Panthers Lose Ugly Game, Barkov to Start Second Half

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The Florida Panthers managed to lose ugly to start the second half, 4-0 Saturday at Montreal.

It was the first time this season the Panthers have been shut out.

A poor start by Florida got worse quickly with an injury to Sasha Barkov.

 

 

Early prognosis on Barkov’s apparent lower body injury is positive

Momentum from the first half of the year quickly disintegrated as Florida fell behind just over five minutes in.

Montreal would never look back.

 

The dynamic Panther power play was shut out in six attempts, despite 14 shots on goal with the man advantage.

Florida lacked energy and focus earlier as Montreal did all the little things right, winning battles on the boards and in front of both goals.

Jeff Petry had an assist on all four tallies for the Canadiens and Montreal won the face off battle 37-20, a huge disparity leading to puck possession.

Montreal goalie Carey Price stopped all 29 shots for his 47th career shutout, third in Canadiens history.

Sergei Bobrovsky was not the problem despite allowing four goals, he stood on his head to keep Florida in it early.

Bobrovsky stopped 31 shots overall, including 15 of 16 sent his way in a rough first period for the team.

His play in net kept the Panthers within range for the first half of the game until it got away in the second period.

Montreal was able to convert on 1-of-2 power plays and controlled the game from the onset.

Florida now sits at 28-17-5 and are tied with Toronto with 61 points.

The two meet Monday in a pivotal Atlantic Division game as both fight for playoff position.

 

 

Florida Panthers Look to Carry Momentum Into Second Half

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The Florida Panthers hope to keep the momentum going into the second half of the season.

Florida has five games in seven nights to open the second half, with three on the road to start.

With six straight wins entering the NHL All-Star break, the Panthers are the hottest team in the NHL along with Columbus.

Sergei Bobrovsky has three of those victories and for him at least the layoff was a good thing in terms of health.

Now as an important stretch approaches, the Panthers travel to the hockey mecca in Montreal to kick off the second half.

From Have Nots to Habs Again?

Montreal on the other hand has been on a roller coaster ride since late December as they lost eight straight going into the new year.

The Habs turned it around a bit before the break with wins in four of six following that losing skid.

Ageless Cary Price (21-17-0, 2.80 GAA, .909 SV %) still mans the net in Montreal. Price has won four out of his last five starts.

Left winger Tomas Tatar leads Montreal with 46 points (18 goals, 28 assists) and the Canadiens get solid scoring across multiple lines.

Montreal has seven players with at least 11 goals, including the dangerous Shea Weber from the blue line. Weber has the hardest slap shot in the NHL from the point, Florida must be aware of him especially on the power play.

The Canadiens are a middle of the pack team that doesn’t stand out in one particular phase, Florida has the better talent overall but cannot overlook anyone.

Florida’s key advantage is their 5th ranked power play versus the 23rd ranked penalty kill of Montreal. If the Cats get the man advantage they need to capitalize.

Playing in Montreal is always tough, Head Coach Joel Quenneville will certainly have the team motivated out of the break.

 

Excitement is building around the Panthers as they surged to end the first half. After starting many seasons past slowly, those early points will certainly help their playoff push.

Bobrovsky should be energized after the hiatus, if the defense can take the next step it will give the Panthers the balance they need to contend with the upper echelon of the NHL.

After Montreal the Cats will travel to face the high flying Columbus Blue Jackets on Super Bowl Sunday.

Florida Panthers: Organization to host 2021 NHL All-Star Game

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The 2021 NHL All-Star game will have a Florida Panthers feel to it. The team has been selected to host the event for the first time since 2003.

This will be the fourth time that the state of Florida has hosted the All-Star Game. Tampa Bay did the honors in the 2018 season.

Florida Panthers youth movement should make for interesting event

The Panthers have a plethora of young stars. Jonathan Huberdeau, Evgenii Dadonov, and Aleksander Barkov are just some of star talent Florida has. Right now, the Florida Panthers sit with a 27-16-5 record. With 59 points on the year, that is good enough for third in the Atlantic Division. Only the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins have more.

Next season, the Florida Panthers should return the same core group. This should allow for some sustainability as the Panthers look to compete in a tough Atlantic Division. Having Florida Panthers players at next year’s All-Star game would certainly be a great thing for both of the fans and Florida hockey in general.

This is going to be just one of the major events in what should be a huge year for Florida sports. Miami Gardens will be hosting the 2021 College Football National Championship. That too should provide some excitement to the area. It will certainly be a busy time as Florida will be on the national stage with some of the biggest events in all of sports.

The Panthers are gaining more respect around the National Hockey League, and having the All-Star game on home ice is another big development. In what is sure to be a fun weekend for all involved, there is a chance that the Panthers could be well-represented. A lot has changed in the NHL since 2003, and the youth of the Florida Panthers is a representation of how far the organization has come since then.

Florida Panthers Report Card: Fast and Furious First Half

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The Florida Panthers feel like a different team so far in the first half of the season.

Quietly, the recognition is beginning for South Florida’s NHL team.

A wave of prolific achievements and high scoring affairs have cast a spotlight on Sunrise.

Perhaps that light shines brightest to the Panthers’ diehard fans, but the rest of our market should be taking notice.

The Panthers have won two in a row after a shellacking of Toronto on Sunday, and they sit poised for an extended season.

 

After 45 games the Cats stand at 24-16-5, good for 53 points and a spot in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff mix.

Coach Joel Quenneville has brought a renewed energy and attention to detail which has led to more consistent play.

While the dynamic offense led by Jonathan Huberdeau continues to be the catalyst.

 

Florida’s top two forward lines are as good as any in the NHL.

With Huberdeau, along with Sasha Barkov, Mike Hoffman, Evgenii Davodov, and Vincent Trocheck the Panthers don’t let up.

Mike Hoffman continues hot streak as Panthers roll over Leafs

Leading into the NHL All-Star break, this seems like as good of a time as any to assess the Panthers so far in the 2019-20 season.

Offense: A

This team can light it up.

After their eight goal onslaught against Toronto this week, the Panthers have scored the second most goals in the NHL (163).

Florida’s 3.62 goals per game is tops in the league as of Monday, and the prolific power play is starting to heat up even more.

After going without a power play goal in three straight, the Panthers have converted with the extra man in their last two victories.

Currently they rank 6th in the NHL at 23.4% on the power play.

Hoffman has been on a tear with at least one point in six straight, while Huberdeau has been a consistent spark with an assist in four of his last five games

Huby ranks 7th in the NHL with 61 points (18 goals, 43 assists) and his assist total ranks 3rd league-wide.

Barkov is also in the top-15 in scoring with 49 points and the Panthers have 10 players with at least 20 points.

Evgenii Davodov leads the team with 19 goals, while Vincent Trocheck brings all the intangibles.

 

He has also been on a tear during game action with six points in his last five contests.

Florida is an excellent fore-checking team that applies constant pressure, the Panthers’ 33.7 shots per game rank 5th in the NHL.

Noel Acciari has quickly become a fan favorite in his first season with the team and his energy on the second line is a tremendous asset.

Teamed up with Trocheck and Brett Connolly, who by the way is also having an excellent season, has given the Panthers two solid scoring lines.

Connolly has 16 goals in 45 games in his first year after coming over from Washington, and is on pace to eclipse his career high of 22 goals last season.

Defense/Goaltending: C

The Panthers defensive struggles have been a point of contention for a few years.

They may finally be turning the corner, or at least approaching it.

However the Panthers still rank in the bottom third league wide in shots allowed per game (32.2, 21st) and goals allowed per game (3.31, 27th).

The communication on the blue line is better but there are still stretches where the team gets blitzed and on their heels.

Clearing rebounds and keeping clean ice in front of whomever is in goal must remain a priority.

The defense must also focus on slowing high powered teams down through the neutral zone.

Penalty killing has also been an issue, currently the team ranks 21st in the NHL killing 78.8% of their penalties.

Defenseman Aaron Ekblad is enjoying a solid season, leading the team in +/- (+11) and time on ice per game (23:03).

Florida has only outscored their opponents by 14 goals despite being tops in the league in scoring per game.

The Panthers have won a lot of high scoring games and are tied for 5th in the NHL with three shoot out wins.

However they must balance the scales and keep opponents off the scoreboard more.

Sergei Bobrovsky (16-12-4, 3.29 GAA, .896 SV%) has been better of late but has not put together a string of consistent games yet.

Bobrovsky has only won three consecutive games once this season and has been prone to the onslaught in close losses.

He must find a way to gain some rhythm as the second half approaches, especially if the offense cools somewhat.

Meanwhile the Panthers actually have some depth in net behind Bobrovsky, with Chris Driedger emerging as a nice second option.

Driedger (5-2-0, 2.40 GAA, .931 SV%) has looked sharp for the most part, although he has given up four goals in two straight starts.

Coaching: B+

Joel Quenneville has brought a level of credibility and stature to the Panthers bench that has been missing.

His resume speaks for itself and the players are responding to his style tremendously.

 

Quenneville has taken a tremendous foundation of talent at the forward spots and built an offensive system that plays to strengths.

Florida has started games out with more energy and focus which has translated to the team only losing twice all season when scoring first.

The team has also avoided the devastating prolonged losing streak, with the longest being three games.

However, that has happened three times while the longest win streak is also three games – which has happened just once.

Florida could use a run in this upcoming stretch against teams such as Los Angeles and Detroit, who are both NHL bottom feeders.

Quenneville has kept the team on the same page and has the championship experience to push the right buttons.

If Florida can even things out on the blue line and in goal, the NHL playoffs should be on this year’s schedule.

Follow us on Twitter for more Florida Panthers @SportsWaveDave and @5ReasonsSports.

Mike Hoffman continues hot streak as Panthers roll over Leafs

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 Mike Hoffman is proving to be a spark plug for the Florida Panthers.

The Florida Panthers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs by an 8-4 score on Sunday afternoon. Mike Hoffman was a big reason why. Hoffman has been on a tear the last couple of games, and Sunday was no different.

On his first goal of the day, it started off with Dominic Toninato creating a chance on the rush. Hoffman went stride-for-stride with Toninato and fired a wrist shot for the goal. Toninato did a nice job of finding Hoffman on the assist. Hoffman’s next goal came in the third period. Jonathan Huberdeau and Evgenii Dadonov came on the power play and he scored his second goal of the game.

This offensive explosion was nothing new for Hoffman. He has scored five goals in his past four games. He has also tallied six points in his past five games as well. Prior to Sunday’s contest, he scored a goal against Vancouver on January 9. Going back even further, he scored a goal against the Arizona Coyotes on January 7. This explosion of offense for Hoffman is certainly a welcome development for the Panthers.

Hoffman proving to be clutch for Florida Panthers

Saturday, he had an even plus-minus rating and only took three shots. He recorded 19 shifts and 14:10 of ice time. In addition, he spent 1:37 on the power play. He was all over the ice on Sunday.

He is certainly a positive veteran presence on a team that is relatively young.  Hoffman scored 70 points last season after being traded to Florida in June. He has 16 goals and 17 assists for 33 points this year.  He is showing exactly what he brings to the table.

Hoffman has been heating up at exactly the right time for the Panthers. He is being that sturdy veteran presence that the Panthers hoped he would be. It will be interesting to see how he performs over these next couple of weeks as the playoff race continues to heat up in the Eastern Conference.

 

Florida Panthers Poised for Second Half Run

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The Florida Panthers are in a position for a strong second half of the NHL season.

As the calendar moves into the new year, the Panthers for once are not looking up from the bottom.

After a 4-1 loss at Columbus to open a four game trip, the Panthers bounced right back against Ottawa Thursday.

 

With a new system in place under Joel Quenneville, the Cats are playing exciting and fundamental hockey.

Florida has three shootout wins so far, tied for third most in the NHL.

The power play (23%) is once again a top-10 unit, while Florida is 5th in the NHL with 3.49 goals scored per game.

Those offensive numbers rank amongst the elite teams in the league, while the Panthers are finally getting some help on defense and in goal.

Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (14-11-4, 3.29GAA, .897SV%) has steadied after a rough start and has improved every month.

 

Bobrovsky’s save-percentage in December is .917, well better than his .897 for the entire season.

He has been especially effective at home with a 11-5-2 record, to go with a 2.95 GAA and .913 SV%.

Balancing the Scales

In recent seasons the Panthers have relied heavily on their offense, while being bludgeoned on the blue line and in net.

Jonathan Huberdeau is the superstar you didn’t even realize was right here all along.

 

Huby is fifth in the NHL with 37 assists through games played Jan. 1st, while his 53 points are eighth league wide.

The league is on notice as Huberdeau was finally selected to his first NHL All-Star game.

His partner in crime Sasha Barkov is once again having an All-Star caliber season after a slow start in terms of scoring.

Along with Evgenii Davodov and Mike Hoffman, the Panthers front lines are wrecking NHL goaltenders.

Florida has won six of eight entering Friday, and in five of those wins they have scored at least five goals.

The defense is a work in progress but Aaron Ekblad is having a career year on the blue line.

Ekblad already has 18 assists in 38 games, his career high was 27 in his rookie season. If he stays at his current pace he will certainly set a new career mark.

Quenneville a Stabilizing Presence

One encouraging trend for the Panthers is their ability to get out of extended losing streaks, while being able to stack short winning runs together.

The Panthers have only lost multiple games in a row on four occasions this year, while winning at least two consecutive games seven times.

Florida’s coaching staff led by Quenneville has given the team an identity and focus that was lacking in recent years.

It will be something to keep an eye on whether Coach Q can keep the team focused during an important stretch to close out January.

A coach that has won it all on multiple occasions is an important advantage for an unproven team, one that could help them get over the playoff hump.

Rest of January Sets Up Well

The Panthers have nine games remaining starting with Buffalo January 4th in the third game of this four game road trip.

Florida closes out the trek against Pittsburgh, both the Penguins and Sabres are right in the playoff race with the Panthers.

During the middle of the month the Panthers return to Sunrise for a four game home stand which will be a tough battle.

The Panthers will need to step up against high flying Western Conference opponents Arizona (50 points) and Vancouver (48 points).

Both sit near the top of the Pacific Division, Arizona is one of the top defensive teams (108 goals allowed, 5th) while Vancouver is eighth in the NHL with 136 goals scored.

After that to close out the home stand the lowly Los Angeles Kings (38 points) make their way East. The Kings are the fourth lowest scoring teams in the NHL at just 2.6 goals per game, a welcome respite for a Panthers defense allowing the fourth most goals per game (3.35).

To end the month the Cats embark on a six-game road trip which will run into February. Florida will kick off the trip against one of the worst teams in the NHL, the Detroit Red Wings.

Detroit has just 23 points this season and a league-worst -68 goal differential. The Cats close out January with winnable games at Minnesota and Chicago. Despite both teams being at least .500, they are also both allowing more goals than they score. Minnesota is -11 while Chicago is -16, both teams are also rank near the bottom of the league in goals allowed per game.

If the Panthers can improve their uneven play on home ice, particularly against the East, the rest of January sets up favorably.

Florida Panthers: Evgenii Dadonov shines in win over Ottawa

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Dadonov is on fire for the Florida Panthers.

Florida Panthers right winger Evgenii Dadonov is a special hockey player. That was evident on Thursday as the Panthers beat Ottawa by a 6-3 score. As a result, they recorded a much-needed bounce back win after losing to Columbus.

Dadonov led the charge in the scoring department. He scored two goals and tallied an assist. He was a +1 in 15:12 of ice time. He was on the power play for 1:48. His second goal was particularly impressive. After winning the faceoff, Mike Hoffman delivered an excellent pass from the side of the net to Dadonov. Dadonov then slammed the puck home for the score to tie the game at two. He was all over the ice on Thursday.

With 14 goals and 15 assists, he now has 29 points on the year. Last year, he had 70 points which amounted to 28 goals and 42 assists.

Dadonov is surging for the Florida Panthers

Dadonov has played well as of late. Prior to being held scoreless against Columbus on Monday night, he put up two assists for two points against Montréal. Against Detroit on December 28, he recorded a goal. Going back even further, he was able to tally a  goal against Carolina on December 21. He has provided some much-needed scoring for the Panthers, and Thursday was exemplary of that.

The Panthers need him to continue playing at a high level, particularly with the second half of the season beginning shortly.  Between Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov and, Dadonov, the Panthers have themselves a formidable three-headed monster. With the way Dadonov has been playing, that trio is looking stronger than ever.

The Florida Panthers will be in action again on Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres. Puck drop will be at 1:00 PM. It will be intriguing to see if Dadonov can keep up this momentum throughout the course of the game.

Sergei Bobrovsky looking for fresh start against Senators

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Sergei Bobrovsky needs to be better for the Florida Panthers.

The Florida Panthers will play their first game of the new year on Thursday night against Ottawa. Hopefully, it will be a bounce-back game for Florida goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. He had a rough return to Columbus on Tuesday night.

Bobrovsky gave up four goals on 28 shots in 58:15 of ice time. This marked the third game in a row that he has given up at least four goals. He gave up five to Montréal on December 29 and six the night before against Detroit. He has been struggling as of late. Thursday could be the perfect game for him to turn things around.

The last time he faced Ottawa was on December 16. He was superb in that game. Giving up one goal on 30 shots, he saw 68 minutes of ice time.  For the season, he is first in goals allowed with 96. Carey Price is second in that category with 95.

Sergei Bobrovsky struggling for Florida Panthers

There is no doubt he is struggling. His statistics reflect that. He allows 3.29 goals per game. That is second only to Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings.  His save percentage is not exactly terrible, but it’s not where it needs to be either. He carries an .897 save percentage into Thursday’s game. That ranks 10th-worst in the league.

There is no doubt he is struggling right now, and Thursday’s game against Ottawa could be the perfect bounce-back game. The Senators  are eighth-worst in the league at scoring. They have 111 goals on the season, tied with the New York Islanders. In addition, they have the worst power play conversion percentage in the league. They score a goal on 11.2% of their power plays.

Thursday could be the perfect bounce back game for Bobrovsky. The Florida Panthers definitely need him to play better. A win against Ottawa would be a nice place to start.

Florida Panthers: Noel Acciari scoring at rapid rate

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The Florida Panthers beat the Dallas Stars by a 7-4 score on Friday night. One of the major reasons why they won was the play of forward Noel Acciari.  He recorded another had trick on Friday night. In doing so , this marked his second game in a row accomplishing the feat.

Making history for the Florida Panthers

The last time a Florida Panther recorded hat tricks in multiple games, the legendary Pavel Bure accomplished the feat. He did so in a stretch from February 10-14, 2002.

In his last two games, Acciari has tallied six goals and two assists. On Friday night, he did it efficiently. He scored his first goal at the 7:26 mark of the second period. He followed that up with another tally rather quickly at the 7:58 mark. On the last goal, he took care of business himself. With the Dallas Stars on a powerplay, he scored his third goal unassisted on what was a shorthanded tally.

It’s fascinating to see him flourish in Florida. Coming from the Boston area, I got to see him a lot when he played for the Bruins. He always seemed to be able to record the timely goal, and he was a big part of the youth movement for Boston while he was there. Signing a three-year contract worth $5 million, he is proving his worth so far.

He’s not the type of player that is going to consistently record back-to-back hat tricks. He is the type of player that is going to give you a consistent  hard-nosed effort every time he is on the ice. Acciari has certainly provided that for the Panthers to this point. The way I see it, his scoring is just a bonus. Locating the puck and being actively involved in plays have been some of his strengths over the past couple of games. The statistics have showed it.

It will be interesting to see how he performs the rest of the way. If he can continue to play like this in the second half of the season, the Florida Panthers will be even more scary.

 

Panthers Snap Skid, Still Looking up in Atlantic Standings

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The Florida Panthers ended a three-game losing streak Monday in convincing fashion, dispatching Ottawa 6-1.

Florida (16-12-5, 37 points) moved up to third place in a crowded Atlantic Division which has five teams within four points of each other.

Florida had dropped seven of their last ten games prior and have been disappointing during this long home stand.

Entering Monday’s contest against the Senators, the Panthers have lost four game at home on the stand despite outscoring teams 18-15 in that time.

After two impressive wins, 4-1 over Columbus and 5-1 over San Jose, the Panthers only scored three goals total in those last three losses.

Florida is 24th in the NHL in scoring despite being fifth in shots on goal per game, meaning they are not cashing in on opportunities.

The power play disappeared during the losing spell, Florida had gone 0-for-8 in the last three games before Monday.

While the offense has struggled, the defense has not been much better.

Thankfully the Panthers faced an Ottawa team also looking for answers in what has been a rough season.

The Cats were finally able to cash in with the man advantage, going 1-for-5 on the power play on a goal by Aleksander Barkov (11).

Noel Acciardi notched his first career hat trick, a five goal barrage in the second period put the game on figurative ice.

 

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 29 out of 30 shots in his sixth consecutive start, while Jonathan Huberdeau had four assists and now has 400 career points in 500 games.

Barkov was held without a point during the Panthers’ latest losing skid, when the captain is on the whole dynamic of the offense changes.

The Panthers have relied on the offense to overcome struggles in net and on the blue line, a complete game like the one Monday should be the blueprint moving forward.

Next up for the Panthers they close out the home stand against the Dallas Stars on Friday.