Ottawa Senators' Brady Tkachuk (7) tries to score on Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) as Panthers' Eetu Luostarinen (27) knocks away the puck during second-period NHL hockey action at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Saturday, March 26, 2022PATRICK DOYLE/The Canadian Press
Aleksander Barkov tied the game late in regulation before scoring the shootout winner Saturday night as the Florida Panthers overcame a three-goal deficit with a 4-3 win over the Ottawa Senators.
The Panthers sent the game to overtime when Barkov scored the equalizer with 2:16 to play to complete the comeback.
Anthony Duclair and Patric Hornqvist also scored for Florida (44-14-6), which extended its hold on the Eastern Conference lead. Newcomer Claude Giroux had two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky made 19 saves.
Alex Formenton, Artem Zub and Dylan Gambrell scored in regulation for the Senators (23-36-6). Drake Batherson picked up an assist in his return after missing 28 games with an ankle injury.
Anton Forsberg was solid, stopping 46 shots and likely deserved a better fate.
Forsberg made a couple big saves in the third to hold off the Panthers, but Barkov tied it 3-3 with a slapshot from just inside the blue line that made its way through traffic.
Gambrell made it 3-0 early in the second scoring off a turnover, but the Panthers managed to cut the lead to one by the end of the period.
The newly acquired Giroux found Duclair on the power play, who one-timed it for his 26th of the season at 8:55.
Just over a minute later, Hornqvist carried the puck down low and backhanded it towards the net where Forsberg made the initial save, but Hornqvist was able to grab the rebound and pop it in at a very sharp angle.
Forsberg appeared to make an impressive behind the back save along the post, but after a lengthy reviewm it was ruled the puck was in his glove behind the goal line to make it a 3-2 game
Despite being outplayed and outshot 19-8, the Senators held a 2-0 lead after the first period.
Formenton opened the scoring at 7:54 after winning a foot race and burying a shot under the crossbar.
Ottawa made it 2-0 when Zub picked up a Josh Norris rebound at the hashmarks and wristed a shot past Bobrovsky for his first on home ice this year.