The Florida Panthers battled it out with the Blackhawks, Tuesday night, for a 5-4 overtime win. Although they won, Bobrovsky’s performance was poor. A solid start for the Panthers was later reversed into a comeback for the Blackhawks. However, Frank Vatrano sealed the deal for Florida in overtime to improve their record to 2-0-0.
Flow of the Game
A quick pace game, featuring the Blackhawks and Panthers, gave for an exciting bout. The Panthers were in control for the first minute, when the Blackhawks began to pick up the pace for the next three. Soon after that, a Carter Verhaeghe shot that hit the post brought the game back into the Panthers control. With 6:35 remaining in the first, Verheaghe was all alone in front of the net for a backhand goal on rookie goalie Kevin Lankinen. Around 2 minutes later, Hornqvist and the Panthers put another by Lankinen. However, to finish the period Kubalik ripped 3 slap shots on net, with one eventually trickling in.
The Blackhawks were in high spirits heading into the second period, looking for their first win of the season. Verhaeghe, however, made sure to put a stop to that with a goal 2:45 into the 2nd. With this newfound two goal deficit, the Blackhawks reeled in control once more. Bang, bang, bang, the Blackhawks wrapped up the period with 2 goals and a close chance on a penalty shot. The Blackhawks were once again feeling good heading into the intermission with momentum. The score was now 3-3 after a dominant 2nd period.
Heading into the 3rd, both teams were locked at 3 and looking for a chance to take the lead. That is exactly what Philipp Kurashev did for Chicago, scoring his first NHL goal. Not only did this put Chicago in the lead, but it gave the Panthers fuel. Yandle fired a shot from the point on the power play, and it was tipped in by Hornqvist for the goal. Back and forth was the name of the game to end regulation.
The fast pace game of 3v3 overtime began as Chicago and Florida ice again exchanged shots. It was constant 2 on 1’s with both goalies coming up big to extend the game. Mackenzie Weegar slowed the pace down enough for the Panthers to regroup. On a 3v3 opportunity, the puck made its way across the ice onto Vatrano’s stick. Vatrano took the wide open back door opportunity and shot the puck into an open net for the win.
Panthers Takeaways
This game provided many insights as to how this season might go. Keep in mind, that we are only two games into the season. Letting in 4 goals for a .882 SV% was certainly a worrying stat for Bobrovsky, as fans and management alike are hoping he can have a bounce back season. On the other hand, Verheaghe had 2 important goals, which could help to fill the gap Hoffman left behind, throughout the season. A good 2-0 start will build up momentum going into the next set of games vs. Carolina.