Panthers keep playing sharp
ST. LOUIS — The Panthers woke up Sunday morning in their fifth different city in nine days and ensconced in a playoff berth for the first time since the second week of the NHL season.
Thismake-or-break, fivegame road trip is already one of the best in franchise history as the Panthers have swept through Nashville, San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles with a season-best four game winning streak, including Saturday night’s 3-2 victory over theKings.
The Panthers had lost their last seven trips to Staples Center, dating back to a 5-2 victory onNov. 27, 2002. It’s the first time in franchise history that the Panthers have won all three games in California in a single season, and they have a chance to record the franchise’s first 5-0 road trip with a victory over the (31-23-5) St. Louis Blues tonight.
After winning seven of eight the Panthers entered Sunday with 64 points in 57 games to move into third place of the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of Toronto and tied with theBruins, albeit with a game in hand. Their only loss during this run had been a lackluster 6-3 outing to these Kings after coming out of a fiveday bye break.
“Whatwe’vedoneonthis streak, andwe still got a long way to go, is something to reflect back on, something to build your game on and have some confidence,’’ Panthers interim coach TomRowe said.
“This is a group who fought the confidence bug a little bit when theywere going through a tough time, but now they’re taking advantage of feeling good and playing good hockey.’’
After blowing a 2-0 lead and getting outplayed in the second half of the middle period, the Panthers received a huge lift just 15 seconds into the third.
A rejuvenated Jaromir Jagr sprung Aleksander Barkov off the faceoff, and the 21-year-old Finn fended
off defenders and a hook before beating Peter Budaj with a slick backhand to give Florida a 3-2 lead that goalie Roberto Luongo (34 saves) would preserve.
“It was a great situation for us, in their home rink at 2-2,’’ said Barkov, who has five goals in his last five games, including two-game winning goals on the road trip. “We weren’t good in the second period but we played great in the third.’’
Since Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau returned from long-term injuries and rejoined Jagr for the first time this season six games ago (5-1) on Feb. 3, the trio has combined to score 11 goals and 21 points. They have all four game-winning goals on the road trip, and Jagr is on a five-game point streak (2-3).
Huberdeau, whose blistering wrist shot on a delayed penalty gave the Panthers a1-0 lead after one, has eight points (four goals, four assists) in six games since returning from an Achilles injury sustained in a preseason game.
“Everybody is healthy, so I think it’s a big boost for our club as far as knowing everyone is in the lineup,’’ Luongo said. “We are getting results, so obviously we see that we’re a pretty good team when we’re playing and we want to keep it going. ..”