The Panthers headed out west for their first west coast road trip, and up first was the Seattle Kraken. The Kraken have been a bit of a mixed-bag team, with them getting good wins over teams like the Wild and the Rangers but also losing back-to-back games to the Sharks. That said, as of late, they’ve been good as of late and were coming off a road trip where they went 3-1. The Panthers have had issues this season against teams that utilize a lot of speed and are less physical as a team. It was a tight game, with Florida struggling to solve the Kraken defense consistently despite dominating the SOG and offensive zone time. It was a duel of the goalies with the match going the distance to a shootout where Barkov and Reinhart bested Daccord and grabbed the extra point. Florida had to work hard for that extra point, though, and the road trip’s not getting any easier with the Canucks as the next game on Thursday.
Low Scoring Affair:
The Panthers’ numbers on the score sheet looked about average for them, and with that, you’d think that the final score would be a bigger divide than needing a shootout to decide a winner. Florida ended the night with 33 SOG, 13 blocked shots, and 29 hits; the only stat where Seattle bested them was blocked shots, where they had 18. The O-zone time heavily favored the Cats, but they struggled with the Kraken’s well-structured defense that clogged up the slot and kept them from the front of the net. Add to that a great performance from Joey Daccord and the Panthers found themselves down 0-1 after the first period. It looked like Seattle would do something that no one had done all season and keep Florida scoreless through two periods until a late play by Reinhart to Barkov for the one-timer tied the game. There’s been discourse online around the play that Nate Schmidt made, which prompted Reinhart to make the play in the first place. Kraken fans and HC Dan Bylsma said it was a slash that wasn’t called. Based on the video I’ve seen, it looks like Schmidt’s stick gets in to lift Gourde’s stick and either catches part of Gourde’s hand or is very, very close to his hands and probably should’ve been called as a penalty. Other angles or viewpoints may show clear no contact, but I have yet to see them. Regardless, following that play, the Panthers break into the offensive zone, where a pass from Reinhart to Barkov at the bottom of the circle gets one-timed past a sliding Oleksiak, who was trying to block the shot and gets by Daccord to tie the game. There was no scoring in the third period or during overtime, although both teams had opportunities.
Goalie Battle:
Bobrovsky had a great game despite not having a busy night. HC Paul Maurice said in his post-game presser that Bob made some quiet saves through traffic. The Kraken only had 18 SOG but had more than a couple of odd-man rush chances. An outlet pass to Gourde in the neutral zone, which he passed to Stephenson and then took the shot and opened the scoring. Bobrovsky got part of the puck, but not enough to keep it from going in. From then on, Bob wasn’t letting anything else pass and ended the night with a .944 SV%. Daccord had an outstanding performance for the Kraken and robbed more than a couple of Panthers’ players of goals. Tkachuk couldn’t stuff one in by the post, a wraparound attempt went long, and Verhaeghe couldn’t get one in despite some great chances. This match was a defensive battle with the goalies standing strong. Special teams were a non-factor as both PK units were strong and killed off all the man advantages, and transition offense was the key to success. When it came to O,T both teams had opportunities to end it but couldn’t find the extra bit to finish it off. When it came to the shootout, Bobrovsky stonewalled both Tolvanen and Bjorkstrand while Barkov and Reinhart were able to best Daccord.
Barkov, Reinhart, Samoskevich:
Samoskevich didn’t get rewarded on the stats sheet with a goal or an assist. However, he was a noticeable presence all game, and HC Paul Maurice promoted him to the third line to get him some extra ice time. He led all the forwards in shots at six and made some great plays. Mackie’s having a great rookie season, even if he’s not lighting up the scoresheet right now like a Celebrini or Bedard. He fits into Florida’s system really well and makes the team better when he’s on the ice. Barkov and Reinhart continue to be one of the best forward duos in the NHL with both of them having solid nights. Obviously, Barkov scored the only goal in regulation but what’s got people talking post-game is what he did in the shootout. Sasha rarely gets denied in a shootout, and Tuesday night was no different. He faked a between-the-legs shot to outwit Daccord and then put the puck in the net on a backhanded shot to give the Panthers a chance to end it in the next round. Reinhart did some weaving back and forth before he faked a shot. As he moved to the right of the net, he got Daccord to move first, and he went down to the ice, giving Reinhart an open net to shoot at for the win. Standout performances from all three players gave the Panthers the boost to grab a hard-fought two points.
Brandon Montour and Josh Mahura were given their Stanley Cup Champion rings when they met with the Panthers for dinner in Seattle. Up next, the Cats head to Vancouver to take on the Canucks.
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