ACCIARI HAT TRICK DECISIVE
Aaron Ekblad chipped in with a goal and an assist, and Frank Vatrano scored his eighth of the season as Florida beat Nashville for the second time in a row.
The Florida Panthers got three goals from Noel Acciari on their way to a 6-2 road rout of Nashville on Saturday.
Noel Acciari had a hat trick with his first three goals of the season, Aaron Ekblad had a goal and an assist and the Florida Panthers routed the host Nashville Predators 6-2 for their second consecutive win.
Jonathan Huberdeau got his team-high 10th goal and Frank Vatrano scored his eighth of the season. No NHL team has fewer losses in regulation this season than the Panthers (15-4-4). Florida is also 8-1-1 away from home, which is the fewest losses in the league this year.
Acciari, who scored 20 goals last season in his Panthers debut, had gone scoreless until Saturday. Prior to last season, he had never scored more than 10 goals.
Two of Acciari’s goals came off rebounds; one was the first power-play tally of his career.
“I couldn’t find my scoring touch, I guess, off of last season,” Acciari
said. “I loosened up.”
This was Acciari’s third career hat trick, all with the Panthers, earning him praise from Panthers coach Joel Quenneville.
“He either scores none or three,” Quenneville joked. “He’s been pressing a bit, but I don’t care how many goals he scores. He does all the other things you want.”
Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves, and the two goals he allowed were the direct result of faceoffs lost by the Panthers.
Bobrovsky escaped injury when he was tripped by Nashville’s
Filip Forsberg with 11:57 left in the third. Bobrovsky landed hard on his back, but remained in the game after a brief delay.
Winger Grigory Denisenko, 20, Florida’s first-round pick in 2018, made his NHL debut Saturday. The young Russian played 12:59 and had two shots on goal, one hit and one blocked shot. He was also called for a tripping penalty that led to Nashville’s first goal.
Nashville’s power play clicked just seven seconds later as Ryan Johansen won the faceoff and Forsberg passed the puck to Eeli Tolvanen, whose wrist shot from the left circle sailed past a completely screened Bobrovsky.
The Panthers are looking for Denisenko to become an impact player. The last Panthers draft pick to make it big was Ekblad, who was the first overall selection in 2014. Ekblad leads all NHL defensemen this season with nine goals.
Since then, the Panthers haven’t gotten much out of the draft. Henrik Borgstrom, Florida’s highly touted first-rounder in 2016, is now playing in Finland. Owen Tippett, Florida’s equally acclaimed first-rounder in 2017, was a healthy scratch Saturday.
After the Panthers were outshot 10-0 in the first part of the opening period, Ekblad tied the score 1-1 with a shot past the glove of Predators goalie Pekka Rinne.
“[Ekblad] looks like top power forward at times,” Quenneville said.
Panthers winger Patric Hornqvist said that goal was “huge” in terms of momentum.
That momentum showed just 75 seconds into the second period as Huberdeau got career goal No. 158, passing Scott Mellanby for third place on the Panthers’ career list.
On his milestone goal, Huberdeau was in alone, scoring on his third move, lifting the puck over Renne’s right pad from point-blank range. Hornqvist got the primary assist for the stretch pass that freed up Huberdeau.
“I felt I had to go blocker side,” Huberdeau said.
Acciari scored the next two goals to put the Panthers up 4-1 after two periods.
The Predators cut their deficit to 4-2 just 19 seconds into the third period, but goals by Vatrano and Acciari iced the game.
THIS AND THAT
• Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov have combined for seven goals and 17 points in Florida’s first four games against Nashville this season.
• Anton Stralman, who suffered a lower-body injury in Florida’s previous game, sat out. Kevin Connauton played in his place.
• Denisenko became the 15th player to make his Panthers debut this season, which is more newcomers than any other team in the league.
• Forward Vinnie Hinostroza was a healthy scratch, and defenseman Riley Stillman was sent to the taxi squad.
I COULDN’T FIND MY SCORING TOUCH, I GUESS, OFF OF LAST SEASON. I LOOSENED UP.
Noel Acciari