CATS! CATS! CATS!
The Florida Panthers are on a red-hot heater right, winning five in a row after their 4-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night.
The two things from Tuesday’s victory that Panthers (and hockey fans) are talking about are:
1. Barky the all-time assists leader in franchise history, after passing Huberdeau on Tuesday
2. Cousins now in concussion protocol after Jason Sucker’s hit on him
The first point is about as straight forward as it gets. Barky is a helluva player, and can dish the biscuit like no other. 416 assists is a great indicator of that. Unbelievable that Huberdeau had 415 as a Panther, and now he’s part of that wild stat where Nathan MacKinnon has something like 27 points in the time since Huby got his last point on Nov. 30.
Crazy…
Now to the second item from Tuesday’s tilt that’s hotly debated: the hit on Cousins.
I’m surprised there’s as much debate as there is. Despite Cousins’ history — most recently on Gudbranson— I do believe there’s no denying this was a blatant boarding. I think where the actual debate lies is in the three-game suspension.
Truthfully, I’m not sure how the Player Safety committee (or whoever it is that decides punishment) operates, but it does always seem inconsistent. I think this is what most fans are debating with this one. Should it have been 3 games? Ehh, I don’t know. I don’t understand enough of the “fine print” or Zucker’s record, etc., but I do know Cousin’s is in concussion protocol, and you could argue the hit had some intent to injure (which it ended up doing).
With him out, here’s the lines the Cats will look like:
Speaking of which…there is a game tonight!
The Cats will take on the Golden Knights, who have been limping a bit as of late heading into the Winter Classic where they were blanked by the Kraken.
Both clubs have nearly identical records heading into tonight. VGK is up there on my list of most disliked teams, so I’d love to see the Cats continue their winning streak and beat them on. What’s ice.
BTW…congrats to Uvis Balinskis for earning a two-year extension with the Cats. Good news for Florida blue line depth.
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Go Panthers!
Florida Panthers Blogger • 
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