Weekes makes 37 saves

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Eric Cole picked the perfect time to break a long scoring drought.

Cole scored for the first time in 27 games when he netted the tying goal with 3:29 left in regulation, lifting the Carolina Hurricanes into a 2-2 draw Sunday with the Ottawa Senators.

With the teams skating four-on-four, Cole flipped a back-hander by Patrick Lalime. Cole's previous goal was Nov. 13 against Atlanta.

"It's been quite a while," Cole said. "It's what I am expected to do. It's something I should be doing more often."

The Senators, 1-3-6 in overtime, were not happy settling for a tie.

"I think we played well at times, but giving up the late goal is disappointing," defenseman Curtis Leschyshyn said.

Kevin Weekes made 38 saves for Carolina, which has not beaten Ottawa in 10 games.

"We hung on and we hung in there and we were able to get a decent result," Weekes said. "Fortunately, we did get a tie."

Marian Hossa scored twice for the Senators, and Eric Staal had the other goal for the Hurricanes.

Hossa gave Ottawa a 2-1 lead on a jam-in at 8:31 of the third period after he made a give-and-go pass to Martin Havlat. The goal came with four seconds left on a hooking penalty against Carolina captain Ron Francis.

Hossa's first goal gave the Senators a 1-0 lead at 9:09 of the second period, marking the 20th time in 42 games Ottawa scored first.

"Unfortunately we go home with only one point," Hossa said. "We would have liked the two points. Usually we know how to protect a lead. But give them credit, they worked hard, too."

Carolina tied it when Staal went high with a shot over Lalime's glove at 15:14 of the second. Staal took a pass from Francis, who was set up behind the net.

Ottawa coach Jacques Martin was pleased with the overall effort of his team even thought the Senators allowed the Hurricanes to score twice.

"There's a point where you have to say that two mistakes cost us," Martin said. "But I thought overall we had a good effort."

While Ottawa was 2-for-5 on the power play, Carolina continued to struggle with the man advantage -- going 0-for-5.

"The power play has been one of our strengths all year," Leschyshyn said. "Tonight we scored two big goals for us. If you want to win games, special teams play a huge part in it. Ours have been pretty good all year."

Carolina, outshot 40-20, didn't record a shot until 10 minutes elapsed.

"We tried to put everything at their goalie," Hossa said. "Too bad we didn't get more. He made some good saves. He kept them in the game. We had some good chances."

Carolina coach Peter Laviolette wants the Hurricanes to shoot more.

"We look to pass too much," Laviolette said. "I have a hard time understanding that. The puck should be going at the net more. We had opportunities."

Game notes
Carolina D Danny Markov missed his second straight game because of an injured shoulder. ... Francis earned an assist for the third straight game. ... Ottawa has scored first in 20 of 42 games this season. ... Jeff O'Neill's assist gave him 404 points with the Hurricanes, third most in franchise history.