The Florida Panthers got a huge road win on Monday night, defeating the first place Tampa Bay Lightning 6-4. After the big win, Florida improves to 9-2-2 (20 points), while Tampa Bay sits at 10-3-1 (21 points).
Game Recap:
The game started out very fast, with Steven Stamkos scoring the first goal of the game (13:36). Stamkos was back in the lineup after a false positive coronavirus test, forcing the captain to miss both games in South Florida. Jonathan Huberdeau answered right back for the Panthers 92 seconds later to tie it. The rest of the period remained scoreless, even though Aleksander Barkov had a very close call towards the end of the 1st. The 2nd period was a much different story, with 7 combined goals scored in 15 minutes, including a penalty shot by Frank Vatrano. Alexander Volkov for Tampa Bay had 2 goals, leading them in scoring on the night. The 3rd period had the game-clinching 6th goal by defenseman Anton Stralman.
Stats of the night:
Jonathan Huberdeau(FLA)- G, A
Aleksander Barkov(FLA)- G, A
Anton Stralman(FLA)- G, A
Anthony Duclair(FLA)- G
Frank Vatrano(FLA)- G
Owen Tippett(FLA)- G
Carter Verhaeghe(FLA)- 2 A
Eetu Luostarinen(FLA)- A
Chris Driedger(FLA)- W (4-1-1), 27/31 (.871 SPG)
Alexander Volkov(TB)- 2 G
Tyler Johnson(TB)- G
Steven Stamkos(TB)- G
Curtis McElhinney(TB)- L (1-1), 15/21 (.714 SPG)
Takeaways
The Florida Panthers dealt the Tampa Bay Lightning their first home loss of the season. Meanwhile, the Panthers won their first game in Tampa since 2016. Aleksander Barkov had two assists in the win, surpassing Olli Jokinen for second place all-time in franchise points. Jonathan Huberdeau also moved up on a Panthers list, passing Pavel Bure for sole possession of fourth in franchise history for goals (153). Even more interesting, Florida’s six goals are the most the club has scored in a game this season and the 21 shots on goal were their fewest in a game.
There’s A First For Everyone
The Florida Panthers made many great acquisitions in the 2020 offseason, but the biggest was Anthony Duclair, a speedy RW formerly with the Ottawa Senators. He scored his first goal as a Panther on Monday night, a magnificent wraparound shot. Owen Tippett and Anton Stralman also had their first goals of the season for the Panthers.
The Florida Panthers continue their road trip on Wednesday night against the Carolina Hurricanes.