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Jim Parsons
jimparsons@THNew
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Jim Parsons is a freelance journalist, covering the Edmonton Oilers and trending NHL stories for The Hockey News. He's also a regular contributor to NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Sportster Follow Jim on Twitter or his social media accounts.
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Three takeaways: Marchand flips sides mid-game, Bobrovsky shows off laser focus
The Florida Panthers have been racking up the points on home ice.
Friday’s 2-1 overtime victory against the Utah Hockey Club was Florida’s seventh straight at Amerant Bank Arena.
While the Panthers did control much of the puck possession, there will be plenty for the coaching staff to pick apart when they go through the video.
Now that the Cats are getting back into a more traditional schedule, we’ll see if they can start building some consistency as the playoffs draw closer by the day.
Let’s get to Friday’s takeaways:
TOUGH WIN AGAINST DESPERATE TEAM
Utah hasn’t been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention yet, but being 10 points out with 10 games to go is a near impossible mountain to climb.
Still, Utah had something to fight for entering Friday’s game, and boy did they.
The Hockey Club played well enough to keep the Panthers off their game for segments of Friday’s contest, forcing the Cats to the final minute of overtime before they finally pulled out the two points.
“It was a hard-fought game, they played really well,” said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. “They didn't give up a whole lot. They had to work for it. We didn't give up a lot, but Sergei (Bobrovsky) still had to make about three really, really good saves, because they’ve got shooters on their team. So I'm reasonably pleased with the win.”
QUICK TWEAK TO MARCHAND LINE
Much of the spotlight on Friday night was focused squarely on Brad Marchand, and rightly so.
The veteran forward made his Panthers debut after a stunning deal at the NHL Trade Deadline sent Marchand to Florida.
Skating on a line with Sam Bennett and Mackie Samoskevich, the group seemed to pick up steam as the game progressed.
There was something not-so-subtle that Maurice did with the line that may have helped pour a little gasoline on the fire.
“He makes a lot of small area plays in traffic and in corners that that are really hard to do, and his hands are fantastic,” Maurice said of Marchand. “I thought in the third period, when he went back over to the left and Samoskevich came to the right, that line got a little faster. It's a little easier on the breakout, you don't have people going the other way. It was a good start and gives us a little different look.”
BOB STANDS TALL
Friday’s win was the seventh in nine starts for Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky this month.
The veteran netminder has been playing lights out, and the game against Utah is a prime example of what make Bob so unique.
Florida played an excellent defensive game against Utah, mainly by possessing the puck a ton and limiting their zone time to a fraction of what the Cats’ did.
Bobrovsky ended up facing only 14 shots on goal, but four of them were high danger shots, and Bob stopped each one of those.
“It is so hard to do what Sergei has done in a lot of the games where we've really suppressed the shot total, and we've had blocks of time where the other team doesn't get a lot, to stay mentally sharp,” said Maurice. “It’s very challenging.”
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NHL fines Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola for final-second slapshot toward Montreal players
The NHL has levied a fine against Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola.
On Monday, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced that Mikkola had been fined $5,000 for what it calls “unsportsmanlike conduct” during Sunday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Montreal defeated Florida 4-2 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise.
In the game’s final seconds, Mikkola had the puck on his stick in the Panthers defensive zone.
As time expired, Mikkola wound up and fired a blistering slapshot down the ice that nearly hit David Savard about 150 feet away.
The Canadiens players responded, understandably so, by going after Mikkola as officials attempted to usher the players to their respective locker rooms.
Mikkola was given a two-minute minor for unsportsmanlike conduct and a ten minute misconduct, according to the game’s official scoresheet.
It took less than 24 hours after the game had ended for the NHL to respond with the $5,000 fine, which is the maximum allowable under the collective bargaining agreement.
We’ll see how Montreal responds when they host the Panthers Tuesday night at Bell Center.
Between the aforementioned animosity and how both teams are fighting for every point they can get in the standings, it should be a doozie.
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Practice Notebook: Marchand trending toward Panthers debut, updates on Tkachuk, Kulikov
The Florida Panthers hit the ice for their second practice in as many days on Thursday in Fort Lauderdale.
Florida is gearing up for the home stretch of the regular season, with 11 games remaining until the Stanley Cup Playoffs arrive.
Newly acquired Brad Marchand skated on Florida’s second line again, just as he did on Wednesday, as anticipation continues to build toward his eventual Panthers debut.
This time, the line was centered by Sam Bennett, who did not practice the day before.
Afterwards, Maurice said a decision is still coming regarding Marchand’s status for Friday’s game against the Utah Hockey Club.
If Marchand does suit up, Maurice said it would indeed be on a line with Bennett and rookie Mackie Samoskevich.
“We’ll see how everyone comes back to the rink tomorrow, and then (after) the morning skate we’ll make the decision whether Brad is in or not,” said Maurice.
Marchand has been around the team for several weeks. He was on the road with them, skating and attending meetings, getting as acclimated to the Panthers as possible before the Stanley Cup Playoffs arrive.
“He’s part of the group and he’s had an opportunity to get all the social parts out of the way,” Maurice said. “He’s dying to get into the game and play the game with the guys out there.”
Maurice also provided an update on injured defenseman Dmitry Kulikov.
The expectation is that Kulikov will be back on the ice sometime next week, with a hope that he’s able to return to Florida’s lineup before the regular season ends.
“I do think that there is a chance he plays in the last week,” Maurice said.
As for Matthew Tkachuk, Maurice did not provide a timeline in terms of when the injured forward would be back on the ice.
He did say, however, that everything with Tkachuk’s recovery remained on the original track, which initially looked like the target was for him to play sometime during the first round of the playoffs.
“The original plan that they had laid out is exactly where they are right now,” Maurice said. “I don't think, with either injury, we're expecting a miraculous heal but we're also not expecting a really big surprise. Because we still have work to do to make the playoffs, but we have faith that we will, we’re not going to leave them out longer than we should, but we're not bringing them back earlier than we should.”
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Brad Marchand speaks on Panthers debut, excitement level to join team building 'something special'
It was quite a night on Friday at Amerant Bank Arena, one that fans had been anticipating for several weeks.
That’s because superstar forward Brad Marchand made his debut as a member of the Florida Panthers.
Florida acquired the future Hall of Famer at the NHL Trade Deadline back on March 8 in a shocking move that came in literally moments before the 3 p.m. buzzer.
In the time since, Marchand has been working his way back from an upper-body injury that he suffered about a week before the trade.
Between skating with the team on the ice and attending meetings and working out off the ice, Marchand has had a chance to acclimate himself to his new surroundings.
That feeling of familiarity was finally extended to the fans on Friday, and they gave Marchand some very loud ovations, starting with the moment his name was announced as part of the starting lineup.
It was appropriate that the night started with Marchand causing the fans to get loud, because that’s exactly how it would end.
Marchand was on the ice during overtime with the puck on his stick, and it was the newest Panthers player who made a perfect pass to Sam Bennett that was backhanded into the net to win the game for Florida.
After celebrating with his teammates, Marchand picked up a couple plastic rats off the ice before heading into the locker room, which he later explained was something he promised his children he would do.
The 36-year-old finished the game with an assist, a plus-1 on-ice rating and four shots on goal. He played 16 minutes and 30 seconds split over 22 shifts that included work on Florida’s second power play unit.
Following the game, Marchand spoke to the South Florida media. He is everything he had to say:
On the overtime goal: “In our D-zone, great read by (Forsling) to pick off that pass and try to make a play on the rush. (Bennett) did a great job, kind of stopping in a position to for me to get it to him and made a great play.”
On making an immediate impact in his first game: “It's great to get the win and be part of that with the guys. They compete so hard here, and it’s just nice to get out there and feel like you're part of it. It's tough watching in a position like this, but great to be out there with them again.”
On picking up a couple rats while heading off the ice: “It was one of the things that my kids said. Right away, they were asking about the rats being thrown out there, and I was like, I don't know when it happens, but if it does, I'll grab a couple. So I did.”
On spending the past three weeks with the Panthers: “It’s tough. You want to be with the group right away. It's the best way to build chemistry, build relationships and find your game on the ice with a group. It's tough on your own, and we're traveling, and my schedule is different than the group, but I was just trying to spend as much time with the with the team as I can. The coaching staff was awesome, they brought me in for all the meetings, pre games, so I could just kind of get accustomed to the way they did things around here, which definitely helped me feel more comfortable coming in today. It's such a great group to come in to, everybody's so welcoming and really, really good group in the room, which made the transition very easy.”
On if it’s starting to feel normal being with the Panthers: “It was still different today. It's the first time I've done a pregame skate at home, the schedule is a lot different than even what it was on the road, so even little things like that, that you're not accustomed to. Every day that goes by, I’m feeling much more comfortable and much more part of the group. And when you play and you're in everything day to day, it definitely helps that happen quicker. So yeah, I'm excited to continue to build with the group here.”
On his first message in the Panthers group chat being a chirp: “That's just how I am, and I'm not going to change now, but it's a great group to do that. There's a lot of banter in the room, and you see why they've had so much success last few years, with how close they are and the way that they work and compete every day. When you have a group like that, they accept people in and make them feel part of the group really quickly.”
On the importance of the final 10 games of the regular season: “I want to try to get as many games in here as possible and really feel comfortable with the group and try to get used to the system and the way our lines are going to play; they shuffle things around a lot here. Just getting up to speed with the way they do things and everything, the more time on the ice is definitely very beneficial.”
On playing his first game for a team other than Boston: “It was odd when I stepped on the ice. That was the first time it kind of hit me. Going out there and being cheered by Panthers fans was a lot different, but it's a great feeling. It's not often that you get to be part of a group like this. I've been on a lot of teams throughout the years, and you know when you have something special, and you know when you walk into a special room, and that's what they have here, and that’s what you want to be part of. There's not many teams that are legit contenders each year, and when you walk in the room, the way they talk about the game, the way they talk about working, competing and showing up every day, there's a reason why they're as good as they are, and you want to be part of that. It's something special, and you don't get it every day, and the longer you're around and the quicker it goes by, you realize how special it is. So I feel very fortunate and excited to be part of this group.”
On playing the Panthers’ style of hockey for the first time: “I love the way that the team competes and how calm they are in every moment of the game. They just have that confidence and swagger all the way through, and it's contagious in the group and in the room, so I love that aspect of it. But from day one coming in here, I've always loved the way guys compete, and the way they work, how they take care of themselves. It's a lot of fun to see.”
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Panthers wrap up homestand against Montreal squad clinging to last Wild Card spot
It’s been a fun week at home for the Florida Panthers.
After picking up a pair of wins over Pittsburgh and Utah while enjoying some down time in-between, the Panthers will look to complete their second straight perfect homestand when they host the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday afternoon in Sunrise.
It’s the start of a home-and-home between the two Atlantic Division rivals, one that concludes on Tuesday at Bell Centre in Montreal.
One thing that is quite certain is that the Panthers should get a hell of a fight from the playoff hopeful Habs.
Entering play Sunday, Montreal holds the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference despite being in a three-way tie with the Columbus Blue Jackets and the New York Rangers points-wise.
The Canadiens have lost five straight though (0-3-2) and, at least until now, have squandered a chance solidify their standing in the playoff race.
Instead, the Canadiens will have to fight for points against the defending Stanley Cup champs over the next few days.
Florida arrives on Sunday one point behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for the top spot in the Atlantic Division and with a game in hand.
Much of the attention in Pantherland this week was on Brad Marchand.
Acquired at the NHL Trade Deadline while recovering from an upper-body injury, Marchand made his Panthers debut on Friday against Utah.
Marchand played well and picked up the primary assist on Sam Bennett’s overtime winner.
Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Sunday’s showdown with the Pens:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Nico Sturm – Evan Rodrigues
Gus Forsling – Seth Jones
Niko Mikkola – Tobias Bjornfot
Nate Schmidt – Uvis Balinskis
Scratches: Tomas Nosek, Jonah Gadjovich, Dmitry Kulikov
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Sergei Bobrovsky playing lights out for Florida Panthers as Stanley Cup Playoffs approach
The Florida Panthers are getting some excellent play from their starting goaltender.
Over the past couple months, Sergei Bobrovsky has been rounding into his playoff form.
Following a rough few starts in mid-January in which Bobrovsky allowed 12 goals on 62 shots, Bob has been locked in.
He’s won 12 of his 16 starts since then, watching his save percentage rise and his goals against average drop while Florida continued collecting points.
“Every game, he gives us a chance,” Panthers Captain Sasha Barkov said after Florida’s last game, a 4-3 shootout victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
During the month of March, Bobrovsky has played some of his best hockey of the season.
That makes sense, as Bobrovsky has generally been at his best once the Stanley Cup Playoffs arrive.
The postseason is just a few short weeks away.
During eight appearances this month, Bob holds a 6-2-0 record. His save percentage is a sparkling .935 and his goals against average is a minuscule 1.50.
Facing 184 shots, he’s allowed only 12 goals while earning not one, not two but three shutouts in March.
Looking ahead, Florida has 11 games remaining on their regular season schedule, including three back-to-back sets.
That will give Bobrovsky ample time to both prepare himself on the ice for the battles to come during the playoffs and to give his body a chance to take any rest or recouperation time it may need.
If we’ve learned anything about Bob during his time in South Florida, it’s that he operates very much on his own level.
Between his legendary training habits and overall physicality, Bobrovsky should be able to have himself in ideal shape for the postseason.
Based off the past couple playoff runs, that could keep Bob busy well into the month of June.
Bobrovsky has played 43 games between Florida’s two trips to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023 and 2024.
Both years, he was among contenders for the Conn Smythe Trophy, given to the player deemed most valuable during the playoffs. He’s built for this.
As far as the Panthers are concerned, confidence couldn’t be higher in their starting goaltender.
Now we just have to wait and see how well Bob and the Cats can do in a few weeks, as they embark on a journey searching for their third straight Final appearance and second Stanley Cup victory.
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Florida fails to foil desperate Canadiens squad, fall 4-2 to Montreal
The Florida Panthers ran into a very hungry Montreal Canadiens squad on Sunday afternoon in Sunrise.
Desperate to maintain their spot as the final Wild Card team in the Eastern Conference, Montreal played a tough, desperate game and took down the Panthers 4-2 at Amerant Bank Arena.
The win put an end to Florida’s home winning streak at seven games.
Patrik Laine put the Habs on the scoreboard first, cashing in on a power play goal with Tobias Bjornfot in the penalty box for high-sticking.
Laine was down near the goal line and one-timed a pass from rookie Lane Hutson past Sergei Bobrovsky at the 12:03 mark of the opening period.
Just 73 seconds later, Sasha Barkov picked up a loose puck behind Montreal net and quickly fed Sam Reinhart in front.
Reino’s backhand shot eluded the glove of Sam Montembeault and quickly tied the game at one.
Another Montreal power play goal, this one by Juraj Slafkovsky, put the Habs back in front just past the game’s midway point.
Seth Jones tied the game with 3:35 left in the second period when he one-timed a quick feed from Barkov through Montembeault’s pads.
A goal just 2:02 into the third period by Nick Suzuki would prove to be the game-winner as Montreal did a great job limiting Florida’s opportunities the rest of the day.
Brandon Gallagher added an empty-net goal for good measure, his 18th tally the season.
These same two teams will face off again on Tuesday from Montreal.
QUICK THOUGHTS
Jones now has two goals and an assist over his past give games.
Barkov is now riding a modest three-game point streak, with four assists during the run.
He’s also got two goals and seven points over his past six games.
Carter Verhaeghe picked up an assist on Reinhart’s goal, his first point in six games and only his third during 13 games in March.
Reinhart has now scored four goals over his past six games.
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Three takeaways: Some good, some bad in frustrating loss to Montreal
The Florida Panthers get to head out on their final multi-game road trip with a chip on their collective shoulder thanks to Sunday’s game in Sunrise.
Florida fell behind not once, not twice, but three times to the visiting Montreal Canadiens, losing at home for the first time since Feb. 22.
While the Panthers didn’t necessarily play a bad game, they stumbled in a couple key areas and just couldn’t find their footing in a very un-Florida-like third period.
Let’s get to Sunday’s takeaways.
WHAT WENT WRONG
A couple of areas really stand out when looking over Florida’s loss to the Canadiens.
Going just 1-for-3 on the penalty kill, an area Florida has been overall quite excellent for several weeks now, was a big kick in the gut.
The Panthers fell behind 1-0 and 2-1 on Sunday, with both goals against coming on the power play.
They also put only 26 shots on net despite getting off an additional 51 attempts.
“The two power play goals will be the biggest piece, and then we had 30 (of our shots) blocked tonight, missed the net by another 20 or so, so we let a lot of offense die in that game,” said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. “But it's the penalty kill, which has been incredibly good for us. We got a tough break on the second one, but that'll be the decider.”
DECENT AT EVEN STRENGTH
Florida outscored Montreal 2-1 when playing at 5-on-5 on Sunday.
Unfortunately, Florida’s aforementioned penalty kill was off its usual game, and that proved to be the difference in the game.
There was still a strong foundation for what could have been a solid Panthers-like outing, which bodes well for Florida’s chance to clean a few things up before they hit the ice again.
“The first one, both teams are going to come out a little bit hot,” said Maurice. “I don't think there was much had by either team five-on-five. We battled back and scored right away and kind of did that again. Five-on-five was okay, but we're not bragging about it, for sure.”
QUICK TURNAROUND, SORT OF
Generally, after a game like this, you’ll go through the video, take your lumps and move on to the next one.
In this case, Florida and Montreal are playing a home-and-home so they’re going to right back at it again on Tuesday.
It’s a small taste of what a playoff series would feel like.
We’ll see how well the Panthers, who have done a pretty decent job when it comes to winning playoff series in recent years, respond to the loss.
“We'll deal with tonight, we'll deal with it tomorrow, and then we'll leave it there and get on to the next one,” said Maurice.
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Bennett scores twice, Marchand picks up OT assist as Panthers defeat Utah 2-1
Fans were treated to a fun Friday night at the hockey barn in Sunrise.
Hosting the Utah Hockey Club for the first time, the Florida Panthers welcomed Brad Marchand to their lineup and pulled out a gutty 2-1 win in overtime.
It took some time for the game to get going, with the two teams combining for only 11 shots on goal during the opening 20 minutes.
An early second period power play for Florida would change that.
Controlling the puck right off the face off in Utah’s zone, Florida worked the puck around before Sasha Barkov found Sam Bennett with a perfect back door feed.
Bennett deposited the puck behind Karel Vejmelka to give the Cats a 1-0 lead just 2:28 into the second period.
Florida’s lead held until the early stages of the third period, when Sean Durzi finished off a 2-on-1 while the teams were playing at 4-on-4.
Some strong penalty killing by the Panthers would help push the affair past regulation for the second straight home game.
The extra session was all Florida, but it took nearly the entire five minutes for the Cats to cash in.
Brad Marchand had the puck on his stick behind Utah’s net, finding Bennett at the side of the goal crease.
His second of the game would give Florida their seventh straight win on home ice.
On to Montreal.
QUICK THOUGHTS
Bennett’s goal was his sixth over his past nine games.
Barkov has five points over his past five games after picking up the primary assist on Bennett’s goal.
Marchand’s primary assist on Bennett’s OT winner was his first as a member of the Panthers.
Florida held Utah to only 14 shots on goal.
The Cats went a perfect 4-for-4 on the penalty kill, including one late in the third period where they held Utah to zero shots on goal.
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Three takeaways: 'Bad break' goal ruins strong outing from Panthers in Montreal
This may be one of the rare times when a team is happy to be playing a back-to-back set.
The Florida Panthers lost an extremely frustrating game on Tuesday night in Montreal, allowing a tying goal with 8.4 seconds left before losing in overtime 3-2.
From the opening puck drop, the game was dripping in playoff intensity.
The physicality, the passion, the effort…it’s what makes hockey the best sport there is, and what makes playoff hockey the best postseason in sports.
There should be more of where that came from as the actual playoffs get closer, but for now let’s go over to Tuesday’s takeaways:
A VERY FLUKY GOAL
The bottom line is that the Panthers were 10 seconds away from a well-earned two points in a very hostile building.
A funky goal that occurred during a sequence that saw several players go exactly where they shouldn’t have because of where the puck ended up bouncing after a strange shot and a block attempt that all felt awkward but ended in jubilation for Montreal…that sum it up okay?
“Just a bad break,” said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice. “Over 82 games, you’re going to get one of those. We’ll leave it here.”
CATS DIDN’T PLAY POORLY
When it comes to playing postseason hockey, the Panthers know how to succeed.
They can grind games out with the best of them, and that’s exactly what they did Tuesday in Montreal.
When the Canadiens scored their funky goal in the final seconds, it was their first shot in over eight minutes.
Despite the way things ended up for Florida, Maurice said afterward he was not upset with how his team played.
“Not even a little bit,” he said. “You play the game the way you want to play it. We give up three shots in the third period with a 2-1 lead is nearly perfect. It's a break that won’t happen again. I won't think about the way this game ended again.”
SOLID GAME BY VANECEK
Goaltender Vitek Vanecek’s fourth game with the Panthers was not one many will want to remember, but that has little to do with how he performed.
The 29-year-old was strong throughout and displayed excellent poise and rebound control.
After things went sideways at the end, it’s easy to overlook a solid effort from Florida’s goaltending insurance policy.
He finished with 18 saves, including three on high danger shots.
“I thought in the first (period) he had a couple, then he had one in the second, and then I thought it was a pretty quiet game for him, but he was good when we needed him to be,” said Maurice.
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Panthers blow another late lead, fall 3-2 in overtime to Montreal
It certainly felt like a playoff game on Tuesday night in Montreal.
The back end of a home-and-home between the Florida Panthers and Montreal Canadiens had a little bit of everything, but it was the hometown Habs who came out on top.
A late goal and an overtime goal gave Montreal a resounding 3-2 victory and Florida more questions to answer.
For the second game in a row, it was Montreal striking first.
Josh Anderson got positioning in front of the net on Uvis Balinskis and deflected a shot by Kaiden Guhle past a screened Vitek Vanecek to put the Habs up 1-0 just 4:43 into the game.
About five minutes later, a faceoff in Montreal’s end led to the Panthers’ first goal of the game.
Anton Lundell won the draw back to Niko Mikkola, and his shot tipped off the end of Habs defenseman Jake Evans’ stick and over the goal line.
Florida briefly through they’d taken the lead but the goal was quickly waived off.
Uvis Balinskis fired a shot that went off the post and directly into A.J. Greer's skates.
Greer dragged a skate that pushed the puck into the net, and officials initially said no goal, then changed their call after chatting with each other and went to video review, which ultimately led to a no goal call.
It took a little while longer but the Panthers did eventually their first lead of the game, and of the season, over Montreal, and it came on Florida’s first power play of the night.
Rookie Mackie Samoskevich sent a wrist shot right along the ice that hit off Guhle on its way underneath Sam Montembeault with just 1:13 left in the middle frame.
Florida was able to hold on to the lead until quite literally the game’s final seconds.
A failed clear attempt at the Panthers blue line led to the puck being sent toward Florida’s net by Lane Hutson. The bouncing shot went through Sam Reinhart, who went down to his knees in an attempt to block it and instead ended up on the tape of Nick Suzuki with nothing to stop him from scoring with just 8.4 seconds left.
It was the first shot on goal for Montreal in over eight minutes.
Their next shot would end the game.
Never relinquishing possession after the overtime faceoff, it was Suzuki scoring again, this time on a wraparound goal.
This one is going to sting.
On to Toronto.
QUICK THOUGHTS
Lundell’s primary assist on Mikkola’s goal was his first helper since Feb. 27 against Edmonton.
Seth Jones has points in four of his past six games after assisting on Samoskevich’s power play goal.
It was the first tally for Mackie in seven games, his longest stretch without a goal since the end of January.
The goal was also the fifth game-winner for Samoskevich this season.
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Fresh off frustrating loss, Panthers in Toronto for big divisional showdown
It’s been a rough few weeks for the Florida Panthers.
After winning seven straight games between late February and early March, the Panthers have sauntered through a 4-5-1 that has seen them leave several points on the shelf.
A team that had been one of the best when it came to locking down late leads has become anything but.
Tuesday night’s debacle in Montreal, which was more the result of a fluky bounce than poor play on Florida’s part, was the latest in a string of frustrating losses that saw the Panthers relinquish a late lead.
Now they’ll have to have a short memory, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as they’ll go to battle with the Toronto Maple Leafs in a game with rather large implications in the standings.
Entering play Wednesday, Toronto holds the top spot in the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of Tampa Bay and two clear of Florida.
Each team has eight games remaining on their respective schedules.
Toronto has won six of their past eight games and is fresh off a three-game California road trip that ended with wins in Los Angeles and Anaheim over the weekend.
A win by Toronto would go a long way toward keeping them ahead of Florida for good, though the teams do play again on Tuesday in Sunrise.
Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Wednesday’s battle in Toronto:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Nico Sturm – Evan Rodrigues
Gus Forsling – Seth Jones
Niko Mikkola – Nate Schmidt
Tobias Bjornfot – Uvis Balinskis
Scratches: Jonah Gadjovich, Tomas Nosek, Dmitry Kulikov
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Fireworks possible in rematch between Panthers and Canadiens that comes with major playoff implications
Don't be surprised to see some fireworks on Monday night when the Florida Panthers open their latest road trip in Montreal.
The Panthers and Montreal Canadiens faced off on Sunday afternoon in Sunrise, with the Habs coming away with a 4-2 victory, snapping Florida's seven-game home winning streak.
It was an important victory for the Canadiens, who are clinging to the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
Entering play Tuesday, Montreal is tied with the New York Rangers, each holding 77 points, but the Habs have played one less game than the Blueshirts and, as such, hold the tiebreaker.
Sunday's game was important for Florida, too, as the loss dropped the Cats down to third in the Atlantic Division.
Florida and Tampa Bay each have 91 points and 73 games played, but the Lightning have two more regulation wins than Florida, which is the next tiebreaker. Toronto is currently three points clear of both Florida and Tampa, though with one more game played.
So yeah, plenty of playoff intrigue and implications on Tuesday night at Bell Centre.
But wait, there’s more!
In literally the final seconds of Montreal’s victory on Sunday, Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola fired a howitzer of a slapshot down the ice into the Canadiens’ zone, nearly hitting David Savard and incited a ruckus that had several Habs players trying to get at Mikkola.
The NHL’s Department of Player Safety responded quickly, fining Mikkola $5,000, the maximum amount allowable, for unsportsmanlike conduct.
We’ll see if anything happens when Panthers and Canadiens reconvene on the ice in Montreal.
Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Tuesday's clash with the Canadiens:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Nico Sturm – Evan Rodrigues
Gus Forsling – Seth Jones
Niko Mikkola – Nate Schmidt
Tobias Bjornfot – Uvis Balinskis
Scratches: Jonah Gadjovich, Tomas Nosek, Dmitry Kulikov
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Panthers center Sam Bennett reaches new career high in points
One of the top forwards on the Florida Panthers has hit a significant career milestone.
Center Sam Bennett has reached a new career high in points.
Bennett picked up an assist on Gus Forsling’s goal on Wednesday night in Toronto.
The point was Bennett’s 50th of the season, surpassing the mark he set during his first full season with the Panthers back in 2021-22.
It was also Bennett’s 25th assist, which also set a new career high.
Not too shabby for the 28-year-old pending unrestricted free agent.
He's also set a new career mark this season with seven power play goals.
It’s no secret that Bennett has played the best hockey of his professional career since being acquired by Florida at the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline.
The former fourth overall pick has proven to be a crucial member of the Panthers, one that fits the style the team looks to play to a tee.
Bennett and the Panthers are having ongoing talks regarding a contract extension, so we’ll have to wait and see if the two sides can come to an agreement sometime before the offseason.
Stay tuned.
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Matthew Tkachuk resumes skating, Panthers still targeting opening round of playoffs for return
There was a welcomed sight on the ice at the Florida Panthers training facility on Monday morning.
Before the Panthers scheduled practice, injured forward Matthew Tkachuk was seen doing some skating and shooting pucks.
It's the first time Tkachuk has been seen on the ice since last month's 4 Nations Face-Off.
While representing Team USA, Tkachuk suffered an apparent groin injury that led to the Panthers placing him on long-term injured reserve.
Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice has said that the team hopes to have Tkachuk back in the lineup sometime during the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, which are set to begin during the third weekend in April.
On Monday, Maurice reiterated that the timeline has not changed while explaining that Tkachuk still has to do some significant conditioning work to get back into game shape.
"He was basically just out there touching pucks today," Maurice said. "There's no conditioning component to it, because he's not there yet. So he'll probably just get out in the ice and move some pucks around for a few more days, probably another week or so, and then hopefully we get to a point that he can start driving. You can do off ice things to try to mitigate some of the conditioning losses, but he is going to have to get into some significant skates here, and I think we're still a ways from that."
In addition to working his legs and his lungs back into a place where he can jump back in during the Stanley Cup Playoffs and be an impact player, it will probably take a few games for him to truly get back to his comfort level.
There is no way to duplicate the speed, physicality and intensity of an NHL game. You just have to live it.
"You can't stay in game shape unless you're playing games," Maurice said. It's game sharpness more than conditioning. We can do a bunch of stuff off the ice, his VO2 (Max) numbers may be better when he comes back, but it's just a sharpness thing, and you need to get into some games do that. This guy has got a lot of games under his belt, so those guys that have played for a while, can usually make enough minor adjustments in their game to buy themselves time till they get just the timing down."
The good thing is that Tkachuk is on the ice and the process remains uninterrupted, as far as we know.
He's with the Panthers on their current road trip and will continue to skate and ramp up until the medical staff is comfortable with him moving on to a heavier workload on the ice.
"So he was on the ice but I don't consider it an ice session day because he's not doing anything with coaches in terms of anything related to hockey," Maurice said. "He's got to get out there and feel the puck, that's all he's doing. He's close enough to travel, close enough to start skating. At some point, there will be a handoff to the coaches. That's when we'll start being able to do some more things with him."
For now, the first round remains the tentative target for Tkachuk.
We'll see how much progress he can make over the next several weeks.
"That's where we're still shooting for," Maurice said. "Depending on when those games get scheduled, it may have an impact."
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Panthers aim for 7th straight home win, host Utah Hockey Club for first time
The Florida Panthers are about to enter the home stretch of their regular season.
Coming off a nice four-day break between home games, Florida is looking to hit the ground running as they host the first of their final 11 games against the Utah Hockey Club Friday night at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise.
Entering play Friday, the Panthers are tied atop the Atlantic Division with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning but lose out to their neighbors from north of the border on a tiebreaker.
Both the Cats and Leafs hold identical 43-25-3 records, but due to Toronto having more non-shootout wins (42 to 38), the tiebreaker goes to them. Tampa has the same amount of points, but one more game played than Florida and Toronto.
But with 11 games remaining for each team, things are surely going to change over the next few weeks.
Florida’s last game was five days ago, a 4-3 shootout victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was the Panthers sixth straight win on home ice.
As for Utah, the former Coyotes arrive in South Florida with their playoff chances on life support.
With only 10 games remaining, Utah is currently 10 points behind St. Louis for the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference.
It’s been a strong second half the season for Utah, though.
Over their past 20 games, Utah has points in all but seven of them (11-7-2). That includes their game on Thursday’s night, an 8-0 drubbing at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Now they’ll make the short trip from Tampa to Sunrise and wrap up a back-to-back set against a rested and hungry Panthers squad.
If all goes well, Florida will get a boost to their lineup in the form of Brad Marchand.
The future Hall of Famers acquired by the Panthers at the Trade Deadline has been working his way back from an injury he suffered about a week before the deal was made.
Marchand has been skating with Florida for the past several weeks and has been nearing a return.
If he plays, he’ll line up on the Cats’ second line with his old buddy Sam Bennett and rookie Mackie Samoskevich.
Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Sunday’s showdown with the Pens:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
A.J. Greer – Nico Sturm – Jesper Boqvist
Gus Forsling – Seth Jones
Niko Mikkola – Tobias Bjornfot
Nate Schmidt – Uvis Balinskis
Scratches: Tomas Nosek, Jonah Gadjovich, Dmitry Kulikov
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Reeling Panthers drop third straight game, falling 3-2 in Toronto
It’s been a tough week for the Florida Panthers.
For the first time since late November, the Panthers have lost three straight games, capped off by Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The big news that came down before the game was that Panthers Captain Sasha Barkov would be out due to an upper-body injury.
During the first period, the Cats and Leafs combined to put 18 shots on Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz, but the former teammates stopped each and every one of them, keeping the game scoreless after 20 minutes.
It didn’t stay that way very long.
Deep in Toronto’s zone, Seth Jones carried the puck toward the blue line before starting a quick passing play that led to the game’s first goal.
The puck went from Jones to San Bennett to Sam Reinhart to Gus Forsling, who snapped a one-timer that beat Stolarz over the glove to give Florida a 1-0 lead.
Toronto tied the game about 10 minutes later after capitalizing on a broken rush play.
After getting into Florida’s end, William Nylander found the puck in the left circle and fired a shot toward the net that was deflected by John Tavares on the doorstep to knot the score at one.
A Mitch Marner one-timer gave Toronto a 2-1 lead with 9:10 to go in the third period on a sequence that saw Bobrovsky made several great saves moments before the goal was scored.
Marner then made an excellent pass to send Matthew Knies on a breakaway less than five minutes later to extend Toronto’s lead to 3-1.
Reinhart cut the Leafs’ lead in half with 2:38 to go, sniping a power play goal over a screened Stolarz’s blocker.
That’s as close as the Cats would get.
On to Ottawa.
QUICK THOUGHTS
Bobrovsky played in his 750th career game.
Forsling’s goal was his first in 16 games.
Bennett’s assist on Forsling’s goal gave him five points over his past six outings.
Reinhart has now logged six goals and 14 points over his past 13 games.
Jones has his first three-game point streak since joining the Panthers and picking up an assist on Reinhart’s goal.
He also has points in five of his past seven games.
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The Hockey Show: Ovechkin's classy move, Frozen Four and This Is SportsCenter spots with John Buccigross
The Stanley Cup Playoffs and NCAA Frozen Four are both fast approaching.
This week on The Hockey Show, much attention was spent on both the NCAA Division One Hockey Tournament and the race for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Joining hosts Roy Bellamy and David Dwork to discuss was one of the most qualified people to do so, and that’s Mr. Cawlidge Hawkey himself, John Buccigross.
In addition to the men’s and women’s college hockey tournaments, Bucci also chatted about a classy move by Alex Ovechkin, Brad Marchand’s addition to the Florida Panthers and some of his favorite This Is Sportscenter commercials.
Roy and Dave also discussed the latest happenings in and around the Panthers, the firing of John Tortorella in Philadelphia and, of course, their wins and fails of the week.
This week they included Nikita Kucherov searching for his tooth before scoring a goal, a goale fight that we were all robbed of, a goalie taking his anger out on his helpless stick and a homemade goal horn that Roy wants to use to torture people.
You can catch the full episode in the video below:
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Panthers Captain Sasha Barkov skates in 800th NHL game
Florida Panthers Captain Sasha Barkov hit a major milestone on Sunday.
When Barkov took the ice for Florida’s home game against the Montreal Canadiens, it was his 800th game in the National Hockey League.
Barkov has spent his entire NHL career with the Panthers after Florida selected him second overall at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
He played his first game in a Panthers sweater as a fresh-faced 18-year-old a few months later, scoring his first NHL goal against the Dallas Stars on Opening Night.
Now, 800 games later, Barkov has been through just about everything with the Panthers.
He’s been an All-Star, represented the team in his native Finland, become the leader on countless franchise records – Barkov is the franchise leader in games played, goals, assists, points, shots and power play goals – and, oh yeah, led the team to their first ever Stanley Cup Championship.
He’s also the first Panthers player to ever reach the 800-game mark with the team.
The 29-year-old is far from done rewriting Florida’s record books, though.
Barkov is in the fifth season of an eight-year deal that pays him $10 million annually, but knowing both Barkov and Panthers General Manager Bill Zito, it’s highly likely that the Cats’ captain ends up finishing his career in South Florida.
With Barkov as captain and Zito as GM, Florida has qualified for the postseason a franchise record five straight seasons.
They’ve reached the Stanley Cup Final in each of the past two years and, as was previously mentioned, Barkov hoisted the historic trophy last June.
Eventually, Barkov’s number will be hanging in the rafters at Amerant Bank Arena and, quite possibly, the Finnish star will find his face among those in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Congrats to Barky on reaching 800 games played!
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