Three takeaways: Early wake-up call, Gadjovich's impactful return
Gadjovich stepped in for a sick Mackie Samoskevich
For much of Saturday’s matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks, the host Florida Panthers were dominant.
Aside from Landon Slaggert’s goal seven seconds into the game, it was basically all Panthers as they skated to a convincing 5-1 victory in front of 19,457 fans at Amerant Bank Arena.
It’s no secret that the Cats have been looking for some stability in their results, which is frustrating because overall, Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice has been pleased with the way the team has played for pretty decent period of time.
Unfortunately for Florida, playing the right way and having strong analytics has only led to them meandering around the .500 mark for the past month or so.
Perhaps this little stretch at home will help them string some wins together, as they’ve now won three straight in Sunrise and both games on their current homestand, which continues on Sunday night against the streaking New York Islanders.
Let’s get to Saturday’s takeaways:
WELL THAT WAS FAST
Florida came into Saturday’s matchup with the Blackhawks as heavy favorites.
That’s why when Chicago scored seven seconds into the game, it was more than a little surprising.
All it did was seem to inspire Florida to play even harder, as they owned every inch of the ice for basically the entire remaining 19:53 of the first period.
Shots were 22-4 Florida after one, with shot attempts an eye-popping 47-9.
“Sometimes it gets you out from wading into the game, and then we were pretty good after that,” said Maurice. “That was a real strong first period for us, and pretty consistent start to finish.”
WELCOME BACK, GADJO
Before Saturday, Jonah Gadjovich had last played a game for the Panthers all the way back on Dec. 20 in St. Louis.
An upper-body injury kept Gadjovich out of the lineup for much of the 18 games he’s missed, but boy oh boy did he take advantage of his first opportunity to get back in a game.
Not only was it a timely goal, tying the game and helping get the momentum back in Florida’s favor after the Blackhawks opening shift goal, it also gave his teammates a big boost to see Gadjo put the puck in the net during his first game back.
“Good for him, he brought a lot of energy, and everybody loves when one of those guys who doesn't get the chance to play that much some nights, or get the chances around the net, score,” said Maurice. “Them scoring changed the narrative. You give one up early, we haven't played great against Chicago, they'll get lots of energy from a goal, but he got it back to where it should be.”
MACKIE UNDER THE WEATHER
Rookie Mackie Samoskevich sat out Saturday’s game due to an illness.
Over the past several weeks, Samoskevich has been playing some excellent two-way hockey.
It’s clear the youngster has been working on different elements of his game throughout his first year in the league and lately, the defensive play and physicality have been shining through.
He may be given Sunday off to continue recuperating, but you better believe that when he’s healthy, Maurice will immediately get him back in the lineup.
“We’ll wait to see how he’s doing, but we won’t put him in in a fatigued state,” said Maurice. “If he wasn't feeling great today, I'd rather give him the day's rest tomorrow, run the same group that we had here tonight, and then we can look at a fresh player there in a couple days.”
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