RECAP: Panthers fall in shootout to Hurricanes in preseason tilt

RALEIGH, NC – Learning before it counts for real.

In a back-and-forth preseason matchup, the Florida Panthers fell to the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 in a shootout at Lenovo Center on Tuesday.

“We got the first block of training camp done for these guys,” head coach Paul Maurice said after the team reached the halfway point of preseason.

Brady Tkachuk is looking comfortable already.

Netting his third goal of the preseason, Tkachuk broke the ice with a one timer on a pass from Sam Reinhart at 4:31.

Evening the score at 1-1, Bradly Nadeau poked in a loose puck at 7:00.

Answering back just 18 seconds later, Aleksander Barkov put in a no-look wrist shot on the rush to put the Panthers ahead 2-1.

“I’m not surprised,” Seth Jones said of the goal. “We see it all the time in practice.”

Getting put to the test on the penalty kill to end the first and start the second period, the Panthers prevented any damage while the Hurricanes had a five-on-three and five-on-four man-advantage.

“I know it’s preseason, but you see guys getting in the habit of blocking shots, getting in lanes, playing in front of our goalie hard,” said Jones. “

Getting his first look between the pipes for the Panthers, Akira Schmid came into the game halfway through the second period for Jacob Markstrom.

The 26-year-old netminder signed a two-year deal with the Panthers in late July.

Bringing the game back to even, and the final goal in regulation, Justin Robidas snuck one in high to make it 2-2 at 11:25.

Skating out for the third period, the Panthers were without Brady Tkachuk who did not enter the game after the second.

Luckily, there is nothing to worry about.

“Just precautionary,” Maurice said after the game. “May well be on the ice tomorrow.”

Trading chances in the third period and overtime, neither team could find the back of the net to put the game away.

Needing a shootout to decide the outcome, the Hurricanes were able to get an edge and took the second game of the preseason 3-2.

“We won’t use much of it,” Maurice said of the game. “It’s not what those two games were for us.”

THEY SAID IT

“That was pretty good. It’s impressive.” – Paul Maurice on Aleksander Barkov’s no-look goal

“It’s really just about getting your timing right with the little plays that we make all of over the ice and getting that chemistry back from the year before.” – Seth Jones on preseason games

“Just get the feel of playing a game again.” – Akira Schmid on preseason takeaways

CATS STATS

- Brady Tkachuk has five points (3G, 2A) in the two preseason games.

- Jacob Markstrom and Akira Schmid each made 12 saves.

- Matthew Tkachuk had a team-high four shots

- Sandis Vilmanis led the Panthers with four hits

- Aleksander Barkov and Anton Lundell each won 72% of their faceoffs

WHAT’S NEXT?

Battle of Florida, preseason edition.

The Panthers will head to Tampa Bay to take on the Lightning at Benchmark International Arena on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET.

To watch, visit PanthersPlus.tv.