Andersen’s 20-save shutout helps Carolina stay alive in Eastern Conference Final
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The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Florida Panthers 3-0 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final at Amerant Bank Arena on Monday.
Logan Stankoven, Sebastian Aho and Jordan Staal scored, and Frederik Andersen made 20 saves for Carolina, which trails 3-1 in the best-of-7 series.
What we learned: The Hurricanes can win a game in the Eastern Conference Final. The victory on Monday snapped a 15-game losing streak for Carolina in this round, a skid that began in 2009. They can also beat the Panthers in the conference final; before Monday the Hurricanes had lost seven straight to Florida in this round, getting swept in 2023 and losing the first three this season.
What it means for the Hurricanes: They live to fight another day. They also get some much-needed confidence against the Panthers. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this game was the performance of Andersen, who didn’t play in Game 3 after allowing nine combined goals in Games 1 and 2. If the Hurricanes are going to fight back in this series, they need Andersen to be on his game.
CAR@FLA, Gm4: Andersen earns his 5th career postseason shutout in victory over the Panthers
What it means for the Panthers: They need to go back on the road to try to get back to the Stanley Cup Final for the third straight season. The good news is they have been a force on the road this postseason, going 7-2 while averaging 4.78 goals per game.
Key moment: Stankoven’s goal at 10:45 of the second period gave the Hurricanes their first lead of the series and they made it stick, getting two empty-net goals late in the third period for the win.
Unsung player of the game: Jaccob Slavin was a defensive force for Carolina on Monday, blocking four shots while playing 28 minutes. He led the Hurricanes’ defensive effort and perhaps provided a blueprint for Carolina to defeat the Panthers.
What’s next: Florida will have a second chance to reach the Cup Final when it plays Carolina in Game 5 at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).
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