The Carolina Hurricanes picked up a 3-2 overtime win in Game 4 over the Philadelphia Flyers to secure their spot in the Eastern Conference Final, becoming the first team to go 8-0 through the first two rounds under the NHL’s current playoff format.
Just as they did in Game 2, the Flyers came out of the gate hot and made the Canes pay, as Tyson Foerster had plenty of time in the slot and rifled a wrister past Frederik Andersen to make it 1-0 for the home team.
Unlike in Game 2, Philadelphia was unable
to add a second goal to its lead in the first period, as the game went into the second with a 1-0 score.
The Hurricanes played one of their best periods of the series in the second, outshooting the Flyers 15-4 and beating them out 8-2 in terms of high-danger chances.
One chance that was not particularly high-danger tied the game when Jackson Blake flung a puck toward Dan Vladar that pinballed off of Jamie Drysdale’s pants and into the net.
It looked like Carolina took a 2-1 lead just moments later when Mark Jankowski fired home a rebound, but a challenge and review determined that William Carrier had interfered with Vladar in the crease, keeping the game tied after two periods.
Logan Stankoven took the NHL lead in goals in the playoffs when he buried a gorgeous feed from Taylor Hall to make it 2-1, but the Flyers weren’t ready to give up just yet, as Alex Bump tied the game after Travis Konecny worked the puck to him by making a phenomenal play on the forecheck to strip K’Andre Miller of the puck.
The game went to overtime tied at two apiece, and it didn’t take too long for the Hurricanes to end the game and the series.
Hall picked up the puck at center ice and gained the zone with control and numbers, pushing the defense back to feed Blake and leave him plenty of time and space for a shot.
Blake ripped one off of Vladar’s glove, and the puck hung in the air for a bit before falling in behind the goal line to deal the decisive blow.
