Panthers keep Blackhawks winless with OT victory

Frank Vatrano scored 2:50 into overtime Tuesday as the Florida Panthers beat the Chicago Blackhawks again in a 5-4 victory at Sunrise, Fla.

Aleksander Barkov skated into the left circle in the 3-on-3 session and slipped a sharp pass to the right circle to Vatrano, who one-timed his first goal of the season for the game winner.

Newcomer Carter Verhaeghe scored twice, Keith Yandle had a goal and an assist, Patric Hornqvist scored, while Barkov and Anthony Duclair each produced added an assist.

On Florida's "unfit to play" list since camp opened Jan. 3, No. 1 goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made his first appearance and turned aside 30 of 34 shots.

Dominik Kubalik -- an NHL-best 30-goal scorer among rookies last season -- netted his first two goals, Patrick Kane scored his second and rookie Philipp Kurashev notched his first NHL marker in his third game.

The Blackhawks, who lost their fourth straight to start the season, turned to rookie Kevin Lankinen -- the club's third goalie -- in his first NHL start, and he stopped 23 of 28 shots.

Verhaeghe cashed in when Barkov fed him a pass from the neutral zone for a short breakaway, and the former Tampa Bay Lighting winger backhanded home his first Florida goal at 13:25.

Hornqvist pushed the lead to 2-0 on the game's first power play when he banked in his second goal off the post at 16:16 after Yandle's point shot struck him while positioned in front of Lankinen.

With 80 seconds left in the period, Kubalik gave the Blackhawks momentum when he scored on their first power play. His shot from the top of the right circle hit Florida defenseman Riley Stillman's hand and hopped in.

In the second, Verhaeghe set up Duclair on a breakaway, which was denied by Lankinen. But Verhaeghe swooped in and batted in the free puck at 2:45.

Kubalik blistered in his second power-play marker at 8:05 -- again from the top of the right circle -- to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Kane earned a penalty shot at 14:28, but Bobrovsky stuffed it to maintain the lead, but Kane redeemed himself with a brilliant goal on the short side off a backhanded effort with 50 seconds left to tie it.

Kurashev gave Chicago its first lead in the third with a wrister at 6:06 -- the visitors' third straight goal -- but Yandle's long shot for another power-play tally at 7:17 knotted it 4-4.

--Field Level Media