realistically play with if they are considering keeping him around for the opening night roster.

They Said It...

Rod Brind'Amour after the contest...

"I was happy with it. Other than 10 minutes of the game, we were pretty solid. We gave them a couple of turnovers that led to them getting their two goals, then they made nice plays on the other ones. I thought in the third, once we really got going, we were really good too. We had the majority of the play. It happens. A couple of our young guys were trying too hard on a couple of their goals. These are good learning moments."

Jack Drury sharing his perspective on the defeat and how the younger players can learn from a result like this...

"There were some positives that we can definitely build off of. As Rod said to us after the game, there was about a 10-minute gap where we came off of our game. We definitely have to learn from that... [The younger kids] can build confidence from the good things they did. All of them showed flashes of what makes them great. They did it consistently. They can gain confidence from that. They can also take a look back and absorb from the coaches what they need to do to fit into our system."

Jackson Blake describing how much more confident he felt tonight, playing in his second preseason game after making his debut earlier in the week and where his head is at going into an important week of training camp next week...

"Obviously (Tuesday) the first period was a little quicker [than I was used to...] I felt like I was a lot more comfortable and confident tonight and I think it showed. Right now I'm just trying to do whatever I can to keep things going. I'm trying to work as hard as I can, take it day by day, shift by shift, wherever I'm at. I'm just going to keep moving forward and do whatever I can to help the team."

What's Next?

The Canes are off on Sunday before returning to practice at Invisalign Arena on Monday and Tuesday to get set for a home tilt against the Predators on Wednesday.

Next Game: Wednesday, October 2 vs. Nashville - 7 p.m. - Lenovo Center | COMMUNITY PRESEASON GAME ($10 General Admission) | Tickets | Parking