One 5-game winning streak puts them right back in the playoff conversation. One 5-game losing streak likely sinks their season.
This precarious position in December seems like a perennial state of affairs for the Cats. Such fragile situations require health above all else to create positive results.
Roberto Luongo's injury suffered against the New York Islanders Monday night just made a fragile situation worse.
Head coach Bob Boughner said it's still uncertain how long Luongo will be out. The perceived groin injury will keep him out at least 2-5 weeks, and potentially more.
It cannot be overstated how damaging this is to the 2017-18 campaign.
Luongo quietly was having one of his best seasons. His .928 save percentage ranks 8th in the NHL and has been mostly brilliant as the Panthers have slowly improved defensively from the start of the year.
Without him, the Panthers would likely already be looking at next year's NHL Draft.
But now they really are without him for an undetermined amount of time.
James Reimer has flashed often in his two seasons in Florida. He was brought in as the heir apparent to the 38 year old Luongo. However, he hasn't flashed much this year. If there ever was a time for him to get in the zone and put the team on his back, it's now.
But if his performance thus far is any indication of what is to come, the Panthers are in trouble.
Reimer's 3.67 GAA is a full goal over Luongo's, and his .892 save percentage certainly has the natives restless. For his career, Reimer has a 2.79 GAA and .914 save percentage, so obviously he's capable of more.
But more is needed now, without delay. Harri Sateri has been called up from the AHL's Springfield Thunderbirds to be Reimer's backup.
Per NHL.com: Sateri, 27, has played in 12 games with Springfield, posting a 5-6-0 record, 2.76 goals against average and a .906 save percentage. Over 141 career AHL games, the 6-foot-1, 205-pound native of Toijala, Finland, owns a 53-74-0 record with a 2.88 goals against average, .902 save percentage and four shutouts.
He was originally selected by the San Jose Sharks in the fourth round (106th overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft.
Boughner referenced there have been talks about adding a goaltender via trade, but this puts GM Dale Tallon in a very tough position. Assuming that Luongo will return in 1-2 months, how much of the future is he willing to give up for a 1A rental backup goaltender? At this point in the season what teams are willing to give up a good netminder for what will probably amount to a bottom six forward and/or picks?
Compounding the problem is the fact that Tallon is already in the market to add forward depth. Now there are two glaring weaknesses that need to be addressed and a Florida prospect pool that isn't nearly as deep as it was a few years ago.
Are the Panthers close enough to a Cup to hurt their long-term development and address these current issues in the hopes they squeak into the playoffs as a 6-8 seed?
Some very tough and painful decisions are on the horizon. Perhaps Tallon will take it a game at a time and hope the team continues to play well enough in front of Reimer to stay afloat.
Those that have spoken to Luongo have said he is really down because this team was starting to make strides. But he was a vital piece to those strides, and the same effort by the team with Reimer in net likely will not look the same, especially on the scoreboard.
Maybe Reimer fills in wonderfully and Florida starts to climb in the division. But it's tenuous. Forget a 5-game losing streak. Maybe two regulation losses in a row might be enough to force Tallon to deal. Will it be more scoring or less goals against that becomes paramount?
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