Connect with us

Florida Panthers

Preseason Takeaways, Game 4: Carolina Hurricanes 4, Florida Panthers 3

Published

on

Florida Panthers
Florida Panthers forward Chris Tierney prepares to take a faceoff during his team’s 4-3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh on Saturday afternoon. — Photo courtesy @FlaPanthers

The Florida Panthers brought only four NHL regulars to Raleigh on Saturday and saw two of them score in a 4-3 exhibition loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena.

Florida drops to 1-3 this preseason with the loss. The Panthers play host to the Lightning on Thursday night.

Two goals from Brent Burns in his preseason debut with the Hurricanes — including the eventual game-winner with 11 minutes to go — propelled the Hurricanes to a win.

Carolina jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first period, scoring twice in the first 12 minutes of the game.

Panthers Hockey is Back!

For Daily Coverage of the Florida Panthers from the Preseason to the Playoffs, Get a Subscription to Florida Hockey Now!

Burns got them started with a floater from above the face-off circle 6:12 in while Andrei Svechnikov followed it up with a wiretap shot on an odd-man rush six minutes later.

The Hurricanes led 12-0 in shots through the first intermission against a Panthers group ladened with AHL-bound players.

Get FHN+ today!

Florida got itself back in the game with contributions from the few NHL regulars in the second period.

Rudolfs Balcers got them started with a wrist shot off of a feed from Chris Tierney 48 seconds into the frame. Ryan Lomberg muscled a backhand shot in through traffic four minutes later to tie the game up.

Charlotte Checkers captain Zac Dalpe scored a power play goal off of a feed from Eetu Luostarinen to give the Panthers their first lead of the game with 10:44 to go in the second period.

That lead would only last five minutes. Martin Necas fired a one-timer from the face-off dot with 5:16 to go in the second to tie things up at three.

Burns put the Hurricanes ahead with 11 minutes to go with a shot that deflected off of Matt Kiersted’s skate and in.

Here are my takeaways from Saturday afternoon’s game:

  • Spencer Knight looked sharp, making multiple big saves on 2-on-0 rushes to keep the Panthers in the game. He finished the afternoon with 43 saves on 47 shots (.915).
  • Eetu Luostarinen had a lot more jump to his game in the offensive zone. He was creating offense with his passing and had two of Florida’s 10 shots.
  • After this afternoon’s game, Florida’s opening night lineup should be a whole lot clearer. Grigori Denisenko especially seems to be on the outside looking in after struggling to keep possession of the puck multiple times.
  • Santtu Kinnunen seems to have a future as a power play quarterback. He moves the puck smoothly and his swift lateral movement allows him to speed up the cycle game.
  • Anton Levtchi showed off his playmaking ability on multiple occasions. He set up Lomberg’s goal from behind the Carolina net and started multiple rushes by finding his teammates in transition.
  • Spencer Knight had another busy night for the Panthers as he faced 47 shots in the game — including 19 in the third period. Florida, which got off only two shots in the first, ended with a grand total of 10.

FLORIDA PANTHERS PRESEASON

Up Next

Tampa Bay Lightning at Florida Panthers

Where, When: FLA Live Arena, Sunrise; Thursday, 7 p.m.

Tickets: CLICK HERE

Streaming: FloridaPanthers.com 

2022 Preseason — Sept. 26: Florida 4, Nashville 3 (OT); Nashville 4, Florida 0. Sept. 29: Carolina 5, Florida 2. Oct. 1: Carolina 4, Florida 3. Thursday: vs. Tampa Bay, 7 p.m. Saturday: at Tampa Bay, 4 p.m

Regular Season Opener: Oct. 13 at New York Islanders

Get FHN in your inbox!

Be the first to know. Enter your email to get the latest from Florida Hockey Now delivered straight to your inbox.

FHN on Facebook

Panthers Team & Cap Info

Meta