Elite League leaders Cardiff Devils suffered a surprise 3-2 defeat by Nottingham Panthers on home ice at the Vindico Arena on Friday.
The visitors took the lead in the second period when Aiden Hansen-Bukata and Spencer Naas combined on the powerplay for Benjamin Corbeil to score.
Panthers doubled their lead early in the third when Darick Louis-Jean struck, but Brandon Estes replied for the home side within a couple of minutes.
The see-saw third period continued as Brendan Harris restored Panthers’ two-goal lead, with Hansen-Bukata claiming his third assist of the night, only for Devils’ Gleason Fournier to make it 3-2 with six minutes remaining.
Devils gambled on an empty net play to try and force an equaliser but Nottingham held on to inflict just a second league defeat of the campaign on the hosts.
Cardiff travel to Coventry Blaze on Saturday (19:00 GMT), while Nottingham are in action at home to Guildford Blaze on Sunday (15:00).
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