Carter Hart Scripts Unwanted NHL History With 5-3 Game 4 Loss Against Hurricanes

Carter Hart once again conceded 4 goals as the Vegas Golden Knights lost 5-3 in Game 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Carter Hart Scripts Unwanted NHL History With 5-3 Game 4 Loss Against Hurricanes

Carter Hart (Image via ESPN)

Carter Hart and the Vegas Golden Knights suffered a 5-3 loss in Game 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. Following this defeat, the goaltender scripted an unwanted piece of NHL history.

The Golden Knights came into this game after a dramatic 2OT win against the Canes in Game 3. Before this encounter, the visitors had a perfect 6-0 record in overtime in this playoff run.

In their response to this defeat, they scored within 70 seconds of the game. Logan Stankoven scored with just 1 minute and 6 seconds into the game, leaving Hart without a shutout for a 4th successive Stanley Cup Final game.

The Hurricanes took a 2-0 lead through Jackson Blake and ended the first period with a 3-1 lead as captain Jordan Staal restored their two-goal advantage after Mark Stone pulled one back for the home side.

The Golden Knights leveled up the game at 3-3 in the second period as William Karlsson and Brett Howden scored once again in this series. In the third period, the Canes took the lead once again as Staal dove and managed to chip the puck beyond the outstretched hand of Hart.

The Eastern Conference side sealed the win in the dying moments through an empty net goal. With every Golden Knights star in the Canes’ half hoping to tuck the puck in the net and force overtime, Nikolaj Ehlers wrapped it around the boards and saw the puck float across the empty net and into the goal.

For Hart, it was another game where he conceded 4 or more goals. He thus scripted an unwanted piece of history. He became the first goaltender to concede 4 or more goals in each of the first 4 games of a Stanley Cup Final.

According to reports from NHL.com, Hart has been beaten 16 times on 115 shots. He has a 3.60 Goals Against Average (GAA) and an .861 save percentage.

So far, this series has seen 3 games produce a 5-4 scoreline. Hart, though, will have to do better than this as the action shifts back to Raleigh for Game 5.

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John Tortorella sounded off on the team losing control after Carter Hart’s save

The Vegas Golden Knights were unable to keep their winning momentum going as they lost in Game 4. Head coach John Tortorella was not happy with the team losing control after Carter Hart made a great save.

John Tortorella and Carter Hart
John Tortorella and Carter Hart (Image via ClutchPoints)

With the game tied at 3-3 in the third period, it was likely that the team that would score next would gain a huge upper hand. In this tense game, Shea Theodore had a terrible giveaway as he passed the puck straight to Hurricanes’ Seth Jarvis.

The Game 2 hero of the Canes was then denied from close range by Hart. The rebound fell near Nikolaj Ehlers, who had several Golden Knights players chasing him.

The Canes’ No.27 corralled a loose puck and slid it to Jordan Staal, who dived and managed to chip the puck beyond the reach of Hart to make it a 4-3 game.

The Hurricanes would not relinquish the lead and won. In the press conference after the game, Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella pointed out this and claimed it was a hard one for him.

It’s not so much the turnover. Carter (Hart) makes a great save, but just after that we make another mistake, we leave the front of the net. I thought there were a lot of good minutes in the game. It’s just, (giving one up) for free, that’s a hard one for me.

John Tortorella said regarding Golden Knights’ play leading to Jordan Staal’s goal

Amidst all of this, Hart has also faced some controversial chants. In Game 1 of the series at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, the goaltender faced chants of “No Means No” in connection with his alleged s**ual assault case.

Hart, along with his 4 Hockey Canada teammates, were accused of s**ually assaulting a woman in a hotel room in 2018.

Last year, he and the 4 accused were found not guilty and acquitted by the court. After initially being deemed ineligible to play by the league, Hart was signed on a 2-year, $4 million deal by the Golden Knights in October 2025.

The attention now turns towards Game 5 on Thursday. The winners of this big game could clinch the Stanley Cup on Sunday with a victory in Game 6.

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