Panthers center Anton Lundell speaks to to the media following Florida's 2-1 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Nov. 17. The Florida Panthers wrapped up a three-game venture through the state of California on Friday night in Anaheim. It was an exciting, back-and forth battle with high-end goaltending a no shortage of physicality from either side. Ultimately it was the Panthers who came away with the 2-1 win, picking up victories in two of their three stops on the roadie. Outside of the injury suffered by Florida captain Sasha Barkov – the extent of which won’t be known until Sunday at the earliest – there were several key elements of the game that are worth highlighting. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwNjE3OTM2NjIzMjQ4NDky/img_6014.jpg] Anthony Stolarz steps up Florida goaltender Anthony Stolarz was nothing short of sublime when facing his former club on Friday. He finished the game with 34 saves, earning his second consecutive victory after picking up the dub Tuesday night’s game in San Jose. Stolarz stopped nine of the ten high danger shots sent his way in Anaheim, according to Natural Stat Trick, allowing only one goal despite the expected goals against being 2.96. “Oh, was he good,” Maurice said afterwards. “He was awesome in this game. It was really tough for him to play too, because there wasn’t a whole lot going on for him, and then it was a breakaway out of the penalty box, a couple high end chances and he made some big, big saves, and it got quiet for a long period of time. So it was a tough game for him to be as good as he was, but man was he good.” Florida’s new D pairings The return of Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad from injury has infused some high-end skill into the Panthers back line. It’s also shaken up the defensive pairings that had been in place since Florida took the ice in Minnesota on Opening night. While there may be an adjustment period for some of the players adapting to the tendencies of their new partners, there is no denying the overall skill level of the group has gotten exponentially better. Here is how the pairings looked on Friday: Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov “In some ways, you have three brand new pairings for this year,” Maurice said. “With Forsling and Ekblad, we know what we’re going to get out of there. The other two pairings are brand new, so they'll get better as they get to know each other.” Uvis Balinskis and Mike Reilly were healthy scratches for Florida. Anton and Eetu reunited In recent weeks it appears that Panthers center Anton Lundell has turned a corner. His play on the second line with Carter Verhaeghe and Matthew Tkachuk seemed to be the spark necessary to get the third-year center going. Now he’s back on a line with his good buddy Eetu Luostarinen, and the two appear to have picked up where they left off last season, when young Finns were initially paired up and began showing some incredible chemistry. “Well, we have to talk about the two of them,” Maurice said. “Luostarinen as well, he was fantastic tonight. Those two guys were on it, and that's why we're so excited. I don't look at the points or the stats very much. That’s what we're so excited about, when our team is healthy, with those two guys together, we can roll different people on the right wing and that's a dangerous three-hole line.” LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA No signs of rust from Aaron Ekblad, Brandon Montour following season debuts [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/features/no-signs-of-rust-from-aaron-ekblad-brandon-montour-following-season-debuts] Stolarz shines in return to Anaheim, Panthers defeat Ducks 2-1 [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/stolarz-shines-in-return-to-anaheim-panthers-defeat-ducks-2-1] Sasha Barkov leaves game early after taking knee-on-knee hit in Anaheim [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/sasha-barkov-leaves-game-early-after-taking-knee-on-knee-hit-in-anaheim] Three takeaways: Defensive battle magnifies impact of special teams struggles [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/features/three-takeaways-defensive-battle-magnifies-impact-of-special-teams-struggles] Brandon Montour, Aaron Ekblad may both play Friday in Anaheim [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/brandon-montour-aaron-ekblad-may-both-play-friday-in-anaheim] Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAxNjQxMjA5NjI4NzMxMDIz/unnamed.jpg]
