Florida has won nine consecutive games entering Saturday’s matchup with New Jersey

For the first time in National Hockey League history, there are four teams who have simultaneous winning streaks of eight or more games. Those teams include the Seattle Kraken, Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers, and the Florida Panthers.

On the Panthers side of things, a lot has happened during the streak. Florida earned their first ever win in Las Vegas, their first win in St. Louis since before the world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and snapped a six-game losing streak against the Los Angeles Kings.

The Panthers have exercised some demons against Western Conference teams as of late.

There were also individual accomplishments during the streak.

Matthew Tkachuk currently has seven goals to start the new year after scoring five in his first 36 games, including a natural hat trick in his hometown of St. Louis when Florida defeated the Blues on Tuesday.

Tkachuk also scored the game-tying goal with just over two minutes to go on Thursday night during the Panthers’ 3-2 overtime win against the Kings.

“I haven’t changed anything,” Tkachuk said about his recent success. “[I’m] just trying to go out there and prepare as best I can and try to execute. I’m happy that I did it with a few minutes remaining.”

Sam Reinhart continues to rise in the race for the Rocket Richard Trophy, scoring 12 goals during Florida’s nine-game winning streak. One of those games included a hat trick in Florida’s 8-4 victory at Ball Arena against the Colorado Avalanche. There was also the overtime winner on Thursday night with less than a second left for his 30th of the season.

Reinhart is currently three goals behind the current leader, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews.

“Nothing surprises me anymore with him.” Tkachuk said of Reinhart after Thursday’s OT winner. “He’s the real deal and he’s been playing amazing. Their whole line has been amazing. A huge goal. I didn’t know there was that little time left. That’s unreal.”

Speaking about his success this season, Reinhart explained that his mental approach has not changed despite the increase in production.

“Whether it’s going good or bad, I have always lived day-by-day,” Reinhart said. “We are trying to ride it and build off it.”

Florida is a few weeks removed from getting four out of 10 points on a west coast road trip, one in which they were shutout in back-to-back games against the Kraken and the Vancouver Canucks.

During their current win streak, the Panthers are averaging over four goals a game.

Entering play Saturday, they find themselves one point out of first place in the Atlantic Division behind the Boston Bruins. There is even a chance to win the Presidents’ Trophy as the top team in the league, record wise.

“I feel like we just keep getting better throughout it,” Matthew Tkachuk said of the winning streak. “When you win, it’s a good mood when you come to the rink, especially the way we are playing right now.”

One might wonder why a team would play desperate hockey in the midst of being on a roll. The sense of urgency, regardless of their record, is still there with this group.

“[The Kings] are desperate, but so are we,” Tkachuk said after Florida handed Los Angeles its seventh consecutive loss. “We are scratching and clawing for points, and we are having fun doing it.”

Even though they have mostly held the led in games during the win streak, when Florida has fallen behind, the Cats haven’t let giving up the first goal get the best of them.

“We’ve been a good team with the lead,” Tkachuk said. “Our goaltending has been amazing, special teams has been really good. We are just getting key efforts from everybody, so it’s been a full group effort.

Panthers power play during the streak is clicking at a 32.4 percent, while the penalty kill is at 89.3 percent as well. Sergei Bobrovsky has a .923 save percentage and a 2.12 goal against average in seven starts.

Falling behind in games, although rare lately, can be frustrating, but it does not stop the Panthers from pushing.

“It’s so easy to get frustrated because [the Kings] don’t give you much.” Reinhart said of the team’s inability to quit. “I think we are playing a style that gives you success in the postseason.”

During the Panthers 30-year history, they have only been on two winning streaks of 10 games or more: a 12-game winning streak from Dec. 15, 2015 to Jan. 10, 2016, and a 13-game winning streak from March 29, 2022 to April 23, 2022.

That’s it.

Florida’s nine-game winning streak spans all the way back to Dec. 23 when the Vegas Golden Knights were in town. Now the Cats have an opportunity to stretch it to 10 when they welcome the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night, and to add to the history books in South Florida hockey. 

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