Hurricanes wait until final seconds to edge Panthers, 1-0 Aho scores lone goal with 19 seconds left

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In Raleigh, Sebastian Aho hit for the game’s only goal with 19 seconds left in regulation to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 win over the visiting Florida Panthers on Thursday night. “It felt good,” Aho said. “At a crucial time in the game, that’s pretty much a guaranteed win when you score that late.”

Pyotr Kochetkov made 44 saves in the win.

“He was the difference. He made many, many saves,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “One goal was all we got. We needed him to be perfect, and he was.”

The Hurricanes moved to 34-17-5 off their fourth straight win.

“Unreal. What else are you going to ask of the goalie?” Aho said. “He gave us every chance to win this hockey game. It’s good to see him feeling good about himself.”

The Panthers dropped to 37-16-4 who had been one of the hottest teams of late.

“I liked our game. I liked it an awful lot,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said. “We put up 44 (shots) on them. Both goaltenders were good. It’s a good road game for us.”

The Panthers had been riding a seven-game winning streak.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves in the loss.