Last night the Panthers and Rangers took to the ice. Two of the top teams in the league. Both are in the tough/competitive Eastern Conference, so we knew this game wouldn't disappoint.
And it didn't.
The pace throughout several points in the game was that of a playoff atmosphere. Both teams digging in the corners, throwing the body, getting into scrums...the whole shebang!
You know who stood out to me? Niko Mikkola. The big man seemed like he was determined to have a solid game against his old team. There was a particular sequence that really impressed me...
Florida's third line was doing a helluva job controlling the puck in the Rangers' zone after Mikkola jumped into the play. I didn't know he had the hands and vision he does until I watched that all unfold. Using his body to his advantage, he worked below the goal line to protect the puck and find open wingers. What's more, he worked like a winger -- getting the puck to open guys and trying to set up chances in close. Who knew the guy possessed those types of offensive chops? Good to see.
But let's get to the real reason to talk about last night. It's not the win (though that's obviously awesome). It's not Reinhart burying two (also awesome). Nope.
It's Barkov's unbelievable/highlight reel assist...
If you missed it --or are living under a rock -- here it is in all its glory:
Seeing this live (on TV) was incredible. Had to do a double-take. It's like something out of a video game. If you saw that play in a movie you'd say, "Psshh, yeah right. That would never happen." Yet...it happened in real life. Haha.
I can't even really blame the defenseman on this play. No way you'd think the guy could cut over like that while bouncing the puck on his stick. Looks like the D was anticipating Barky to continue going straight, where he would then angle him off an try to take the body, but then Barkov quickly changes his shoulders/direction.
Also, Barky went 12/15 at the dot last night. Excuse me while I watch this clip a few more times...
Tonight
The Cats are right back at it tonight when they take on the New Jersey Devils in NJ.
The Devils are a team in strange disarray. They had high hopes coming into the season, but now find themselves in 6th place of the Metropolitan Division with a 30-27-4 record.
Not only that, but they fired HC Lindy Ruff yesterday. Per
NHL.com:
"On Monday, the Devils announced Travis Green will serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the 2023-24 season after relieving Lindy Ruff of his duties as head coach. Green joined New Jersey in June of 2023 as an Associate Coach.
The Devils just returned from a three-game California road trip where they picked up only one win over the San Jose Sharks. New Jersey has lost three of their last four and six of their last ten. With the trade deadline this week and the playoff race in full swing, the Devils three-game homestand is full of important games. The Devils remain a top faceoff team, as their 54.2% win rate is second on the NHL. New Jersey has the ninth-highest goals for per game played average in the league at 3.31.
Tyler Toffoli remains the Devils leading goal scorer with 26 this season. Toffoli also has 18 assists and 44 total points. Jesper Bratt’s 40 assists and 62 points are team-highs in both categories. Bratt also has 22 goals on the season. Jack Hughes’ 37 assists and 57 points are second on the team, and he is one of four players to have 20 or more goals this year. Nico Hischier also has 20 goals this season and has 25 assists and 45 total points.
Nico Daws has started four of the Devils last five games and secured wins over the Montreal Canadiens and San Jose Sharks. This year he has a 8-10-0 record with a 3.47 goals against average and a .887 save percentage. Daws was pulled in the Devils last two games against the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings. In both those appearances he stopped all nine shots he faced. Schmid has a 5-8-1 record with a 3.09 goals against average and a .897 save percentage."
The NHL article also points out two pretty sweet stats for each team:
80: The Devils have this many goals in the third period this season which leads the NHL.
34.1: The Panthers lead the league in shots for per game played which is most in the league.
How about the Cats and getting shots on net? They have certainly put the rubber towards the twine consistently each night for the past few seasons. It's not always high-danger opportunities, but anything can happen when you throw it on, so why not?
The Cats should be ready for a serious push from the Devils tonight. I do feel like everything is kind of stacked against Florida heading into New Jersey: they're playing the second of back-to-back games, their opponent is desperate, and just fired their head coach, so they'll be looking to make a statement.
Should be another awesome one!
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See you there. Go Panthers!
Florida Panthers Blogger • 
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