Florida headed on the road this week with a 3-game road trip to Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Tampa Bay. The Cats were coming off a big win over Colorado to sweep that series and looked to keep up the momentum. Head Coach Paul Maurice stuck to his adjusted forward lines, which had moved Verhaeghe to Barkov & Reinhart, Cousins paired with Tkachuk & Bennett, and Rodrigues to Lundell & Luostarinen. The adjustment has made a world of difference for the Panthers’ offense, as the bottom six are scoring consistently. Over the last five games, going back to the Washington Capitals game, where the switch was initially made, the bottom six lines have scored nine goals in five games, including a GWG and a PP goal for Ryan Lomberg. It was a very successful road trip for the Cats as they now hold sole possession of no. 1 in the Atlantic Division and are the no. 2 team in the NHL.
Pittsburgh Penguins:
Coming off the Colorado shutout, Bobrovsky was back in the net against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Barkov’s line started things for the forwards while the Forsling-Ekblad pair was on defense; Jarry was between the pipes for the Penguins. Pitt wasted no time getting into the Florida defensive zone and held it for the opening minutes. Rodrigues got a breakaway chance, but the play got broken up before he could make a shot. After Bob made a good save, the Cats responded with offensive pressure of their own. Tkachuk’s shot got deflected wide, while Bennett’s was glove saved by Jarry. Complete chaos erupted in front of the net, but Jarry was able to keep the puck out of the net. Bobrovsky made a great save before Lomberg went to the penalty box for delay of game with 11:04 on the clock. The powerplay would be fruitless for Pitt as the Panthers’ PK set to work and didn’t allow a SOG. Verhaeghe and Montour both got shots off, but they were blocked away. Things started to get chippy with just over 6 minutes to play in the first period when Stenlund bumped Jarry, and shoving between players broke out. Just 30 seconds later, an all-out fight erupted when a hit on Cousins sent him into the Florida bench. Mikkola and Crosby were going at it, but the referees let it go. Ekman-Larsson got sent to the box for cross-checking with just under 3 minutes to go. For the second straight PP, the PK didn’t allow for a SOG, and the Pitt fans made themselves known by booing their team’s power play. Bob made a big save in the last minute to keep things scoreless. A light hit from Tkachuk sets off Puljujarvi to retaliate, and a full fight breaks out after the period ends; it would be Ekman-Larsson and Malkin, however, who get called for roughing penalties to start the 2nd. Things were scoreless after 20 minutes.
4v4 action to start the 2nd period, and Bob was on his game early with two great saves. Rodrigues was the next one sent to the box after the 4v4 expired for hooking. Rakell scored, but Florida challenged the goal. The challenge would be successful, and then Ekblad got a shorty opportunity that Jarry saved. Rodrigues gets out of the box and sets up Tkachuk, who shoots to score with 15:23 left to play. Thirty-four seconds later, Gadjovich would make the lead 2-0 as he tipped in a shot from Montour. Reinhart made a shot that Jarry kick-saved. Pettersson went to the box for hooking just under 7 minutes into the period to give Florida their first power play of the night. The Pens PK had scouted the Florida PP hard as there were guys all over Reinhart; however, that left Ekblad all alone, and he used a toe-drag shot to score with 11:33 to play. During this period, the Panthers have scored three goals on six shots. The Florida offense wasn’t done either, Lundell would make it four unanswered goals when he scored with just under 7 minutes left in the period; Tkachuk set him up with a great pass and had a 3-point game during the period. The Penguins finally got on the board with 4:36 to play in the period off a shot from Guentzel. Florida went for their second challenge of the night but was unsuccessful. The Pens headed to the power play for the third time and managed to get some SOG off, but Bob was there to make the stops. He had a highlight reel-worthy one with 45 seconds left on the PP. Florida got their second shorty chance, but Jarry saved it, followed closely by a 1-on-1 for Tkachuk that was also saved. Letang headed to the box for cross-checking with just over 2 minutes to play, and the Penguins were able to kill the penalty. Florida leads things 4-1, headed into the 3rd period.
Pittsburgh opened the final frame by holding the offensive zone in the first 5 minutes. Bob made a great save early, and Mikkola was sharp on defense, breaking up what could have been a dangerous opportunity for the Penguins. Bobrovsky made a fantastic save on Pettersson, which Florida followed up with Lundell scoring to make it a 5-1 lead. It was an unusual goal as Lundell’s shot gets deflected up into the air and eventually ends up behind Jarry who’d lost track of it and went into the back of the net. The Pens cut the lead back down to 3 with a response goal from Ludvig; It was his first NHL goal, and he beat Bob on the glove side. Bobrovsky then made a big save with 12:17 to play. The Florida offense then did what fans have seen it do and became extremely dominant in the 3rd period holding the offensive zone for the majority of the period. Florsling had his shot blocked, Barkov’s went wide, and Rodrigues & Reinhart’s both got saved. The Penguins responded by holding the offensive zone in the last 3 minutes. However, it would be Florida to walk away with the 5-2 win to start the road trip.
Buffalo Sabres:
Riding the momentum, the Cats headed up to Buffalo for the second half of the back-to-back. The Sabers have been plagued by inconsistent play this season, leaving them pretty far out of the playoff race. Anthony Stolarz would be in the crease for the Panthers while Comrie was in the net for the Sabers; Comrie had played just 4 games in the last month in the AHL, he came in to start after the Buffalo goalie got injured during the morning skate. Reinhart’s line got the forward start, with Mikkola-Montour for the defense. After the win over the Penguins, Florida is 3rd overall in the NHL behind the Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks. This was the first of 3 meetings between the Cats and the Sabers. Florida took control in the offensive zone first, getting shots from Ekblad and Forsling, which got blocked and went wide, respectively. During the Pitt game, the Lundell line was statistically the best one for the Panthers. Buffalo got their first shot against Stolarz, who made the glove save. Verhaeghe, Barkov, and Mikkola were the next Cats to get shots off but were unsuccessful. There was plenty of back and forth in the opening 7 minutes, but both teams were getting shot chances. Ekman-Larsson took a deliberate shot to the endboards to create a rebound chance that was saved. Buffalo finally got a SOG chance that went wide; the Florida defense has been stout so far. Stolarz made a good save with 11:32 on the clock, and a minute later, Verhaeghe broke the ice, scoring his 27th of the season and his 19th road goal. Florida forced a giveaway that went to Barkov, who got it to Verhaeghe. It’s been about 2 months since the Panthers have lost a road game. Mikkola & Luostarinen were the next ones to get a chance, but both were saved by Comrie. Stoarz utilized his big frame to make a shoulder save which Lomberg followed up by an aggressive forecheck to force a turnover. Ekman-Larsson’s wrister went wide, and Lomberg’s chance ended up causing chaos in front of the net that Comrie somehow was able to track and save. Stolarz made a great 2–on-1 save and a pad save. Tkachuk and Montour both had shots that didn’t go in, and Stolarz made a glove save as the period wound down. Florida went into the first intermission with a 1-0 lead.
Stolarz was tested early in the 2nd period but held strong to keep Buffalo scoreless. The Panthers’ defense was very strong as Montour helped Stolarz stop a dangerous scoring chance; They lead the league in fewest slot shots allowed. Kulikov, Reinhart, Ekblad, and Lundell all had chances but no goal reward. Kulikov went on to make a big hip check on a Sabers player, something Cats fans have seen the team use more than once. Things were mostly going up and down the ice at the midpoint of the period. Bennett headed to the box for boarding with 8:47 to play. Buffalo got more SOG than most, however, Stolarz was locked in and made saves on every single shot. Reinhart took a hard hit that sent Clifton to the box for interference and just under 6 on the clock. Reinhart’s shot got blocked, Verhaeghe & Montour’s went wide, and Tkachuk’s chance got saved. It didn’t matter, though, as Tkachuk took a shot that Lundell tipped in off a delayed penalty with just under 3 minutes left in the period to take the 2-0 lead. Gadjovich and Montour got a 2-on-1 breakaway that had Montour’s shot hitting the underside of the crossbar but stayed out. In a rarity, Buffalo was outshooting the Panthers 27-20 heading into the 3rd period but a 2-0 lead for Florida.
Florida is a great team in the 3rd period; they have a +22 goal differential in the final frame of play. Both teams opened the period with offensive zone time. Barkov took a hard hit from Greenway that sent him into the boards and then to the bench when he was able to get up. Mikkola got sent to the box for holding with 15:04 on the clock. Stolarz had a huge save on a PP chance with Barkov then cleared the zone. Luostarinen did good work on the PK by breaking up a play and clearing the zone again. For a second straight game, the Florida PK led to opponent fans booing their team’s PP. Stolarz got tested heavily after the powerplay ended but made great glove saves and kick saves, his large frame allowing him to cover a lot of area on the net. At the midway point, neither team had much extended offensive zone time. Stolarz saw more action but he stopped a point-blank shot and had seen 37 shots with 9:33 left on the clock. Okposo got called for high-sticking to send Florida on the powerplay with 7 minutes left on the clock. Reinhart had a couple of shots, Barkov got one, and OEL also had a chance, but Comrie was able to make the stops. Verhaeghe and Reinhart set to work in the neutral zone, clogging it up to kill the clock. Montour cleared the defensive zone to center, and then Ekblad blocked a Sabers shot. With 2:27 to play Buffalo pulled Comrie for the man advantage. Arguably, the save of the night for Stolarz happened as a puck got into the crease behind him, and he laid down to cover it. Florida got the insurance goal from Verhaeghe, who sent the puck into the empty net. Barkov sent the puck up the boards to Reinhart, who passed it to Verhaeghe to score his 28th of the season. Stolarz made a save on the Buffalo breakaway in the last minute. The Sabers then took a super late high-sticking penalty with 16.6 on the clock. The Cats PP made them pay for it with Lomberg scoring off a Forsling shot rebound and 10 seconds on the clock. Action wasn’t done yet as Lomberg then got into a fight with Girgensons right off the faceoff; Lomberg then got thrown out with a 10-minute game misconduct. The clock finally runs out, and Anthony Stolarz gets his first-ever shutout as a Panther and writes himself into the franchise history books in the process, stopping the 3rd most shots in a shutout win at 45. A 4-0 victory for the Cats heading into their final game of the week against in-state rival Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay Lightning:
In-state rivalries are always intense, and this one was no different Saturday night. Bobrovsky was between the pipes for the Panthers, while Vasilevskiy started for the Lightning. Ekblad was out with a day-to-day lower-body injury, so Josh Mahura was in to play with Kulikov, and OEL went up to pair with Forsling. Barkov’s line started with Mikkola-Montour on defense. This was the second meeting of the Panthers and Lightning, with their last game being back in December as the 2nd game during the Cats’ 9-game win streak. Tampa Bay has a potent offense, with Kucherov and Stamkos being on the top line together. Things didn’t start well for Florida as the Lighting scored off the opening faceoff win to a breakaway by Hagel. Bobrovsky went for the poke check but was unsuccessful, and Hagel had a wide-open net to shoot at. The Panthers weren’t rattled, though, and set to work getting offensive zone time and shot chances from Verhaeghe, Montour, and Forsling. The Cats then returned the favor with Montour scoring right off a Bennett faceoff win for the one-timer shot to tie the game 1-1. Bobrovsky made a big save on Stamkos with 12:15 to play, and then Tkachuk collided with Perbix at center ice. Bob made a great kick save at the midway point during Tampa Bay’s offensive zone pressure. They had some dangerous chances, but Bobrovsky was locked in after allowing that first goal. Cousins got a chance on a breakaway, but it would be Bennett to be the next Panther on the scoreboard. Tkachuk set up in the slot to pass to Bennett at the faceoff circle to score on a hard angle with 7:32, a 2-1 lead. And from here, the game really went off the rails. Gadjovich got into a fight with Watson with 6:45 to play, and both got a 5-minute major for fighting. Florida made some amazing defensive plays to shut down the Lightning’s top lines. The 4th line put in good work for the Cats and got rewarded with a Lomberg pass to Stenlund to score and make the lead 3-1. Three consecutive goals in 10 and a half minutes. Bob saved a rebound but a Tampa player getting too close led to an entire team fight in front of the Panthers’ net; Forsing and Cernak especially were going at it. The Cats’ offense wasn’t done either. Forsling shot, and the puck went in off the top of Vasilevskiy’s glove. Tampa challenged for goalie interference but were unsuccessful, Verhaeghe’s stick hit Vasilevskiy’s glove after he’d had a chance to save the puck. Florida got a PP that the Lightning killed part of as the period wound down. The Panthers lead 4-1 going into the 2nd period.
The middle frame of play started exactly how the opening period ended, with Florida scoring. Montour passed to Barkov who sent it to Tkachuk to score just 23 seconds into the period for the 5-1 lead. Motte sent the Panthers immediately back on the PP when he got called for roughing with 19:15 on the clock. Tkachuk made them pay again by tipping in a shot from Verhaeghe for the 6-1 lead. Tkachuk’s been stellar since the start of 2024, hitting the 20-goal mark and 11 points in the last 5 games. Just 7 weeks ago, he had 5 goals. Bob finally saw some action and made a stick save with 16:04 to play. OEL got sent to the box for tripping with just under 15 minutes to go. The Cats’ PK has gone 7/7 in the last 3 games and made it 8/8, killing off this one from the Lighting. Bob made a cover save as the PP ended. Mahura got a shot off, as did Reinhart, but both got blocked away. Montour’s chance got saved followed by Verhaeghe’s getting blocked. No extended O-zone time for either team with 6 minutes left in the period. Kulikov got a chance on the breakaway, and then Stenlund got into a fight with Eyssimont; no penalty was called on either of them. OEL headed back to the box again for tripping and just over 5 minutes to play. Tampa Bay got more SOG this time; however, Bobrovsky didn’t give up any goals, and the Cats killed the penalty. A hit that sent Cousins into the Florida bench set off a brawl between the teams, with Verhaeghe and Cernak especially going at each other. They both got called for roughing, 1:34 to play in the period. Bob had a big save on Kucherov as time wound down, and Florida had a 6-1 lead going into the last period. The Lightning opted to switch goalies for the 3rd, Jonas Johansson was now in the net. He got welcomed to the overwhelming offense by Verhaeghe scoring his 29th goal of the season just over a minute into the period after the 4v4 expired. Tkachuk passed it to Bennett, who sent it to Verhaeghe for the 7-1 lead. Cernak cross-checked Lundell putting the Panthers back on the PP. They’d pay for it, too, as Bennett scored his 13th goal of the season 50 seconds after Verhaeghe’s goal, 8-1 the lead. Things didn’t stop either, with Verhaeghe getting his 2nd goal of the day just over 4 minutes into the period with Forsling and Reinhart on the assists, putting his goal total at 30. Florida has now scored 9 unanswered goals after giving up the initial goal to Tampa. Bennett’s line has 6 goals and 11 points on the night, and 13 different players with at least a point. The Panthers killed off a holding penalty from Stenlund with 15:07 on the clock. The Cats defense has been so good that the Lightning has benched Kucherov’s line for over 4 minutes. Bobrovsky finally saw some action and stopped the Tampa chance. Tempters flared with 9:32 to play after Mikkola got sent to the box for boarding. Tampa was finally able to get another goal on the board from Brayden Point during the power play, 9-2 the lead. The fights got more frequent in the back half of the period. Mahura was fighting with Kucherov, and Gadjovich got into his second fight of the night, this time with Cernak. Both of them got 5 minutes for fighting and 10 minutes for game misconduct. There were 7 and a half minutes left, so they both got thrown out. Bob made a save on a rare shot from the slot with Barkov on the loose puck to clear. A Tampa player made a late charge on Bobrovksy after he made a save with 3:53 on the clock. All hell broke loose between the teams, with fighting everywhere. There were bodies on the ice. It was very reminiscent of the Ottowa game including all the game misconduct penalties that got given out. Ten players all at once got game misconducts and were thrown out, leaving the benches pretty thin; Watson also got called for unsportsmanlike conduct, sending Florida to its 4th PP of the night. The Lightning killed the penalty and then Lundell and Hagel got thrown out with game misconducts for fighting, bringing the total number of players thrown out to 14 between the teams. The clock finally ran out, and the Panthers took the 9-2 victory before their rematch against Ottowa on Tuesday. They also have 11 straight road wins and now have a chance to tie the NHL record on Wednesday against Carolina.
