What started as an evenly matched game with great back and forth action turned into a lopsided and embarrassing defeat for the Carolina Hurricanes in just a matter of minutes.

March19, 2013; Raleigh, NC, USA; Carolina Hurricanes goalie Dan Ellis (31) makes a 2nd period save against the Florida Panthers at the PNC center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

The first two periods of play went un-scored by both teams, but then in the third period Tomas Fleischmann took advantage of a Hurricane turnover right in front of Dan Ellis to give the Panthers the 1-0 edge.

Five minutes later, penalties would bring out the power play for the Panthers in a four-on-three situation. Florida would capitalize on this and never look back from that point on. At 12:47 Marcel Gloc scored a goal to put Florida up by two goals. Less then a minute later Shawn Matthias would scored yet again for the Panthers to give them a 3-0 lead.

Jordan Staal would score a few minutes later to give the Hurricanes their only goal in the game.

Florida again would score when Jerred Smithson scored an empty net goal in the final minute.

Despite allowing four goals, Ellis, gets the nod for player of the game. He played like a MVP tonight and had some amazing saves. The fans even gave him a standing ovation. Not bad for someone backing up Cam Ward and having to take over the first string duties during his injury.

For the Panthers, they’ve left their mark in scoring and injuries tonight. They injured three Hurricanes tonight: Bobby Sanguinetti, Justin Faulk, and Tim Gleason.

Carolina’s record against the Panthers at PNC Arena is now 28-7-4. They will play the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night in Raleigh.

Final Score: Florida 4 – Carolina 1 | Player of the Game: Dan Ellis

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