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Tuesday, Oct. 31 7:00pm ET
Ozolinsh goal keeps 'Canes OT masters | |||||
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BOX SCORE
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- A victory snapping a five-game winless streak left the Carolina Hurricanes just as frustrated with their play. Sandis Ozolinsh scored with 2:25 left in overtime as the Carolina Hurricanes recovered after wasting a three-goal lead in the third period and beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-5 Tuesday night. "There is no word to describe it other than stupidity," captain Ron Francis said of Carolina's late-game collapse over the final 3:48 against one of the NHL's worst teams. "You have to understand the time and the score and the position you are in in the game. We didn't. We made bad decisions. "You feel good you were able to come back and win it but it leaves a very sour taste in your mouth the way it happened ... 5-2 with six minutes left -- the game should be over." The win extended Carolina's NHL-best overtime unbeaten streak to 22 straight (5-0-17). It appeared the Hurricanes would remain winless for a sixth straight game when Tampa Bay's Fredrik Modin, Brad Richards and Brian Holzinger scored late. "That's all anybody can ask of this team now, to show heart and courage every night," Tampa Bay coach Steve Ludzik said. "That's what I saw." That barrage came after Francis and Bates Battaglia scored 24 seconds apart early in the third period and Glen Wesley added another goal for a 5-2 Hurricanes lead with 9:13 left. Carolina had several defensive lapses over the final four minutes, and Holzinger beat Tyler Moss with 44 seconds left after Tampa Bay pulled its goalie to tie it at 5-5. "They drove the net and had some guys open, but a goalie has to make one save out of the three," Moss said. "It would have been our worst nightmare if we didn't get this win." Ozolinsh rescued Carolina with his game-winning goal from in close to complete his three-point night. "The power play was excellent tonight, two big goals, and then the dog-and-pony show started," Carolina coach Paul Maurice said. "There were blown coverages down behind the net and in the slot -- just awful." Francis' goal, on a power play, was his second of the game and the 476th of his career, breaking a 2-2 tie. Battaglia, benched early in the game after a turnover led to a Lightning goal, then scored on a wraparound shot to give Carolina a third-period cushion. Carolina had scored only four third-period goals in 10 games before the three scores against the Lightning. Martin Gelinas' 200th career goal was a short-handed one that gave the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead 1:37 into the second period. But Vincent Lecavalier tied it three minutes later, scoring his second goal of the game and fifth of the season as the puck squirted free during a scramble in front of Moss. Tampa Bay, which had four first-period goals in its first nine games, took a 1-0 lead 2:16 in, when Lecavalier capitalized on a Carolina turnover and beat Moss low on the glove side. Carolina responded 2½ minutes later with a rare power-play goal as Francis batted a rebound out of the air in front of Kevin Weekes. The point gave Francis 1,564 for his career and moved him out of a sixth-place tie with Detroit's Steve Yzerman. Game notesThe second goal by Francis moved him past Bernie Nichols and into 34th on the career list. ... Carolina goalie Arturs Irbe missed the game because of his grandmother's death in Latvia. ... Jeff Daniels was a healthy scratch the last four games but was bumped to Carolina's top line early in the game after Battaglia's turnover led to Tampa Bay's first goal. ... Carolina defenseman David Tanabe returned after missing the last five games with a concussion. ... Lecavalier's two-goal game was the fourth of his career. | ALSO SEE NHL Scoreboard Tampa Bay Clubhouse Carolina Clubhouse RECAPS Carolina 6 Tampa Bay 5
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