To be fair though, they hung on for as long as they could and the game remained scoreless until midway through the second period but once the Cats opened the score, there was no coming back in this one for the Habs. Even when the Canadiens enjoyed a 5 on 3 of over a minute, they didn't really threaten the Panthers' net. Oh they did have shots but they were as predictable as they come since the end game was clearly to set up Shea Weber for his patented slapper and when the whole team knows it's coming, it rarely works (shame it's not like Ovechkin's one). The Panthers increased their lead in the 3rd with a couple of early goals before Jake Evans scored his second of the year to at least save face and Mike Hoffman scored an empty netter to make it 4-1 Florida.
With that, the Canadiens have got 12 games left until we finally get to call time on this rather underwhelming season. This week, they'll face Nashville and Buffalo at home before heading out west to play the Ducks on Sunday. That's right, we get a rare Saturday off where we won't feel an obligation to watch another disaster unfold on the ice.
Really though, the real story last night was not the game but rather the fact that the Panthers were sending their first number to the rafters by retiring Roberto Luongo's number 1. The ceremony started at 17:00, 2 hours prior to puck drop and I'll admit I was shocked to see how very few people turned up. I know, the Panthers hardly ever play in front of a full house, but I did think that people would turn up for a franchise icon. Nevertheless, it was a good and touching tribute with some nice video flashbacks and plenty of video guests who wanted to congratulate Luongo on a well earned honour.
The amount of empty seats for Roberto Luongo’s retirement ceremony is embarrassing for the @FlaPanthers One of the greatest of all time and this is the reception he gets. Come on. pic.twitter.com/XVcxrOD2qV
Luongo's career spanned over 19 NHL seasons, the first of which was spent in Long Island as the Islanders had drafted him 4th overall at the 1997 NHL entry draft. He only played 24 games with them though before being traded to Florida on the day of the 2000 Entry draft in which the Islanders selected Rick DiPietro first overall, therefore making Luongo surplus to requirement. The Islanders sent Bobby Lu to Florida alongside Jolli Jokinen and received Oleg Kvasha and Mike Parrish in return. Not only was that not the best return, but considering how DiPietro's career turned out, they must have regretted that trade deeply. Luongo's first stay in Florida lasted 5 seasons, getting more and more successful each year until he was traded on the eve of the 2006 draft, this time to Vancouver. The Panthers received Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan Allen and Alex Auld in return for Luongo, Lukas Krajicek and a 6th round pick at the draft. Luongo's stay in Vancouver would last 7 seasons and he even became the Canucks' captain at one point. The end of his tenure in Vancouver was a rocky one, splitting goaltending duties with Corey Schneider and waiting to be traded for what seemed like ages because of his heavy contract. Good things come to those who wait though and in March 2014, his wish was granted when he was sent back to Florida where he would spend the last 6 years of his career.
In the end, Luongo racked up 489 wins and finished his career with a 2.52 goal against average and a .919 save percentage. In Vancouver, he will have made the playoffs 6 times, leading the Canucks to one Stanley cup final which they lost in 7 games to the Boston Bruins in 2011. Unfortunately for Luongo, that game 7 was a disaster for the Canucks as they lost it 4-0 in Vancouver. While Luongo only faced 20 shots, it was a bit harsh to hang the loss on him considering the Vancouver outfit didn't even manage to score a single goal. In the end, Luongo will have taken part in 5 all star games and won both the Jennings trophy and the Messier Leadership award once. Collectively, he captured the President's trophy twice and the Clarence Campbell bowl once. On the international front, his cupboard is well stocked with two olympic gold medals, two gold medals from the World Championships, one silver one and one goal medal from the World Cup.
His career was more than numbers though and I get the sense that his jersey was retired not only because of his performance on the ice but also because of how involved he was in his community. I mean who doesn't remember his speech after the Parkland mass shooting?
On top of that, I'll add that he is without a doubt one of the best follow on Twitter, his @strombone1 account is a must if you like to laugh:
You know the boys have confidence in your goaltending skills when 3 guys line up to block a shot.....🚨🥅🚨 pic.twitter.com/Q5QfxrDnsm
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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