OTTAWA, Ontario – The Ottawa Senators could overlook their sloppy start thanks to a strong finish.
Kyle Turris scored in overtime, lifting the Senators over the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1 on Tuesday night.
Dion Phaneuf also scored for the Senators, who were playing their first of ten home games this month. Craig Anderson made 32 saves.
Jaccob Slavin scored the lone goal for the Hurricanes, and Cam Ward stopped 30 shots.
Ottawa was coming off a nine-day, three-game trip that culminated with an emotional 2-0 win in Edmonton on Sunday night after learning Anderson's wife, Nicholle, had been diagnosed with cancer.
"It's beyond words the way that he's playing right now with the circumstances and what he's going through with his wife," Phaneuf said. "It's incredible. He's an inspiration to all of us, I will tell you that. He's just incredible to be doing what he's doing for our team right now with what he's going through."
To no surprise, the Senators lacked energy and had a slow start but managed to regroup and — thanks to Anderson — hung in despite some sloppy stretches.
Ottawa coach Guy Boucher expected a slow start after the lengthy road trip and the emotional time his team went through supporting the Andersons, but was pleased with how his team responded after the first period.
"I was so impressed with how the players battled to get that emotion back and they did it in every possible way," Ottawa coach Guy Boucher said. "I thought we really played good in the second, third and the overtime and I believe we deserved it at that point."
Tied 1-1 to start the third, both teams had a couple of good chances, but Ward and Anderson could see most of the shots and made the stops.
"I liked the effort, I liked the execution," Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said. "I thought both teams made a push at certain times. Penalty kill was good, could have executed a little better at some offensive situations, but I liked the effort (Tuesday).
The Senators struggled mightily in the first period, but thankfully Anderson was solid when the Hurricanes outshot Ottawa 16-5 and controlled much of the action.
Carolina scored on its first shot after some poor defensive coverage from the Senators allowed Slavin easy entry from center ice.
Ottawa tied it at the 13-minute mark of the first when Phaneuf's shot from the point beat Ward low glove side.
The Senators were without Mark Stone for the third period as the winger suffered an upper body injury.
Carolina's Victor Rask ended his eight-game point streak (four goals, six assists), and Jeff Skinner's five-game point streak (four goals, five assists) also ended.
NOTES: D Thomas Chabot and G Matt O'Connor were a healthy scratch for the Senators. Carolina's Ryan Murphy played his first game after suffering a lower body injury in early October that kept him out of the lineup.
UP NEXT
Hurricanes: Play at Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
Senators: Host the Canucks on Thursday night.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.