Panthers shut out Hurricanes in Game 2, extend lead in Eastern Final

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe each had three points, and Sergei Bobrovsky made 17 saves for the Florida Panthers in a 5-0 win against the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final at Lenovo Center on Thursday.

The shutout was Bobrovsky's third of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the Panthers, who lead the best-of-7 series 2-0. Game 3 will be in Sunrise, Florida, on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Bennett had two goals and an assist, and Verhaeghe had three assists for the Panthers, who are the No. 3 seed from the Atlantic Division. Matthew Tkachuk had a goal and an assist, and Aaron Ekblad and Evan Rodrigues each had two assists.

“It might have been natural to take a little bit to get going tonight, and it was the exact opposite,” Tkachuk said. “It was an unreal start for us. That’s just a [heck] of a road trip.”

Florida forward Sam Reinhart left the game after the first period with a lower-body injury.

"We'll get him looked at tomorrow," Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. "So, Saturday I'll have something (an update) for you."

Frederik Andersen allowed four goals on 16 shots before being pulled for the Hurricanes, who are the No. 2 seed from the Metropolitan Division. Pyotr Kochetkov made four saves in the third period.

Carolina has now lost 14 straight games in the Eastern Conference Final (swept in past three appearances).

“I don’t know what I was watching in the first period. That didn’t go well,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “The margin here is tight, you’re not going to beat this team when we’re not on the same page. I think the intentions were good, everyone was trying ... but it’s not how we do it and it just backfired.”

Florida took a 1-0 lead at 1:17 of the first period. Tkachuk intercepted Andrei Svechnikov’s pass up the boards in Carolina's defensive zone and quickly fed Gustav Forsling, who curled out between the circles and scored with a snap shot over Andersen’s left pad.

“[Forsling’s] goal was huge to start the period,” Panthers forward A.J. Greer said. “Not being able to just settle and become comfortable there, that’s huge. They’re a good team and these are hard games. I know the scores are a little lopsided, but these are hard, hard games. These are grinding games. So, to be able to do that for 60 minutes after getting a lead, that says a lot about a team.”

Tkachuk made it 2-0 at 11:41. Verhaeghe brought the puck out from behind the net and passed across the crease to Tkachuk for a tap-in at the left post.

Bennett extended the lead to 3-0 at 15:50 of the first, deflecting Verhaeghe’s shot from the edge of the left circle for a power-play goal.

The goal came 20 seconds after Bobrovsky made one of his best saves of the game, denying Jordan Martinook from the slot on a short-handed rush with his right pad.

“We had a good game, a complete game again,” Bobrovsky said. “We skated, we worked hard, we were relentless. The group of guys are outstanding. It’s a privilege to be the goalie for this team.”

Bennett scored his second of the game at 19:21 of the second period to make it 4-0. Andersen stopped Verhaeghe’s initial wraparound attempt, but Bennett buried the rebound at the right post.

“That’s playoff hockey," Bennett said. “There’s going to be a lot more greasy goals, banging away at the net, throwing pucks at the net. They’re not all going to be pretty, especially in the playoffs. We’ll take them however we can get them.”

Aleksander Barkov made it 5-0 at 13:49 of the third period, redirecting Ekblad's wrist shot from the right point past Kochetkov for a power-play goal.

“We didn’t play up to our capability in the first two games,” Hurricanes forward Taylor Hall said. “Obviously, the start of the games is what put us in holes. They do a lot of things well all around the ice, so it’s going to be difficult for us, but we can’t really evaluate much until we can say we’ve played close to our best.”

NOTES: Forsling is the seventh Panthers defenseman to score a goal this postseason, which is tied for the most by a team in a playoff year in NHL history. ... Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield participated in warmups but missed his third straight game with an undisclosed injury. Scott Morrow took his spot for the second straight game. ... Hurricanes forward Mark Jankowski replaced Jesperi Kotkaniemi in the lineup after missing the previous five games with an undisclosed injury. Jankowski had one shot on goal in 12:14 of ice time.