George Richards, FHN Publisher
After the Vegas Golden Knights scored four goals in the second period of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night, Carolina Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour turned to former Panthers goalie Brandon Bussi.
Bussi, making his playoff debut, stopped Mitch Marner on a penalty shot early in the third allowing the Hurricanes to rally by scoring four third-period goals of their own to force overtime.
In all, Bussi was terrific and stopped the first 18 shots he faced.
The 19th, however, was a shot he never saw nor had a chance at stopping.
That came on a shot Shea Theodore fired off the end boards. The puck eluded teammate Jordan Martinook playing it behind the net and bounded right off the back of Bussi.
That goal handed Vegas a 5-4 win in double overtime.
Tough break, one that gives the Knights a 2-1 series lead.
Game 4 is in Vegas on Tuesday at 8 p.m. (ABC).
Bussi, who turns 28 later this month, signed a one-year deal with the Panthers last summer as a No. 3 goalie who would compete with Daniil Tarasov for the backup job.
Tarasov was the preferred candidate for the gig, and did nothing in camp to lose it. Although Bussi played great in camp, the plan was to get him to AHL Charlotte — and he needed to go through waivers to do so.
Carolina instead picked up the former Boston Bruins prospect and he never left.
Bussi won 11 of his first 12 starts with the Hurricanes and later signed a three-year contract with the team.
He went 31-6-2 with a 2.47/.895 during the regular season, helping the Hurricanes to the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
Frederik Andersen started the playoffs for the Hurricanes, going 12-1 heading into the Stanley Cup Final.
On Saturday night, Marner had a historic night with three goals and an assist in the second period as he helped turn a scoreless game into what appeared to be a rout.
But three minutes after Bussi stopped Marner on the penalty shot, Martinook scored to make it 4-1. Carolina ended up with three goals in a span of 39 seconds to get right back into the game before Andrei Svechnikov tied it with 1:42 remaining in regulation.
Andersen ended the night with 12 saves; Vegas’ Carter Hart allowed four goals on 33 shots.
ON DECK: FLORIDA PANTHERS OFFSEASON
- NHL Draft (9th in First Round, Seven Selections Overall): June 26-27; KeyBank Center, Buffalo
- NHL Free Agency: Opens July 1
- Panthers Development Camp: Late June/Early July; IcePlex, Fort Lauderdale
- Panthers Rookie Camp/Tournament: Late August/Early Sept.; Site TBA
- Panthers Training Camp: Early/Mid September; Fort Lauderdale
- 2026-27 NHL Season Opens: Late September; Site, Opponent TBA