NHL: Canes overwhelmed by Panthers, struggle in Game 1 of ECF defeat

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The streak continues for the Carolina Hurricanes – and not the good kind. With Tuesday’s 5-2 loss against the Florida Panthers, the Canes lost their 13th-straight Eastern Conference Finals matchup, dating back to 2009.

Carolina had plenty of chances in Tuesday’s game, out-shooting Florida 33-20 and generating eight takeaways. The Panthers, however, converted on high-quality chances the Canes couldn’t.

Florida raced out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, thanks to a powerplay backhander from Carter Verhaege and an Aaron Ekblad snapshot, with the second coming off a rare giveaway from Carolina captain Jordan Staal. The Panthers added a second powerplay goal in the third period, making the Canes’ otherwise-strong penalty kill largely ineffective.

Carolina responded on an almost no-goal in the first period’s closing seconds, with Seth Jarvis’ shot deflecting off Sebastian Aho’s skate and through Sergei Bobrovsky’s pads. The Canes added a second goal, but not until after the Panthers’ lead grew to 5-1 in the third period.

Carolina’s defense struggled mightily on Tuesday night, which was evident without Jalen Chatfield. Rod Brind’Amour made a debatable decision to start Scott Morrow in Chatfield’s place, when he could’ve gone with highly-touted rookie Alexander Nikishin, but the hope is Chatfield (or Nikishin) will start in Game 2.

Freddie Andersen, who looked like the Stanley Cup Playoffs’ top goaltender heading into Game 1, only saved 15 of the 20 shots he faced in net. Bobrovsky, a 2-time Vezina Trophy winner, turned away 31 of the 33 shots he faced.

If the Canes want to respond with an emphatic Game 2 victory on Thursday, May 22 at 8 p.m. inside the Lenovo Center, plenty has to change. Carolina needs to match Florida’s physicality, play better defense and find ways to generate even more high-quality shots.