RALEIGH, N.C. – It was a nail-biter in North Carolina.
Opening up the season in dramatic fashion, Gustav Forsling scored with 4.3 seconds left in overtime to lift the Florida Panthers to a 1-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday.
Even though there was only one goal, the game featured a combined 84 hits and 32 blocks.
"Playoff-style hockey,” Forsling said. “That felt like a playoff game to me. It was awesome.”
Per NHL stats, Forsling set a new franchise record for latest overtime goal by a defenseman in a regular-season game.
“He can unleash that anytime he wants, but he's a smart player and he doesn't like to get shots blocked,” head coach Paul Maurice said of Forsling’s fiery slap shot. “But he is a powerful, fit man. He played an incredible game, a strong game, and then he can still get up the ice at the end [of overtime] and unleash that. So, we're very fortunate to have him.”
Prior to puck drop, the Hurricanes raised their 2026 Stanley Cup champion banner into the rafters at Lenovo Center.
Rather than stay in the locker room and wait for the game to start, the Panthers, who took home the Cup in 2024 and 2025, opted to watch the entire ceremony as a team from their bench.
“We think it's really important that the teams respect each other for those achievements, whether it's an individual player hitting a milestone or a Stanley Cup,” Maurice said. “They earned the right to have as long as ceremony as they want it, and it was well done.”
The first period came and went with no score for either side.
The Panthers had two quality looks on drives to the net – one from Anton Lundell and the other from Sam Bennett – but Branon Bussi came up with saves on both for the Hurricanes.
A tight 20 minutes, the Panthers led 6-3 in shots on goal.
“Just grind and wait for that one bounce,” captain Aleksander Barkov said of the lack of ice to work with between the two powerhouses. “Us and Carolina, we've been doing a great job just waiting for that for those bounces and waiting for those breakdowns and that kind of stuff. I think we did a really good job today.”
In the second period, the penalty killers took center stage.
With both teams making frequent trips to the box, the Panthers had to kill off five power plays during the middle frame, while the Hurricanes were tasked with shutting down four.
Carolina also had a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:37.
“Their PK and our PK are kind of what stirs the drink for our teams,” said forward Brady Tkachuk, who saw 16:33 of ice time in his regular-season debut with the Panthers. “I mean, you don't really give up chances [at either side] because there's so much aggressiveness.”
In addition to both teams receiving timely blocks and key clears, Jacob Markstrom and Bussi also stood on their heads.
Coming up in the clutch with arguably his biggest stop of the game, Markstrom denied Hurricanes star forward Sebastian Aho on a shorthanded breakaway.
Earning the 26th shutout of his career, Markstrom finished the game with 15 saves.
"I thought we played a great game,” said Markstrom, who was re-acquired by the Panthers in a trade with the New Jersey Devils in the offseason. “Everyone, the whole lineup, you know, all four lines and all six D played really good. They made my job a lot easier."
Following a scoreless third period, the action shifted to overtime.
But even with a shootout looking like a forgone conclusion, Forsling somehow found the shot the Panthers needed in order to come out victorious at the end of the exhausting extra frame.
Locking and loading after a failed shot earlier in overtime, the shutdown Swede let rip a heavy slap shot from the point that sailed straight past Bussi to lock in the 1-0 win for Florida.
A veteran of 558 games, it was Forsling’s 60th career goal.
"It feels really good” Forsling said with a smile. “Scoring goals is not what I do very often, so it's always nice to score. ... My first try was so bad, so I had to get revenge."
Coming out on top in the clash of recent champions, the Panthers became just the fifth team in NHL history to shut out the reigning Stanley Cup champions in their season opener.
THEY SAID IT
“He felt very calm back there. He made some unbelievable saves. I'm really happy for him.” -- Gustav Forsling on Jacob Markstrom’s shutout
“It was cool to warm-up and start the game knowing he was on the same team. But once the game started there was just one focus, and it was getting the two points.” – Brady Tkachuk on playing his first game with his brother Matthew
“He can he can definitely shoot that puck. It was just a perfect play by him. Great shot.” – Aleksander Barkov on Gustav Forslng’s game-winning goal
CATS STATS
- The Panthers have won three straight season-opening games.
- Gustav Forsling scored his fourth career overtime goal with the Panthers.
- Jacob Markstrom recorded his sixth career win in a season-opening game.
- Seth Jones recorded a team-high 28:59 of ice time.
- Sandis Vilmanis blocked a team-high three shots.
- Sam Bennett racked up a team-high seven hits.
- The Panthers surrendered just 16 shot attempts at 5-on-5.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Golden Coast is calling.
After a long cross-country flight, the Panthers will open the California leg of their season-opening trip with a tilt against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET.
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