Nick Cousins finding success back on Florida's second line opens up all kinds of options for the Panthers

Playing their third road game in four nights, the Florida Panthers had plenty of reasons not have their best outing on Tuesday in New Jersey.

It’s a good thing this Panthers team can find a bunch of ways to beat you.

Florida clawed their way to a 5-3 win over the New Jersey Devils, closing out a perfect three-game road trip and returning home sitting in the top spot of the NHL standings.

Now, there is obviously a lot to be excited about in Pantherland right now, what with the team being the odd-on favorite to win the Stanley Cup and Florida acquiring Vladimir Tarasenko on Wednesday.

Even with all that going on, it’s still takeaway time.

Let's get to it.

Finishing strong

Florida’s back-to-back wins over the Rangers and Devils on Monday and Tuesday nights had one particular good thing in common (aside from the victories themselves).

In both games, Florida was the better team during the third period.

It's a theme we've seen popping up more and more lately, as the Panthers continue to find different ways to play their style of hockey while finding success in all kinds of situations against a varying degree of opponents.

“We played our best hockey in the third, and that's about the kindest thing you could say about that game," Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice said after Tuesday's win in Newark. "Both teams have players who can move the puck and make plays, and neither team could do that tonight. We didn't pass the puck well, they didn't pass the puck well, and there was offense that could have been there that died. So you just want to find yourself getting marginally better as the game goes on. We put a lot of emotion in our game last night, we knew this would be a tough one, and it was. We didn't look like ourselves, so we weren't trying to get back to form, we were just trying to get a little bit better.”

Cousins line back?

Late last season and throughout the playoffs, Florida received constant, consistent play from its second line, which featured Sam Bennett centering Matthew Tkachuk and Nick Cousins.

Over the past couple weeks, Maurice has put the trio back together.

They're starting to resemble the unit that helped fuel Florida’s run to the Stanley Cup Final, which would be a welcomed development for several reasons, the main one being forward depth.

Cousins playing on the second line allows Maurice to spread out his talented wingers, Carter Verhaeghe, Evan Rodrigues and now Vladimir Tarasenko, to other forward lines.

“I think that line, they keep getting better," Maurice said of Cousins on the Bennett line. "They keep holding on the pucks and they’re starting to read off each other again, like we saw last year in the playoffs."

Emotional bench on tired night

The Panthers may make it look easier than it is, but don't get it twisted, winning on the road in the NHL is not an easy thing to do.

Nights like Tuesday, where the team didn't have its usual energy, you'll find that good groups find ways to get themselves where they need to be.

The Panthers were far from at their best, but that's the thing about this team…they find ways to beat you.

Sure, they want to play a certain style, but sometimes that just isn't happening and you need to find other ways to be successful.

On this night, it was Florida's veteran presence and leadership that helped get the team right just in time to pull out another two points.

“There was a lot more emotion on our bench during the third period," Maurice said. "It was quiet in the building. It was unusual. The puck just wouldn't lay on the ice for either team. So that's a frustrating game for both teams to play, but we stuck with it and found a way to get a little bit better. Our legs got better, our feet got better, we had a little bit more zone time, we got the puck to the net off a face off, and it was just…it was okay.”

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