Hurricanes fall to Panthers in overtime of Eastern Conference Final Game 2 in Raleigh
It wasn’t four overtimes, but it was once again next-goal-wins territory Saturday night in Game 2 between the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers. For the second consecutive game between the clubs — and third in three NHL playoff games this round, the game went longer than the prescribed 60 minutes of regulation play.
This time, though, Matthew Tkachuk spared the sold-out PNC crowd another long night of hockey when he beat Antti Raanta with a shot at 1:51 of the first overtime — on the power play after a hooking call to Jesperi Kotkaniemi — to put the Canes firmly in do-or-die territory in the series.
The score put a bow on yet another grinding, tight-checking game between the two former Southeast Division rivals, a game in which neither team enjoyed much flow. In Thursday-into-Friday’s Game 1 marathon, the Canes had the better of play in the third period, outshooting the Panthers 14-2 without any goals to show for it. Saturday, the Canes again enjoyed a distinct advantage in the final frame of regulation (8-2 in shots), and some after-whistle physicality started to creep into the stoppages.
Game 3 of the tightly contested series will be Monday night in Sunrise, Fla., another 8 p.m. scheduled puck drop.
The Carolina Hurricanes took a quick lead Saturday night, getting a rare goal from defenseman Jalen Chatfield just 1:43 into the contest.
Chatfield finished a tic-tac-toe play from Sebastian Aho on the left half wall. Aho initially created a turnover in the center zone, got the puck to Stefan Noesen and drove into the zone. Noesen gained the blue line, found Aho through a seam and then had a front seat for a slap pass from Aho in front to Chatfield, who redirected the puck past Florida keeper Sergei Bobrovsky’s left pad.
The Panthers responded with what they thought was an equalizer moments later on a Gustav Forsling floater through traffic, but the Canes challenged successfully for offside.
In the one-good-turn-deserves-another department, the Canes also thought they went up by two late in the first, only to have a potential Jack Drury goal wiped off the board by another successful offside challenge.
The Hurricanes started the second period exactly the opposite of the way they started the first, and it burned them.
After a lollygagging power play with Florida’s Aleksander Barkov in the penalty box, the Canes left Barkov alone in front of keeper Antti Raanta shortly after the penalty expired, and the Panthers’ captain juked Raanta to the ice and flipped a backhander into the cage to knot the game at 1-1.
Takeaways from Game 2
▪ Overtime, again? Of course there was overtime again. Why not?
▪ All eyes were on the Canes’ locker room door when pregame warmups began. Leading out the Canes was Raanta, answering the goaltending question that Rod BrindAmour likes to keep in play until game time.
In his first game since April 25, Raanta had little work for the first 15 minutes of the game, then was busier and did not always look comfortable in the crease. But it went to overtime 1-1.
▪ Question for Game 3: Raanta or Frederik Andersen? One has to think it will be Andersen after a few days of rest.
▪ Bobrovsky no question has been the difference in the first two games. One reason: the Canes have not gotten enough bodies in front of the crease to make life more miserable for Bobrovsky, who is dialed in. He’s not going to be beaten on straight-line shots with no traffic.
▪ After the first 60 minutes, the Canes had 34 scoring chances and 22 high-danger chances (NaturalStatTrick.com). And one goal. That’s why it went to overtime.
▪ One defensive slip against the Panthers’ Aleksander Barkov and Florida’s No.16 will burn you. He did that to the Canes in the second period, going unchecked in the Carolina zone as the Panthers forechecked. Barkov faked a between-the-legs shot, then beat Raanta with a backhander. Sick shot, big goal.
Barkov has been the best skater in the series and his line a matchup nightmare for the Canes.
▪ The Canes’ first penalty kill of the game might have been their best of the season. They were credited with six shorthanded shots on goal. But, again, nothing got past Bobrovsky.
▪ The Canes Seth Jarvis and Panthers’ Radko Gudas collided along the boards in the third, and Jarvis, all of 5-10 and 175 pounds, got the better of it with a reverse hit on the defenseman. Down went Gudas. Big ovation for that one.
▪ When the second period ended 1-1, there was almost a sense of dread in PNC Arena, as if everyone had the same thought: more overtimes? Sure enough …
Overtime games can be thrillers but almost 80 minutes of overtime was too much of a “good” thing.
▪ The Canes needed to squeeze more out of the first than one goal. With four minutes left in the period, they had outshot Florida 20-4.
For those who wondered if it would be two tired teams Saturday, fighting a Game 1 hangover, they were not. The extra days before the series began helped both teams.
This story was originally published May 20, 2023 at 11:40 AM.
