Artemi Panarin game-winning overtime goal in Game 3 against Hurricanes, Rangers take 3-0 series lead

In Game 1 of the best-of-seven series against the Hurricanes, Artemi Panarin‘s game-winning goal gave the Rangers the victory.

Then it was Vincent Trocheck‘s power-play goal off a rebound during the second overtime to beat Carolina.

Thursday night, it was Panarin’s time once again.

Panarin scored the game-winning goal in overtime Thursday at PNC Arena, giving the Rangers a 3-2 victory in Game 3 and a 3-0 commanding lead in the Eastern Conference second-round playoff series against the Hurricanes.

Panarin scored after a deflection of Vincent Trocheck’s pass. He finished with a goal and an assist. Rangers wingers Chris Kreider and Alexis Lafrenière each tallied a goal.

“It was clutch,” Rangers left winger Alexis Lafrenière said about Panarin. “He keeps it going in the playoffs. He is obviously a big player for us and he has been amazing.”

Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin was tremendous once again. After facing 46 shots in regulation, Shesterkin stopped 45 of 47 for the night.

The Blueshirts are 7-0 during the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov registered two points, including the game-tying goal with 1:36 remaining in regulation. After starting Frederik Andersen in the first two games of the series, Carolina turned to rookie goalie Pyotr Kochetkov for Game 3.

Andersen lost Games 1 and 2 at Madison Square Garden after stopping 54 of 62 shots. Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said they wanted to give Andersen a “little rest.”

Special Teams for both sides continued to be the story in the series. The Hurricanes were 0-for-5 on power play opportunities. Carolina hasn’t made a power-play goal for the series in 15 chances.

The Rangers also didn’t make a power play goal in Game 3. But Kreider scored a short-handed goal for the Rangers during the second period.

“I think we did a good job with our pressure,” Kreider said. “I thought they did a better job of their pressure. We would like to do a little bit better on our power play and take advantage of our chances.”

From the opening minutes, the Hurricanes seized the momentum. Halfway through the first period, the Rangers had only four shots on goal.

Carolina scored at 10:14 into the first period on Jake Guentzel’s fourth goal of the playoffs, which Dmitry Orlov and Svechnikov assisted.

Like the series’ first two games, the play on both sides was physical. At 11:25 in the first period, a huge scrum broke out around the Hurricanes’ net.

Both teams were called for two minor penalties each. Jimmy Vesey and Orlov were called for roughing. Barclay Goodrow and Jesperi Kotkaniem were put in the box for unsportsmanlike conduct.

During the media timeout following the multiple penalties, former Rangers and current Hurricanes defenseman Tony DeAngelo stood by the Rangers bench and took off his gloves, hoping one of the Blueshirts would fight him.

The Rangers finally got on the board almost halfway through the second period. Following an Adam Fox penalty, Kreider tied the game 1-1 on a short-handed goal (8:30). Mika Zibanejad assisted on Kreider’s goal, which tied him for the most points (12) through seven postseason games.

The game continued to be tied 1-1 in the third period until Alexis Lafrenière (6:25) scored his third goal of the playoff on an assist by Panarin and Trocheck. Lafrenière has eight points in his seven games this postseason.

With less than three minutes remaining in regulation, Kochetkov came off the ice so the Hurricanes could have an extra attacker. With the 6-on-5 advantage, Svechnikov’s wrist shot with 1:36 remaining in the third period tied the game at 2-2.

“We are really playing really damn good,” Brind’Amour said. “There’s two games going on here. We are losing one badly, but we are doing pretty damn good on the other.

“It is just how we can make this story get a little better. That’s the difference.”

Unlike Tuesday night’s thriller at The Garden, Panarin scored the game-winning goal 1:42 into overtime.

“I really like the way that we moved through that game,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said. “We knew we were going to have to handle their heat in the first period. We took some penalties and a couple we shouldn’t take, so that kind of fuels them as well.

“From the first period on, I thought we got better every minute of the game — better in the second, better in the third, better in the overtime — and played a really solid game.

“If you look at it like that, it is unfortunate they pulled the goaltender and you’re a minute and a half away from walking away from it. But the reality is, I really liked the way that we were playing the game and we kind of rolled that out into the overtime.”

Filip Chytil, who was thought to be out for the season, returned for the first time since Nov. 2. He missed 78 consecutive games, including six playoff contests, because of an upper-body injury. In late January, Chytil returned to practice but suffered a setback the next day when the Rangers announced that he would miss the remainder of the season.

Chytil returned to practice with the Rangers on April 12. Laviolette said he was medically cleared, but there was still no timetable for his return.

Chytil replaced Matt Rempe and started Game 3 as the left wing on the third line with Alexander Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko. He had one shot on goal in 12:02 of ice time.

“He has been working really hard,” Laviolette said about Chytil. “He was off for a bit, he came back. I thought the medical staff and the training staff and even the coaches did an unbelievable job over the last month ramping him up for a possible reentry.

“He has been attacking every day to get to that point. We all came to an agreement that the time was now and was approaching.

“Just leaving that last game with one day rest, it ended late and traveled down here. Really, we don’t have to change anymore. We needed to try and maximize the bench as much as we could. This was a perfect opportunity for him to reenter the lineup and I thought he got better as the game went on.”

Game 4 of the series will take place Saturday at 7 p.m. at PNC Arena.