Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Raptors

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So the Heat bounced back on the second night of a back to back against the Toronto Raptors, getting a much needed win to begin the season.

This game wasn’t a very normal or consistent one, since while they were clicking on all cylinders in the first half, it tailed off and ended up being a close game.

Either way, here are some takeaways of both the good and the bad…

#1: The return of the offensive movement.

A question I posed exactly 24 hours ago was a rather simple one: where is the movement? Two-man actions were being run for this Heat offense against Boston, but not many more layers added on. Tonight, though, they showcased a total flip in that nature through the first 24 minutes of basketball. The first element of movement simply involves the ball. When things got stale, it was because isolations were most of the time the end result. This time around we saw a good amount of extra passes and necessary swings to keep the defense honest. The second element of Miami’s movement regards just bodies roaming. Off-ball screening, simple back-cuts, and perimeter hand-off searching is the engine to positive half-court offense. It was obviously the primary intention heading in, and they responded with a 71 point first half.

#2: Max Strus: doing the *other* things more consistently.

We know what Max Strus is at this stage. He’s a guy who fits next to anybody, and can shoot the heck out of the ball no matter the contest. But while watching this game tonight, I’m sure some other stuff caught your eye. Step 1 included his weak-side defense and timing. I’m not going to sit here and act like the Heat’s defensive rotations were where they want them to be, but Strus showcased incredible help timing to muck up straight line drives and account for some charges. The other main part of his performance ties back to my previous takeaway of movement and cutting. He’s just hard to continually account for. Guys find him around the rim a ton since he’s not a standstill threat. Keys to staying on the floor late in games.

#3: Kyle Lowry the off-ball threat/Tyler Herro the rim threat.

When zooming out career wise, we know Tyler Herro as a high level outside shooter or developed into an elite off the dribble scoring threat. We also know Kyle Lowry as a consistent creator both for himself and others, while always mixing in elite efficiency numbers as a spot-up threat. But sometimes the simple and original read of a player finds it’s way more consistently again. That was one of my primary takeaways tonight, as Herro pretty much continues to soar as a true rim pressure threat. He’s slashing on the ball in ways that make it so much tougher to guard within that two-man action. Lowry, on the other hand, was definitely going to be getting extra off-ball reps with the amount of creators on this roster. But 3 for 3 in the first half on spot-up triples proves this theory to be correct. Catch and shoot Lowry combined with relentless attacking Herro is a formula for very good offense.

#4: Caleb Martin with an ejection…and a lifetime Heat contract?

So things picked up a bit in the third quarter as Miami possessed a pretty comfortable lead. Some emotions were rising as Tyler Herro and Paschal Siakam got tied up a bit after the play. A few minutes later, *the* play happened. What seemed like a usual foul down low turned into a linebacker shooting the gap of the o-line. Caleb Martin stood over the top of Christian Koloko, leading into a body slam takedown into the courtside seats on the baseline. Both players ended up being ejected, but it was an interesting twist to this game. Martin may have gotten thrown out of this one, but he simultaneously may have been thrown a lifetime Heat contract after that display of emotion and toughness. Well, for the moment. It ended up being pivotal in terms of the Raptors storming back in the second half, but Miami pulled it out.

#5: I’m still watching the turnovers.

A consistent theme across all 3 games of Heat basketball this season has been turnovers. They actually forced Boston into double their number last night, but they’re still putting up a pretty uncomfortable number. Some of that is fine if it’s occurring through an offensive process of risk taking in the half court, but I don’t truly feel that’s been the case. Many of them are just playing at a different speed than the next guy, or forcing stuff that is so clearly not there for them. If this team ends up in the bottom 10 in pace again, which will be the case, a high turnover outcome can’t be the result on a nightly basis.

2022 Senior Bowl midseason all riser team

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The Senior Bowl just released it’s 2022 midseason all riser team. It consists of offensive and defensive players that have risen two rounds or more on the Senior Bowl board from their Junior year tape grades.

Lets take a look at the offensive prospects.

Quarterback Hendon Hooker

The Tennessee quarterback is kind of like a mix between Young and Stroud physically. He has Stroud’s arm and size and Young’s athleticism and accuracy. He may win the Heisman. The only major flaw about Hendon Hooker is his age. It brings with it questions of how much upside is left?

Running back Chase Brown

The Illini product has the ability to see where holes are going to open up. Brown can twist his hips in between the blockers to squeeze through holes that aren’t there to the naked eye.

He’s capable as a receiver, a weapon on swing passes and in the screen game. His stats through seven games:

  • ATT: 192
  • YDS: 1,059
  • TD: 4
  • AVG: 5.5

All-riser Pass Catchers

Tight End Luke Schoonmaker

Senior Luke Schoonmaker has picked up where Michgan TE Erick All left off last year, becoming a key part of the Wolverines’ passing attack and a favorite target of J.J. McCarthy.

Through six games, the 6-foot-6, 250-pound tight end is second on the team in catches (23) and receiving yards (229). Schoonmaker has reliable hands and shows the willingness to make catches in traffic over the middle.

Wide Receiver Zay Flowers

Xavien “Zay” Kevonn Flowers has caught my eye for a while now and he’s been on the senior bowl radar for quite some time. The Eagles product is first or tied for first in the ACC in:

  • Targets (63)
  • Receptions (42)
  • Receiving yards (556)
  • Receiving TDs (5)
  • 40+ yard catches (4)

His stock hasn’t only rose in the senior bowl board, but also among NFL boards.

“He’s a smaller receiver, like a [Terry] McLaurin, that type of guy. He can fly. He’s a highlight reel. Probably a second-rounder, might sneak in first if he runs real fast [at the combine].”

NFC Scouting Director

Wide Receiver Charlie Jones

Purdue receiver Charlie Jones is coming of age, especially on the mid-season all riser team for the Senior Bowl. Although Jones is more of a possession target than a field stretcher, his fiercely competitive demeanor and run-after-catch ability make him a major threat in the middle of the field.

His play this season is even more impressive when you consider he had 39 career receptions coming into the year. Jones has become the most reliable target for Aidan O’Connell and consistently comes away with the difficult catch during the game’s critical moments. He has 62 catches for 735 yards and 9 touchdowns.

Wide Receiver Jonathan Mingo

Ole Miss Rebels receiver Jonathan Mingo was graded by Pro Football Focus as the No. 1 wideout in College Football. Mingo plays with a smoothness and balance, and Mingo shows a knack for setting up defensive backs. He’s equally dangerous in catch-and-run situations as he is taking the top off a defense.

Mingo transitions quickly from receiver to runner, and he has enough speed to threaten the seam and has a knack for getting open. Through six games, Mingo has amassed 22 receptions, 507 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. He is also now averaging 23.0 yards per reception, which is good for first in the SEC and second in the nation.

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All-riser Offensive Lineman

Offensive Tackle Tyler Steen

The development of Alabama offensive tackle Tyler Steen, a veteran transfer from Vanderbilt, has been critical for the Crimson Tide.

Through six weeks, he has been an anchor for the Crimson Tide at left tackle. He is a very instinctive player and leads by example along the offensive front. It will be interesting to see how he develops as the season progresses.

Offensive Guard O’Cyrus Torrence

Proving himself as Florida’s most impactful addition from the transfer portal this past offseason, Right guard O’Cyrus Torrence was recognized for his play twice through six games with the Gators as he lands on Associated Press Midseason All-American team and 2022 Reese’s Senior Bowl Midseason All-Riser Team.

Torrence does a nice job working with teammates to build the pocket, anchoring against bull rushers and displaying good awareness against stunts and twists. As a result, he’s continued his college career-long streak of games without giving up a sack, up to 42 games between his three years at Louisiana and six appearances at Florida.

Center Alex Forsyth

The Oregon product is little known outside of the college football community but has slowly risen up the ranks. Forsyth is currently on the mid-season watchlist for the Lombardi Award. In the run game, he shows good burst off the line of scrimmage, with the ability to win at the point of attack.

Forsyth has enough speed and athleticism to move to the second level and land blocks. He’s a rock in the middle of the line as a pass protector, with the heavy hands and strong grip to hold his own against bigger defensive tackles.

Offensive Guard Matthew Jones

Matthew Jones’ name has not been a hot name recently as Ohio State’s high powered offense has names like C.J. Stroud, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Paris Johnson. However, Matthew Jones is a key contributor to keeping C.J. Stroud upright and have one of the best run games in the nation.

Jones consistently lands blocks at the second level, and Jones finishes strong. As a pass protector, he has violent, heavy hands. Along with a strong initial punch, he has the hand strength to grip and redirect pass rushers.

Offensive Tackle Darnell Wright

Last week Volunteers offensive lineman Darnell Wright stood out against Alabama. He had the task playing against an impressive EDGE rusher in Will Anderson Jr.

***This article was originally published on the ATB Network by Hussam Patel***

 

Hussam Patel is a Miami Dolphins contributor and Lead NFL Draft analyst at Five Reasons Sports Network, Director of Scouting at PhinManiacs and Editor at Dolphins ATB. Follow him on Twitter at @HussamPatel

Five takeaways from Panthers 3-2 OT loss to Lightning

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SUNRISE – The Battle of Florida returned on Friday night as the cross-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning made the journey to Sunrise to face off against the Florida Panthers.

 

These two teams have a lot of history over the last two seasons and tonight some new faces became acquainted with this fierce rivalry. 

 

Tampa came out the victors of this matchup, defeating Florida 3-2 in overtime off a Brayden Point power play goal.

 

Here’s tonight’s takeaways:

 

Matthew Tkachuk 

Matthew Tkachuk definitely had this one circled on his calendar. In his introductory press conference, he said, “I hate Edmonton, but I hate Tampa more now.” The former Calgary Flame is used to rivalries as he was a frequent noise maker in the Battle of Alberta.

 

In his first Battle of Florida, Tkachuk wasted no time stamping his name into the rivalry as he scored a tip-in off a Brandon Montour shot in the first period to tie the game at one a piece. This would be the first goal Tkachuk scored at home in a Panthers uniform.

 

Tkachuk got into the mix of it tonight with a few Lightning players, he even witnessed Corey Perry chuck his stick across the ice. Tkachuk was on the receiving end of some physicality too. He had two points tonight and continues to be the Panthers leading scorer.

 

Unfortunately for Tkachuk and the Panthers, he took two penalties in one play in the OT, granting Tampa a two-minute, 4-on-3 power play. As well as the Panthers PK did during regulation, going 5/6 on the kill before OT, Tampa didn’t let the extra frame head back to even-strength with Brayden Point beating Bobrovsky to win the game.

 

Rudy continues his goal streak

Rudolfs Balcers introduced himself to the Florida faithful on Wednesday night at the home opener when he scored his first goal with the Panthers against Philadelphia.

 

Tonight, Rudy extended his goal streak to two games with a huge goal in front of Andrei Vasilevskiy’s goal to give Florida the lead.

 

In his first year with the team, Balcers has played well alongside Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett on the second line. 

 

After playing a career-high 61 games last season in San Jose, Balcers doesn’t look out of place in Florida’s top-six. 

 

Florida puts up shots, a lot of shots

Similar to last season’s team, this Panthers squad pushes the tempo in transition and picks up a ton of shots as a result. 

 

Over the last three games, Florida had at least 30 shots on goal. Tonight they continued that streak, hitting it before the third period puck-drop.

 

A big question around the league after the hiring of Paul Maurice was if Florida could sustain the high-octane offense they had the previous season under Andrew Brunette. 

 

Tonight was just another demonstration of the amount of chances Florida generates throughout the game. 

 

They ended the game with 38. 

 

A healthy Brandon Montour is big for Florida

Florida’s defense is already without their top defenseman in Aaron Ekblad for an extended period of time as he’s on LTIR. Prior to tonight, they were also without Brandon Montour for the last two games.

Florida was able to get Montour’s services back tonight and it was much needed. The 28-year-old had the most ice-time for the d-corps, clocking in just over 23 minutes.

 

Montour also picked up points on both of Florida’s goals tonight. He’s going to be relied on heavily this season, specifically during the absence of Ekblad. 

 

Montour didn’t play on the top power play unit tonight as he did to start the season, however he could be seeing time on that top unit again sooner than later. 

 

Too much time in the box

The Lightning power play has been a thorn to oppositions for years now and Florida is no stranger to this. Tampa’s first goal of the game was a power play one-timer from captain Steven Stamkos. Their last goal of the game was a powerplay goal from Brayden Point in OT.

 

The Lightning know how to work a power play. They waste no time moving the puck and use multiple players as bumpers, so the opposition has to respect all five guys on the ice. 

 

Florida’s PP did a good job at stopping Tampa’s PP onslaught in regulation after the Stamkos goal, but in these tight games, spending so much time in the box is a momentum killer for the most part and Florida looked like the better team 5-on-5.

 

Tampa retaining control on their 4-on-3 overtime PP gave them way too much open ice in the zone and it ended with Florida only picking up one point from this game.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Celtics

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So we got an Eastern Conference Finals rematch on Friday night, immediately following a tough opening night performance for the Miami Heat.

Consistency felt like one of the main issues in this one, since even though the offense or defense was there at times, they just couldn’t sustain it long enough.

Even after making a late push, it wasn’t enough to steal a win against this gritty and skilled Celtics team. So here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: Tyler Herro: flattened offense to rim attempts to a fully open shot diet.

For scorers like Tyler Herro, the start of games hold high importance. It may sound wild, but he’s a rhythm player who needs to find his way a bit before truly popping. But that wasn’t the case early in this game. The Celtics were really flattening out the expected pick and rolls to come with Bam Adebayo, leaving Herro in a weird spot offensively. Then a few minutes into the second quarter, he found his way. Herro began getting to the rim a bunch, which is the true cursor to fully opening up his entire shot menu. That led into the free throw line floater opening up. Then the three-point shooting. Then the play-making. It’s a domino effect for Herro, but the ability to get out of the mud a bit at the start of games is a good sign.

#2: Bam Adebayo comes out aggressive…again. Just with different result.

After Bam Adebayo struggled on opening night against the Chicago Bulls, the topic about his scoring ability wasn’t the usual headliner: aggression. He was definitely getting shots up, they just weren’t dropping, which tends to happen. But the process was there. That stayed strong early in this game against Boston, as he wasn’t afraid to dive into the shots that Boston was giving him, which pretty much began and finished with the mid-range pull-up. Those jumpers led him to a 12 point first half stat line on 6 of 7 shooting. My point the other night was that inefficient nights for him will be fine throughout the season, as long as there’s a similar process along the way. Even though tonight had a bit of a different process with some early foul trouble.

#3: Where’s the movement?

In terms of the downside of Miami’s X’s and O’s, I must say I was expecting Miami to lean much more into their motion offense this year. They have multiple movement shooters on the floor together at times, a decent amount of on-ball creators, and a couple athletes. That roster construction screams nonstop movement, especially when linking that player grouping to the Miami Heat. But we’ve seen a lot of stagnant two-man actions early in this season, while the weak-side spacers are simply spotting up. Of course that can be the case depending on the action you’re running, but this team won’t be a successful scoring team off a bunch of isolations. I think they will find their identity here soon, but something to keep an eye on.

#4: The importance of the Kyle Lowry pull-up 3.

After talking about some of the minor negatives of the offense so far, it’s also important to talk some positives. And after a bad opening night for Kyle Lowry, he bounced back with some crucial buckets throughout. More specifically, it’s pretty clear that his pull-up triple changes the game for this team’s half-court offense. When he doesn’t take it, the defense goes under to flatten it, and it usually just ends up in a congested pass to the roller or resetting swing pass. Yet when he’s taking it, it puts more pressure on not only the on-ball defender, but the off-ball helpers. That’s the way to bend a good Celtics defense, and it’s with one single shot. It’ll be intriguing to monitor the efficiency and volume of it, but that’ what’ll make Lowry’s presence extremely helpful.

#5: A much needed defensive pick-up.

As I talked about the other night, Miami’s defensive rotations just weren’t there. This time around, it wasn’t as much the rotations. Instead it had many of us glued to their defensive layout. The Celtics are a heavy shot creation team, especially considering their molded around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. With that said, they enjoying picking their isolation matchup at any given moment. They were able to do that pretty easily at times with Miami’s switching, while yes it may have it’s perks with the randomized helps and doubles, just needs some type of mix-up against a team like Boston. The thing I’ve been advocating for is a mix of drop once in a while with Bam Adebayo on the floor. Maybe that says something about the point of attack defense in that first unit, but some defensive creativity and unpredictability is needed for this group with 80 games to go.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Bulls

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The Miami Heat faced the Chicago Bulls in their season opener, and well, it didn’t go as expected.

They came out playing well out the gate, but that stalled quickly. The defensive lapses began to add up, as DeMar DeRozan continued to “heat” up.

So, here are some takeaways…

#1: Tyler Herro kicks off his new role with a scoring punch…with a changing profile.

There was no doubt that Tyler Herro would be a focal point of the starting group’s offensive flow, but his usage was peaking to an even further degree early. An immediate pull-up three to kick things off will always be a good sign, but the next possession spoke volume. Herro pick and roll, Chicago Bulls blitz. He showed patience, waited it out, flowed downhill, snaked insane, and put up the floater. Bucket. Shortly after, as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo created, the ball ended up swinging to Herro in the corner for a spot-up three. The point is that his shot profile looks much different, while simultaneously looking much better. Pull-ups, spot-ups, blitzes: you know the deal. He’s just confident against all of it to start the season off.

#2: The rotation at the moment…

The starting lineup wasn’t much of a surprise heading in, (Lowry-Herro-Butler-Martin-Bam) but the questions were pointed at the bench unit without Victor Oladipo suiting up. Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, and Dewayne Dedmon were going to form the 8, but how would they regulate the rest? Well, the answer was quite simple. They went the Duncan Robinson route, and played him next to Strus for long stretches. Yet the key about the rotation is that they are matching good combinations. For example, they want to mirror the minutes of Herro and Bam as much as possible. So, they sub Butler out first, to then have him anchor the bench unit shortly after. It’s a solid philosophy to split up on-ball threats, but the next evaluation period will include how Butler and Oladipo look together once he returns.

#3: Caleb Martin isn’t PJ Tucker, and they won’t treat him like so.

Who will be the PJ Tucker replacement? That’s a question that has been asked all off-season, and the answer to that question has been Caleb Martin. Yes, he’s subbing into the position that he filled, but he’s not truly filling his role. Martin is surprising people with his growth at the moment, since he’s doing things that we’ve yet to see from him. Step 1 was the ability to size up defensively. Miami placed him on DeMar DeRozan early for the sole reason of predicting the switch, ending with him trying to hold his own on Nikola Vucevic. He had some good possessions early, but they continued to post him up a punch in the second half, proving the difference between PJ Tucker and himself. But the offensive stuff is a change of pace as well: rim pressure, tighter handle, better shooting, and constant movement. For an unexpected example. the dude literally ran a pick and roll for a tough mid-range pull-up early on. This is a different player right now, and there’s more to explore in my personal opinion.

#4: Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry struggling.

When looking at the stat sheet at halftime, two things would’ve caught you by surprise. Bam Adebayo was 1 for 10 from the field and Kyle Lowry had 0 points on two attempts. On the Bam front, he was just missing easy buckets at the rim time and time again. Bunnies, dunks, etc. I mean he was aggressive, but he didn’t have that usual focused flare from the jump. Lowry, on the other hand, wasn’t even looking for his shot. There weren’t many actions I can recall that he was heavily involved. Most of the offense included Bam or Jimmy post-splits, or Herro created buckets off pick and rolls or curls. I truly believe the Bam element is just one of those nights where easy ones don’t drop, but the Lowry part of it is about engagement level. Herro and Butler can only do so much to keep this group afloat. They’re going to need some type of punch on nights like this from Lowry and/or Bam.

#5: A step too slow defensively?

As the Bulls continued to pull away in the third quarter, there was a consistent theme: DeMar DeRozan tough buckets and sleepy Heat defensive possessions. This Heat team goes through shooting/scoring slumps all the time, but their energy and defensive rotations, specifically, usually carry them. That wasn’t the case for long periods in this one. Bulls were getting easy buckets at the rim and simple back-cuts were end results, which is far from a Miami Heat product. If there’s one thing this Heat team can’t afford to lose this season, it’s those crispy rotations on the defensive side of the ball night in and night out.

Miami Hurricanes: Duke QB Riley Leonard will challenge ‘Canes

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The Miami Hurricanes are set to take on the Duke Blue Devils as they look to bounce back from Saturday’s loss to Virginia Tech. Miami will have their work cut out for them, as they will be faced with another challenging quarterback in Riley Leonard.

Leonard has 1,557 passing yards, nine touchdowns, and four interceptions on the season. He played effectively in Duke’s loss to North Carolina last Saturday. He went 20-of-31 on the afternoon, throwing for 245 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.

He is an accurate quarterback, as he has a 66% completion percentage on the season. That puts him third in the ACC behind Syracuse’s Garrett Schrader, and UNC’s Drake Maye.

Leonard is accurate with the football, and does not make mistakes. This certainly resembles another quarterback that the Hurricanes have already faced in Maye They did a decent job of containing him,  as they intercepted him twice.

A tough test for Miami Hurricanes

Leonard has several traits that make him a bit quarterback. He throws a very tight spiral, which allows for the ball to get to the receivers quickly. In addition to his throwing motion, he goes through progressions quickly, and identifies his reads before the pass rush can get into the backfield.

He can also run a little bit, as he has 420 rushing yards on the year. He had 130 yards against UNC last Saturday, and has rushed for at least 60 yards in four games this season.

The Miami Hurricanes defense is going to have to be ready on Saturday. Leonard is a multi-skilled quarterback who and beat you in many ways. It is going to be a bit of a challenge, particularly for the Miami pass rush. However, they have playmakers and athletes that can help contain Leonard. It won’t be easy however, and if they do not contain him, he will take advantage of that. Making him uncomfortable in the pocket is going to have to be their top priority.

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Miami Hurricanes

Miami Hurricanes: Colbie Young is viable big-play threat

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There were some positives to take away from the Miami Hurricanes‘ win over Virginia Tech on Saturday. One of them was the play of wide receiver Colbie Young. Young played a big part in Miami’s offensive successes, and he also established himself as a deep threat for the offense.

Young played at a high level on Saturday. He caught nine passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. A 37-yard catch was his longest of the afternoon. Many fans have been clamoring to see him play for quite a while now. They certainly got their wish, and he played at a high level.

Coming into the game, he had three receptions for 43 yards against UNC last Saturday. He more than doubled that production against Virginia Tech.

Not only did he perform well in terms of production, he looked extremely comfortable while doing it. A one-handed catch was one of the highlights of his afternoon. It really highlighted his athleticism and coordination, as well as his big-play ability.  The fact that quarterback Tyler Van Dyke targeted him often was certainly a good sign. Establishing that rapport between the two will allow the Miami offense to have a  receiver they can rely on.

If Young can establish himself as a downfield threat for the Hurricanes, this would be extremely good news. Miami has been looking for that big-play weapon this season. The departures of wide receivers Charleston Rambo and Mike Harley took away those playmakers. This season, it’s been about trying to find production at the wide receiver position. The injuries at the position have created a lack of big-play threats.

Hopefully, Young will continue to establish his role in this offense. His emergence could be huge for the wide receiver room. He has the ability to be an X-factor, and Miami should continue to use him that way.

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Five takeaways from Panthers 4-3 win over Sabres

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The Florida Panthers are leaving New York the same way they entered the state two days ago, undefeated.

 

Yes, the season started two days ago but the Cats still began the campaign with two road wins following their 4-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. 

 

Spencer Knight picked up his first win of the season as the Panthers moved to 2-0 on the young NHL season.

 

Here’s the takeaways from today’s matinee game.

The power play scored, twice

Thursday’s game against the Islanders saw the new look Panthers power play get numerous scoring chances but no goals, going 0-5 on the night.

 

That changed today as the power play found the back of the net twice, with goals coming from defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour.

 

With the way Florida’s sets up their power play, it was bound to generate scoring chances off their quick passing and efficient off the puck movement within the zone. 

 

Having Montour control the top of the blueline allows Ekblad to freely move on the left side of the ice, which is his off-side wing. This opens up the opportunity for one-timers around the goal. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk hovers between the goal line and the crease, allowing him to be the bumper down low. Any time he is near the net, there’s bound to be some chaos, which is exactly what happened on Montour’s goal.

 

Tkachuk took open space near the net, fed the puck to the front and Montour found the loose puck and put it away.

 

This power play gets its fair share of looks and they didn’t waste their chances today. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk is living up to his trade value

For the second game in a row, Tkachuk found himself with a goal next to his name on the stat sheet.

 

He does so many little things right, with and without the puck. On his goal, he picked up the puck in the neutral zone and decided to use the small amount of space that was available on the boards to push the play rather than cutting into the middle. 

 

After making a great pass to set up Eetu Luostarinen in the slot, Tkachuk set up shop in front of the net as Gustav Forsling had a shooting lane from the point. Despite having two Sabres defenders and the goalie in his way, Tkachuk fought around the traffic to put away the rebound.

 

Sam Reinhart said a few weeks back, “I think he pisses you off because he’s good, he backs it up,” when speaking about Tkachuk. That quote was crystal clear today as he got into it more than a few times with the opposition, even after the final whistle was blown.

 

Between his offensive capabilities, physical play and ability to  draw penalties, he’s the perfect player for this team. He has three points on the year so far, expect that number to increase nearly every game. Also expect the post whistle fights to trend upwards as well.

 

The Lundell, Luostarinen, White line showed out again

This third line is an interesting one on paper. You have 21-year-old Anton Lundell, centering Eetu Luostarinen, who was moved to the wing after spending last year as the fourth line center and Colin White who was picked up in the offseason after being bought out by the Ottawa Senators.

 

Through two games, this trio haven’t looked out of place, with all of them getting on the scoresheet today.

 

Luostarinen’s increased ice time is allowing the skilled Finnish forward more chances to be a difference maker. He found the back of the net against the Islanders and he made a key pass to pick up a primary assist on Colin White’s goal today.

 

Speaking of White, the former 2015 first-round pick came to Florida looking for a fresh start after spending his entire NHL career with Ottawa. Today he not only got his first goal as a Panther, which was a nicely placed one-timer from the slot, but he also hit the 100 point milestone for his career.

 

Lundell was a standout last year in his rookie season and his sophomore year is off on the right track. Paul Maurice clearly trusts the youngster as he gets both penalty killing minutes and second unit power play time. He hit just over 17 minutes of ice time today and picked up his first point of the season. 

 

Both sides picked up A LOT of penalties 

If your favorite NHL trophy is the Lady Byng, this was not the game for you. 

 

The two sides combined for a total of 28 penalty minutes.

 

Buffalo had the edge on the undisciplined meter, picking up two more penalties than Florida.

 

The Panthers penalty kill was able to completely shut down the Sabres, as Buffalo wasn’t able to find the back of the net on the man advantage, even with an abbreviated 5-on-3 opportunity. 

 

Florida on the other hand didn’t let their numerous PP chances go down the drain as they picked up two power play goals.

 

The refs’ whistles were busy today in Buffalo.

 

Florida’s team defense locked it down in the third

Entering the third period, Florida’s lead was just one and Buffalo came out of the intermission with much needed momentum following Rasmus Dahlin’s last minute goal in the second.

 

The start of the third looked like it could all swing Buffalo’s way as they had an abbreviated 4-on-3 and 5-on-3 power play within the opening minutes. However, Florida locked it down. 

 

After killing off the penalties, Florida did not let a puck get near Spencer Knight for over 14 minutes. Buffalo got their first shot post power play with under two minutes remaining in the game and weren’t able to create any looks due to the Panthers defensive efforts. 

 

It was a huge team performance in the final period for Florida, they were rewarded with two points for their efforts.

Five takeaways from Panthers opening night win over Islanders

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Panthers hockey returned tonight in Long Island, with Florida facing off against the New York Islanders in their first game of the 2022-2023 season.

 

Backstopped by a strong Sergei Bobrovsky performance, the Panthers spoiled the Islanders home opener with a 3-1 win at UBS Arena.

 

Five takeaways are back, here we go.

 

Matthew Tkachuk made his presence felt all over the ice

In his first game with the Panthers, Matthew Tkachuk showed flashes of why Florida traded for him.

 

On his first shift of the game, the 24-year-old forward displayed his flair, shooting the puck between his legs not once, but twice in front of goal on the power play.

 

Using his 6’2, 200 pound frame, Tkachuk planted himself in front of the Islanders net, generating numerous scoring chances near Ilya Sorokin’s crease.

 

His hockey IQ was prevalent all game long. Without the puck in the offensive zone, he put himself in danger areas, usually the slot. 

 

Tkachuk was just as dangerous carrying the offense in transition. In Calgary, there were countless times he walked in on the opposition and left them in the dust. He had more than a few of those chances tonight, with over 15 shot attempts in the game. 

 

Tkachuk’s efforts were rewarded as he put away an empty net goal in the final minutes of the game, giving him his first as a Panther.

 

The new look power play had its chances, but didn’t capitalize

With the start of a new season, new systems were implemented by Paul Maurice and his coaching staff. One of those was the Panthers’ power play.

 

In the playoffs last season, Florida was anything but good on the man advantage, going 1-31 in 10 games. 

 

Last year, the Panthers often ran four forwards and one defenseman, sometimes even using a five forward setup. In game 1 this season, Florida’s power play featured a three forward, two defenseman setup. 

 

With the acquisition of Tkachuk, Florida opted to use him down low on the PP, hovering him between the goal line and the front of the net. The fluidity of the power play seemed to be there with Florida using Tkachuk as the bumper while Aaron Ekblad and Aleksander Barkov set up shop on the boards. 

 

The Panthers had plenty of zone time on the power play, with a plethora of chances at goal, but the puck didn’t find the back of the net as Florida went 0-5 with the extra man.

 

Sergei Bobrovsky had a great outing in his first start of the season

Good goaltending will keep you in games and that’s what Sergei Bobrovsky did for Florida tonight. 

 

The Panthers had a few defensive slip ups in their own zone, specifically in the opening period, giving the Islanders some golden scoring opportunities. 

 

Bobrovsky didn’t let the onslaught of Islanders chances deter him as he stood tall, keeping out all 17 shots he faced in the first. 

 

The Islanders didn’t beat Bobrovsky until they got on the power play in the third period. Anders Lee had a nice screen in front of goal, leaving Bob without vision of the puck. Noah Dobson finished the job.

 

After giving up one, the rest of the night he was lights out. The Islanders continued their flurries of attacks but the Panthers goalie kept the door closed, only giving up the one short handed goal. 

 

Bob finished the night with 32 saves.

 

Eetu Luostarinen gets his shot in the top 9 and capitalized

Luostarinen got the bump to start the year as Paul Maurice moved the Finn onto the third line with his fellow countryman Anton Lundell.  This pair was also a line on the penalty kill.

 

Last year, Eetu grabbed his spot in the roster but most of that even-strength ice time was as the fourth line center. Tonight, rather than being the bottom line middle man, Luostarinen was put on the wing higher in the lineup. 

 

Maurice’s decision paid off as Luostarinen scored the first Panthers goal of the season, off of a beautiful tip from Radko Gudas’ point shot.

 

The 2022-2023 second line has potential

For a good portion of last season, Florida’s second line consisted of Anthony Duclair, Sam Bennett and Jonathan Huberdeau. With Duclair on the IR and Huberdeau now a Calgary Flame as part of the Matthew Tkachuk trade, the former  ‘9-1-1’ second line is a thing of the past.

 

To open the season, the second line saw Sam Bennett center two new Panthers in Tkachuk and Rudolfs Balcers. 

 

While last year’s line 2 was speed and craftiness, this line screamed grit and physicality.

 

Paul Maurice emphasized winning the board battles when we spoke to him at training camp. This line was doing just that in the offensive zone. 

 

We already knew going into the game what Tkachuk and Bennett were capable of, the question was how Balcers would do with a top 6 role. He didn’t seem out of place in his first game with the team.

 

This line may not stick together the whole season, but it looked good tonight.

The NFL dream start, and the disaster

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The 2022 National Football League season is already well underway, and we have enjoyed a rollercoaster opening five rounds. The various divisions are beginning to take shape as the strongest sides force their way to the head of the pack, leaving others to play catch up. There has also been one or two nightmare starts to the season, and we bring you the best of those in our early-season round-up.

 

Football fans are delighted to see the play return to our TV screens, with games coming thick and fast. Between now and the festive period, the fixture list will continue to go through the gears as we race towards the end of the regular season and towards the playoffs. Five rounds of results may already be in the bag, but it’s not too late to get involved and have your say, thanks to the leading NFL betting sites. Make your predictions today.

 

The top bookmakers offer odds and accept bets on this season’s outcome with various markets and specials available. Pick the team you expect to win the Super Bowl, back a side to make it to the playoffs or go against a rival and have your stake on them not making the final list. Who will be the most valuable player or the best of the rising stars? Football fans passionate about betting and targeting a profit certainly aren’t light on options.

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Eagles soaring high

The Philadelphia Eagles couldn’t have started any better in the NFC East, with five wins from as many starts. They now sit proudly atop the division and hold the record as the only team still holding onto their 100% record. They know bigger challenges are in the pipeline, but it’s also obvious that there’s more to come from this Eagles side that looks like they mean business. Is this the season they go all the way to Super Bowl glory? It’s certainly looking possible at this stage of proceedings.

 

The Eagles have played five and won five to take control of the group. They have won their first two home games and taken victory from their three road trips, scoring 135 points and conceding just 88. Now, there are teams with more impressive strike rates and better defences, that’s for sure, but there’s no other team with an unbeaten record, and that’s what matters most at this stage. 

 

Indeed, fans couldn’t ask for any more from the coaches and players. But will they keep pushing hard, or is this little more than a good start to the season? Only time will tell, and all will be revealed before the end of the year.

Pittsburgh lack steel

The Philadelphia Eagles are the only team with a 100% record, but it wasn’t as easy to find the side that has made the worst possible start because there are a few contenders to the crowd. It’s still very early in the campaign, and we’ve seen plenty of teams struggle in the opening exchanges, only to turn things around during winter as the schedule gathers pace.

The side we picked as the one with the worst start of the season is the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFC North. They are already stuck at the foot of the group, having managed just one win in their first five outings. The Steelers are yet to win at home with an 0-2-0 record on their patch, while things haven’t been much better on the road, with their stats stuck at 1-2-0. Will that elusive home win every fall? Fans certainly hope so.

 

Pittsburgh has scored 77 goals and conceded 128, which isn’t the worst defensive record you will see at the moment. Steelers have conceded fewer points than a few of the other early strugglers, but their offence is the problem. The 77 points managed is the lowest of the NFL regular season at this stage, and that’s something the coaching staff know must improve. They must begin putting points on the board if they are to fight their way out of the situation they find themselves in, and that must start this weekend. It’ll soon be too late.