Frederik Andersen stops 21 shots as Hurricanes blank Panthers

Evgeny Kuznetsov notched his first goal since joining the Carolina Hurricanes in a 4-0 victory against the Eastern Conference-leading Florida Panthers on Thursday night in Raleigh, N.C.

Seth Jarvis, Martin Necas and Andrei Svechnikov also scored for the Hurricanes, who won for the fourth time in five games. Jaccob Slavin had two assists.

Frederik Andersen made 21 saves to improve to 3-0 since returning to action following a four-month layoff because of a blood clotting issue. Playing in his ninth game this season, he recorded his first shutout since March 5, 2023 against Tampa Bay.

The Panthers lost for just the second time in 10 games despite 31 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky. Florida suffered its sixth shutout of the season.

Kuznetsov, who was acquired last week from the Washington Capitals, registered his first point with the Hurricanes in his fourth game with his new club. He scored in the second period when Jalen Chatfield's pass found him alone in the left circle.

That marked Kuznetsov's seventh goal of the season overall. He went into a celebration as the volume from the crowd's roar increased.

The intensity among these Eastern Conference contenders was evident. There were four post-whistle scrums across the first 15 minutes.

Jarvis had the game's first goal with 49 seconds to play in the first period. Jordan Staal, who was in traffic, knocked the back toward Jarvis, who was in stride and converted for his 21st goal of the season.

Necas matched Jarvis, who also has 21 goals this season, by scoring 2:46 into the second period. Svechnikov posted his 17th goal into an empty net with 4:18 remaining in the game.

Andersen has been in an every-other game rotation in the Carolina nets since getting back on the ice.

The Panthers played without center Sam Bennett, who was out of the lineup for the first time since early November. He was listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.