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National Hockey League
Carolina 1, Tampa Bay 0
When: 5:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 4, 2016
Where: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina
Referees: Wes McCauley, Francois St. Laurent
Linesmen: Matt MacPherson, Kory Nagy
Attendance: 11521

RALEIGH, N.C. -- This time the Carolina Hurricanes turned a good situation into the best kind of result.

It came with dramatics as Phillip Di Giuseppe's first goal of the season gave the Hurricanes a 1-0 overtime victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday at PNC Arena.

"We've been in great positions," said Carolina coach Bill Peters, whose team faltered in recent third periods. "You've got to stay with it. The opportunity was there.

"When we're playing at home, with the winning streak we're on (at home), if we're tied with seven minutes to go, I'm fine with that."

With teammate Viktor Stalberg creating a distraction in front of the net, Di Giuseppe delivered a shot from the right side that beat Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop 1:29 into the extra period. The left winger was in only his fourth game since being recalled from the minor leagues.

"I got the puck from (Stalberg)," Di Giuseppe said. "I had a little bit of room. I wanted to put the puck on net. It's just a matter of time like tonight when we just start getting those breaks."

Carolina goalie Cam Ward, who hadn't played in two of the team's previous four games, picked up the shutout with 30 saves as the Hurricanes extended their home-ice winning streak to six games.

"We battled it," Ward said. "We want to play hard and try to get wins. The hard work paid off again."

Bishop, playing for the third time in four days, finished with 29 saves.

Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper disputed the final sequence, saying Stalberg interfered with Bishop.

"He wasn't given a chance to make a save. He didn't," Cooper said. "And I'm blown away. ... I'm just mystified."

Carolina, which is the second-lowest scoring team in the Eastern Conference, won a 1-0 game for the second time in an 11-game span. The Hurricanes came out on top for only the second time in seven games that have gone into overtime this season.

The outcome spoiled a solid outing from Tampa Bay, which won in 11 of its previous 14 visits to Raleigh.

The Hurricanes were coming off a frustrating 0-2-1 road trip because they were unable to protect leads a couple of times and failed to produce in the third period a day earlier.

"Sometimes we haven't got that result," left winger Jeff Skinner said. "Tonight we got the result and that good feeling. It's nice to get rewarded with two points."

During a stretch about midway through the third period, Bishop and Ward took turns with solid saves. Ward stopped Tampa Bay right winger Joel Vermin's scoring chance, but the Lightning ended up with a power play on the sequence.

Then Tampa Bay had a 5-on-3 advantage for 23 seconds with less than seven minutes to play and couldn't convert. That penalty kill for Carolina made the Lightning at 0-for-4 on power plays.

"When you're down on that 5-on-3, it's big when your goalie steps up and makes big saves for you," Skinner said.

One of the best scoring chances through two periods came from Skinner in the second period. He charged down the right side, but he couldn't squeeze the puck past Bishop.

The teams combined for 22 shots on goal in the first period, then it became a close-checking game. Tampa Bay was credited with 29 shots in regulation, one more than the Hurricanes.

Both teams played Saturday, with the Lightning coming off a night game at home that went into a shootout.

"You could tell the guys were tired. The same thing with Carolina," Cooper said. "It amped up there the last 10 minutes of the game when the desperation set in that you can win a hockey game."

With Sunday's extra time, Tampa Bay played beyond regulation in consecutive games for the first time this season.

NOTES: Lightning LW Jonathan Drouin sat out with an undisclosed injury. He played in the previous nine games, including more than 13 minutes Saturday night against the Washington Capitals. ... Hurricanes C Jordan Staal missed a week, covering four games, since suffering a concussion a week ago against the Florida Panthers. ... Tampa Bay has a league-best power play at 24.2 percent. ... This was Carolina's lone home game during a seven-game stretch, with a three-game West Coast road swing beginning Wednesday night at Anaheim. ... Tampa Bay has a three-day layoff before its next game Thursday at home against Vancouver.
Top Game Performances
 
Tampa Bay   Carolina
N/A Points Phillip Di Giuseppe 1
N/A Goals Phillip Di Giuseppe 1
N/A Assists Ron Hainsey 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Ben Bishop .967 Save Percentage Cam Ward 1.000
Ben Bishop 29 Saves Cam Ward 30
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Tampa Bay 30 0 0-5 4-4 8 27
Carolina 30 1 0-4 5-5 10 22
Upcoming Games
  • Carolina will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Hurricanes have a W/L % of .400 after a win and .400 after a loss.
  • Tampa Bay will play their next game at home against Vancouver. The Lightning have a W/L % of .467 after a win and .583 after a loss.