Panthers stage three-goal comeback for home win

Photo: Panthers Images

Nottingham Panthers came back from 4-1 down to beat Coventry Blaze 6-4 in a high-scoring encounter at a sold-out Motorpoint Arena,

The Panthers got on the board first with a goal from Brett Welychka at 8:28., but the Blaze responded with a goal of their own from Ross Venus who bounced the puck into the net on the 12-minute mark.

The second period was opened by Marly Quince who fired a quick wristshot to beat Panthers' goaltender Jack Berry at 23:30. The Blaze added to their lead with goals from Kim Tallberg, who scored a one timer at 24:57, and J.D. Dudek, who netted his first goal of the season, at 27:55 to go 4-1 up. The Panthers, however, fought back with Welychka scoring his second goal of the night, bouncing the puck into the net off a defender's skates at 28:26, followed by a goal from Stephen Anderson, who squeezed the puck past Blaze goaltender Paavo Hölsä at 34:45. The Panthers completed their comeback when Craig Puffer scored on a rebound at 37:34.

The third period's scoring was opened by Luke Ferrara, who netted a quick shot on the powerplay at 46:33 to put the Panthers up 5-4. Welychka completed his hat trick with an empty-netter at 58:23, securing the victory for the Panthers with a final score of 6-4.