The Florida Panthers gave up a season-high in goals as they fell to the Carolina Hurricanes 9-1 at Lenovo Center, Friday.
The Hurricanes were led by Nikolaj Ehlers, who had a hat trick and an assist. Ehlers’ hatty was his first as a member of the Carolina Hurricanes and the sixth of his career.
The Metropolitan Division’s first-place team also got goals from Mark Jankowski, Alexander Nikishin, Andrei Svechnikov, Taylor Hall, and Eric Robinson. Svechnikov’s goal, scored on the power play, was his 400th career point in the NHL.
The Panthers’ only tally of the night was scored by Uvis Balinskis — a slap shot 1:19 into the second period. The Hurricanes emphatically scored eight unanswered goals afterward.
The Panthers managed just three shots in the opening period. No player on the team had a positive plus-minus. Goaltender Sergei Borovsky saved only 26 of 35 shots, good for a .743 save percentage. According to Money Puck, he allowed 4.41 goals above expected.
Six of Carolina’s nine goals were scored in the third period. They outshot Florida 35 to 16.
The Panthers’ horrendous performance came the day after they visited the White House in Washington, DC on Thursday. While there, they presented President Donald Trump with a customized no. 47 Panthers jersey, a Stanley Cup championship ring, a golden stick, but no Nobel Peace Prize.
“The two Cups was pretty good, but that walk with you might’ve trumped it all. That was pretty amazing. We’re so honored to be here,” Tkachuk said. “Being an American – I know I said it last year – but nothing beats this. I’m so proud to be an American and so proud to be here with you and everybody else.”
“Not only did you live up to the sky-high expectations, you gave us perhaps the most dominant playoff run in NHL history,” Trump said during his speech. “You led the Finals for over 255 minutes… and you denied Canada the Stanley Cup for the 32nd straight year.”
The Panthers’ loss was the first in a weekend back-to-back. They next play the Washington Capitals on Saturday night at Capital One Arena.
