It was a big night in Motor City for Florida on Thursday. Not only did Bob shut out the Wings 2-0, but he played in his 650th NHL game. What’s more, captain Alexander Barkov played game 672 as a Panther — the most games played in a Cats’ sweater in team history.
Congrats, fellas!
Yep, it was a nice bounce-back win after that tough OT loss in Boston, but at this point you almost have to just laugh at the inability of the PP (or you’ll cry). Actually, both Florida and Detroit went 0/5 on the man advantage. That’s crazy…it’s like both teams didn’t want to score when given that many opportunities!
A key takeaway from Thursday night was Florida limiting Detroit to just 22 shots. I attribute a big part of this to their face-off dominance. The Panthers went 39/59 (66%) at the dot, allowing them to control the game in all three zones.
The Second City
Florida will finish off their three-game road trip tonight in Chicago when they take on the rebuilding Blackhawks.
The Hawks are 3-6-0. Despite their record, they have been playing some pretty good hockey, consistently hanging around and staying in games — outside of the 8-1 blow out blip in Arizona.
Head coach Luke Richardson has this Chicago team trending in the right direction. With a healthy mix of veterans like Folgino, Hall, Perry, etc., and phenom prodigy Connor Bedard, the Blackhawks are supported by some surprisingly good goaltending thus far. Don’t forget that this is the team that ended Vegas’ seven-game undefeated streak…they’re not competing for anything right now, but they’re making themselves difficult to play against.
If you have been under a rock and not heard the Connor Bedard hype, I encourage you to watch him closely tonight because he is the real deal. #98 in the Hawks sweater is a special talent. Equipped with vision, high-end playmaking ability, and a wicked shot, he is a lot of fun to watch.
With Bennett listed as week-to-week, Jameson Olive reports the below as the practice lines in Chicago:
Monty/Forsling $$$
Numerous sources have reported that the Panthers are working on deals to extend both Montour and Forsling. Good moves if both guys can keep up the play they have showed us.
_____________________________
Go Panthers!
Florida Panthers Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»