Panthers’ win over the Golden Knights was big; now the goal is to build on it
The Panthers’ Paul Maurice, a coaching veteran in his 26th season leading an NHL team, isn’t quite sure if a big win heading into a break has any extra meaning for players.
“They do for the coaches,” Maurice said. “I think the guys have shorter memories. We hang onto them for a few days.”
The Panthers went into the holiday break on a high note, beating the reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 in convincing fashion. It was a needed reset after having dropped four of their previous five games. They are 19-12-2, in third place in the Atlantic Division.
The goal now is figuring out how to sustain it as they return to the ice against another major rival.
The Panthers resume play Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. (BSFL).
Florida knows that each regular-season game counts as just one of 82, but these games — the one last week against Vegas, the first of three meetings against Tampa Bay — give the Panthers a chance to make a statement about the team’s direction.
And the Panthers on Saturday returned to their brand of hockey. They were suffocating on defense, outshooting Vegas 42-25 and holding the Golden Knights scoreless in the third period.
“We had lost a couple in a row, so to get that game and play that style of hockey, the way we like to play, was huge for our team and for just our whole confidence,” said center Sam Bennett. “That was definitely a big game.”
Added winger Ryan Lomberg: “We were sliding a little bit the last few games, so to leave off on a hard-fought win was important for us.”
POWER PLAY
While one game does not constitute a turnaround, the Panthers’ power play was noticeably better against the Golden Knights, and the team was rewarded with a pair of third-period goals on the man advantage.
It marked just the fourth time this season the Panthers scored multiple power-play goals in a game.
Overall, the Panthers put up 20 shot attempts while producing nine shots on goal and five high-danger chances on five power-play opportunities Saturday.
“We were shooting the puck, getting lots of chances,” said center Carter Verhaeghe, who scored the first of the two power-play goals. “We had a couple opportunities to feel it out there, which is nice. It’s definitely huge for the power play. It plays a big part in the game.”
The Panthers still rank just 20th in the NHL on the power play, converting on only 18.9 percent of their opportunities.
PANTHERS PROSPECTS
A pair of Panthers prospects — defenseman Marek Alscher and forward Sandis Vilmanis — will represent their home countries in the 2024 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship. The tournament began Tuesday and runs through Jan. 5 in Gothenberg, Sweden
Alscher, Florida’s thirdround pick in the 2022 NHL Draft who will represent Czechia, is in his third season with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League. The 19-year-old has two goals and seven assists over 26 games this season and has 49 career points (17 goals, 32 assists) in 147 games.
Vilmanis, a 19-year-old Latvian, is in his second season with the Sarnia
For summaries, complete standings, scores go to the eEdition at MiamiHerald.com.
Atlantic
Boston Toronto Florida Tampa Bay Detroit Montreal Buffalo Ottawa Metropolitan
N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Islanders Philadelphia Washington Carolina
New Jersey Pittsburgh Columbus
Central
Dallas Colorado Winnipeg Nashville Arizona
St. Louis Minnesota Chicago Pacific
Vancouver Vegas
Los Angeles Calgary Seattle Edmonton Anaheim San Jose
GP W LOT Pts GF GA
32 19 7 6 44 100 85 31 17 8 6 40 115 105 33 19 12 2 40 96 87 35 17 13 5 39 118 120 34 16 14 4 36 121 113 33 15 13 5 35 95 112 35 14 17 4 32 106 121 29 12 17 0 24 100 103 GP W L OT Pts GF GA
32 23 8 33 16 8 33 18 11 31 17 9 34 17 13 32 17 13 32 15 13 35 11 18
47 108 89 41 104 108 40 101 92 39 77 86 38 111 110 36 109 115 34 93 90 28 108 128
32 20 8 4 44 114 100 34 21 11 2 44 125 104 32 20 9 3 43 109 82 34 19 15 0 38 107 104 33 17 14 2 36 103 95 33 17 15 1 35 100 111 32 15 13 4 34 100 103 33 10 22 1 21 80 123 GP W LOT Pts GF GA
35 23 9 35 21 9 30 19 7 34 14 15 35 12 14 31 15 15 33 12 21 34 9 22
1 9 4 5 4 2 4 6
3 5 4 5 9 1 0 3
49 135 89 47 122 96 42 107 73 33 102 115 33 95 112 31 108 106 24 86 111 21 73 140
NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss.
Top three teams in each division and two wild cards per conference advance to playoffs.
WEDNESDAY
Florida at Tampa Bay, 7
Columbus at New Jersey, 7 Ottawa at Toronto, 7
Washington at N.Y. Rangers, 7 Boston at Buffalo, 7:30 Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 Carolina at Nashville, 8
Dallas at St. Louis, 8
Detroit at Minnesota, 8
Colorado at Arizona, 9
Winnipeg at Chicago, 9
Seattle at Calgary, 9:30
San Jose at Los Angeles, 10
Vegas at Anaheim, 10
TUESDAY
No games scheduled
MONDAY
No games scheduled
Sting of the Ontario Hockey League. He has logged 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) over 30 games. He was Florida’s fifth-round pick in 2022.