Canes' Goalie Stretchered Off Ice After Collision With Athanasiou On OT Winner [VIDEO]
JOEDY McCREARY
AP Sports Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Andreas Athanasiou crashed into Eddie Lack as he scored in overtime Monday night , giving the Detroit Red Wings a 4-3 victory over Carolina on a play that left the Hurricanes goalie with a frightening injury.
Lack remained down for several minutes before he was taken off on a stretcher, with both teams remaining on the ice and forming a semicircle to watch him . Lack flashed a thumbs-up sign as he was wheeled away.
An official review determined that the puck was in the net before Athanasiou made contact with Lack.
Lack finished with 23 saves for Carolina.
Athanasiou's goal was his second OT winner in as many days. He beat Minnesota's Devan Dubnyk on Sunday.
This game originally was scheduled for Dec. 19, but was postponed when a Freon leak at the arena made for unplayable ice.
The two teams play their normally scheduled game on Tuesday night in Raleigh and it'll be the Red Wings' third game in three days.
Anthony Mantha scored two goals 70 seconds apart in the second period, and Tomas Tatar added a power-play goal in the third to help the Red Wings win their fifth in seven games.
Justin Faulk scored two goals, including one with 51.1 seconds left in the third period, and Jeff Skinner scored for the sixth straight game. The Hurricanes have earned points in 11 straight games.
The Hurricanes trail the Bruins by four points for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with eight games remaining in their push for their first playoff berth since 2009.
Athanasiou's winner came after a flurry of activity in which Petr Mrazek stopped Skinner. Mrazek stopped 39 shots for the Red Wings.
Tatar had given Detroit a 3-2 lead midway through the third when he slipped free in the circle and snapped the puck past Lack. Faulk tied it in the final minute of regulation with a hard blast from the circle that got past Mrazek.
NOTES: Skinner has 174 goals, tying former captain and current assistant Rod Brind'Amour for third on the Hurricanes' list since the club relocated from Hartford in 1997. ... Detroit C Luke Glendening did not return after suffering a lower-body injury during the first period. ... Detroit C Darren Helm was back after missing four games with a leg injury.
UP NEXT
The Red Wings and Hurricanes play their regularly scheduled rematch Tuesday night in Raleigh. It will be the Red Wings' third game in three days.
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