Sat 4 Apr 2026 - 10:05PM
4TH APRIL 2026: STORM 3-4 PANTHERS
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Nottingham Panthers beat Manchester Storm 4-3 on the road to secure two vital Elite League points on feisty night in Altrincham.
Seven players were thrown-out as Panthers secured the win which means a regulation-time victory tomorrow against Cardiff Devils will secure second place.
Panthers were without the injured trio of Zsombor Garát, Matt Alfaro and Matt Marcinew. Jason Grande was between the pipes with Kevin Carr as back-up.
Feisty end to first period as Panthers lead by one
Panthers took the lead after only 35 seconds when the puck took a bounce off a Storm skate and Chase Pearson took full advantage to score from close-range (00:35).
Didrik Henbrant, David Noël and Tim Doherty had chances to extend the lead to two, before Storm equalised as Loren Ulett swung out from behind the net and went top-shelf (10:59).
Ulett was thrown-out for a series of dangerous cross-checks on Henbrant who was down on the ice, while Storm defenceman Nick Welsh was sent to the locker room for abuse of officials.
Mitch Fossier and Pearson combined to set-up Bryan Lemos to score eight seconds into the resulting five-minute powerplay (19:41).
The end of the first period saw both sets of players come together as they were leaving the ice. Josh Tetlow fought Bradley Jenion and Jarod Hilderman dropped the gloves with Stephen Johnson, while Tyler Hinam was the fifth Storm player to be thrown-out.
All-square at second intermission
Noël fed Doherty who went top-shelf from the left-circle as Panthers scored on the five-on-four powerplay (22:58).
Grande made outstanding close-range saves on Brady Gilmour and Chase Harrison as Storm had a spell of extended pressure which resulted in them scoring twice in 79 seconds to tie the game.
Brandon Cutler's great pass found Dante Hannoun in the slot who pulled a move on Grande (36:59) and Rais Francis reacted first to a loose puck after a face-off (38:18).
Panthers secure vital two points
Pearson had a goal disallowed after he tipped in Jakob Stridsberg's shot with a high-stick before Panthers went ahead with a well-worked goal.
Jordan Kelsall made a big block at one end and Panthers broke down the ice as Brendan Harris found Doherty on the doorstep to score his second of the night (47:47).
Storm lifted netminder Drew DeRidder for the final minute, but Grande and Panthers stood firm to secure the two points.
Next up for the Panthers
Panthers play their final regular-season game of the 2025-26 campaign tomorrow (Sunday 5th April) as Cardiff Devils visit the Motorpoint Arena (16:00 face-off).
Tomorrow's match - which is sponsored by Lake Energy - is sold-out and it's our Fan Appreciation Game.
All supporters will be able to pick-up a free postcard-sized team photo of this year's 2025-26 roster which so far has already won the Continental Cup and Challenge Cup.
There are a host of other great giveaways and you can find out more by clicking here.