Sergei Bobrovsky was outstanding on Tuesday night, making 31 saves as the Florida Panthers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5 to 2 in Game 1 of the NHL Eastern Conference Final at the Lenovo Center.
The best of seven series continues on Thursday, which will be early Friday morning in South Africa.
Bobrovsky praised his team’s full performance, calling it a complete game. He said getting the first win was important, especially against a side like Carolina, who always compete hard.
Carter Verhaeghe had a goal and an assist for the Panthers, who are the third seed from the Atlantic Division. Evan Rodrigues and Tomas Nosek each added two assists.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice admitted he did not love his team’s overall game but said that was expected when facing a new opponent in a series. He believes they can improve from here.
Verhaeghe opened the scoring on a power play midway through the first period. He collected a short pass from Aleksander Barkov and lifted a backhand over Frederik Andersen’s shoulder.
Aaron Ekblad doubled the lead a few minutes later with a sharp shot from the left circle after Rodrigues won the puck behind the net.
Carolina pulled one back just before the break. Seth Jarvis set up Sebastian Aho, who redirected the puck past Bobrovsky with his skate to make it 2 to 1.
A J Greer struck early in the second period to restore the two goal lead. Niko Mikkola slipped a clever pass around a defender, and Greer smashed a one timer under the crossbar.
Greer said the team stuck to their game plan and showed their identity. He praised Bobrovsky and the defence for making things tough on Carolina.
Sam Bennett added another goal in the third period, scoring Florida’s second power play goal with a wrist shot through traffic.
Bennett said the team’s pace and defensive positioning made a big difference on the night.
Eetu Luostarinen made it 5 to 1 with a one timer from close range after a pass from behind the net by Nosek.
Carolina grabbed a late goal through Jackson Blake, who finished off a pass from Jarvis on the power play.
Despite the loss, Jarvis said the team still believes they can respond. He credited the Panthers for taking their chances and said the series is far from over.
Carolina have now lost 13 straight games in the Eastern Conference Final, having been swept in their last three appearances. Coach Rod Brind’Amour said the Panthers’ power play was the difference but believes there is still everything to play for.
Photo: Jaylynn Nash/Getty Images
