Larsson scores late, Sabres rally to beat Hurricanes 3-2
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) Johan Larsson scored with 2:49 left and the Buffalo Sabres rallied to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Larsson's winner came a minute after Evander Kane tied it, and Carlo Colaiacovo also scored to help the Sabres earn their third win in five games.
Joakim Nordstrom gave the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead with 6:20 remaining. Chris Terry also scored for Carolina, which has lost five straight.
Chad Johnson stopped 25 shots for the Sabres, while Cam Ward made 22 saves for the Hurricanes.
Kane started Buffalo's late rally with 3:49 left, taking a pass from Ryan O'Reilly from behind the net and snapping it past Ward. Brian Gionta then took the puck from Jeff Skinner and found Larsson for the winner.
It was without question a crushing loss for the Hurricanes, who entered seven points behind Detroit for the final playoff spot in the East. Eight of their previous nine games were decided in overtime or a shootout.
Overtime appeared to be the worst-case scenario for Carolina after Nordstrom's goal, which came off a pass from Jordan Staal 4 seconds after the Hurricanes killed a 4-minute power play. Brad Malone had been called for two penalties.
Carolina, which entered as the least-penalized team in the NHL with just 219 penalty minutes, received 22 more in this one - and 14 of those were issued to Skinner following a fight late in the second period.
Terry tied it for Carolina with 7:50 left in the second. He took a cross-ice, backdoor pass from rookie defenseman Noah Hanifin and beat Johnson.
That came after the Sabres took a 1-0 lead when Colaiacovo put their third shot in the net. His drive from just inside the blue line was the veteran defenseman's first goal since last April 7 with Philadelphia.
NOTES: Terry has scored in two straight games and has points in his last three. ... Buffalo rookie center Jack Eichel was back in the lineup after missing one game due to illness.
