RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Pittsburgh Penguins will try to even the score with the Carolina Hurricanes when the two teams complete a home-and-home series at PNC Arena on Saturday.
Hurricanes forward Nathan Gerbe scored the decisive power-play goal early in the third period Friday night in a 4-2 win. Carolina outshot Pittsburgh 35-22 and outplayed the Penguins for most of the game.
Pittsburgh center Marcel Goc did not travel with the team after taking a shot off his foot late in the first period.
"It looks like there's no break," Penguins coach Mike Johnston said. "It's a bruise right now. We will see how he comes along in the next couple days."
Replacing Goc in the lineup will be Andrew Ebbett, who was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League on Saturday. With 200 games of NHL experience, Ebbett is expected to be a natural fit in the Pittsburgh lineup.
"He's played well down there," Johnston said. "He's a lot like Goc. He's very responsible at both ends of the ice. He manages the puck well and has experience at this level. He will fit in well with our guys. He knows most of the players and he knows how we want to play, so it should be an easy transition."
Carolina center Riley Nash exited in the third period after a hit from Sidney Crosby drew blood.
Here are the projected lineups:
PENGUINS
Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – Patric Hornqvist
Nick Spaling – Evgeni Malkin – Blake Comeau
Jayson Megna – Brandon Sutter – Steve Downie
Zach Sill – Andrew Ebbett – Craig Adams
Olli Maatta – Christian Ehrhoff
Scratched: Robert Bortuzzo
Injured: Pascal Dupuis (blood clot), Beau Bennett (lower body), Marcel Goc (lower body)
HURRICANES
Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Elias Lindholm
Nathan Gerbe – Riley Nash – Alexander Semin
Jeff Skinner – Victor Rask – Andrej Nestrasil
Zach Boychuk – Jay McClement – Patrick Dwyer
Ron Hainsey – John-Michael Liles
Scratched: Brad Malone, Jay Harrison
Injured: Jordan Staal (broken fibula), Brett Bellemore (lower body)
Who's hot: Gerbe has two goals and four points in his past five games. … Crosby has two assists in each of the past three games. Hornqvist has seven points in his past seven games.
NHL.com is the official web site of the National Hockey League. NHL, the NHL Shield, the word mark and image of the Stanley Cup, the Stanley Cup Playoffs logo, the Stanley Cup Final logo, Center Ice name and logo, NHL Conference logos, NHL Winter Classic name, and The Biggest Assist Happens Off The Ice are registered trademarks and Vintage Hockey word mark and logo, The Game Lives Where You Do, NHL Winter Classic logo, NHL Heritage Classic name and logo, NHL Stadium Series name and logo, NHL All-Star logo, NHL Face-Off name and logo, NHL. TV, NHL Premium, NHL After Dark, NHL GameCenter, NHL GameCenter LIVE, NHL Network name and logo, NHL Tonight name and logo, On The Fly, NHL Awards name and logo, NHL Draft name and logo, Hockey Fights Cancer, Because It's The Cup, NHL Green name and logo, NHL Vault, Hockey Is For Everyone, NHL Thanksgiving Showdown name and logo, NHL Centennial Classic name and logo, NHL Centennial Season logo, NHL100 Classic name and logo, NHL Global Series name and logo, NHL China Games name and logo, and Don't Miss A Moment are trademarks of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks and NHL team logos and marks depicted herein are the property of the NHL and the respective teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of NHL Enterprises, L.P. © NHL 2018. All Rights Reserved. All NHL team jerseys customized with NHL players' names and numbers are officially licensed by the NHL and the NHLPA. The Zamboni word mark and configuration of the Zamboni ice resurfacing machine are registered trademarks of Frank J. Zamboni & Co., Inc. © Frank J. Zamboni & Co., Inc. 2018. All Rights Reserved. Any other third party trademarks or copyrights are property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.