Gustav Forsling gave the Florida Panthers a dramatic opening-night win, scoring with 4.3 seconds left in overtime to beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes 1-0 at Lenovo Center on Tuesday.
Forsling stepped into a Carter Verhaeghe feed just inside the blue line and snapped a one-timer past Carolina goaltender Brandon Bussi, ending a tight scoreless game moments before the extra period would have gone to a shootout.
Markstrom starts return to Florida with shutout
Jacob Markstrom stopped all 15 shots he faced in his first game back with the Panthers. Florida acquired the veteran goaltender from the New Jersey Devils on June 30.
The start carried some history for Markstrom, who was selected by Florida in the second round, No. 31 overall, of the 2008 NHL Draft. He spent his first four NHL seasons in the Panthers organization before continuing his career elsewhere.
Bussi was strong at the other end, making 19 saves for Carolina, but Florida found the only breakthrough in the final seconds of overtime.
Fresh start after missed postseason
The Panthers opened the new season looking to rebound from a disappointing finish last year, when they placed seventh in the Atlantic Division and missed the playoffs. That came after Florida captured Stanley Cup titles in 2024 and 2025.
Carolina began its title defense with a point from the overtime loss, but Forsling’s late strike sent the Panthers out of Raleigh with the extra point and a 1-0 start.
