On Tuesday night, the Florida Panthers lost 7-3 to the New Jersey Devils. Florida has now lost two in a row to fall to a 10-2-1 record. Despite the two-game losing streak, the Panthers remain first in the Atlantic division. With the win, New Jersey improves to 6-3-2 on the fringe of a playoff spot.
Game Recap
Quickly to begin the game, the Devils found the scoresheet with a Holtz penalty 50 seconds in. After missing four games to injury, Sam Bennett opened the game four minutes in with a Florida goal. Later in the first, Andreas Johnsson tied the game at one, on a power play. Roughly two minutes later, Nico Hischier scored for the Devils, making the game 2-1. At the end of the first, New Jersey led both in shots and goals.
During the intermission, Florida interim head coach, Andrew Brunette, settled the team down and got them going again. Twenty seconds into the middle frame, Aleksander Barkov took sole possession of the franchise record for most goals. With this momentum, Owen Tippett scored a tip-in goal to give the Panthers a 3-2 lead. Only 29 seconds later, Andreas Johnsson tallied another goal for New Jersey to tie the game at three. All within the first two minutes of the second period, three goals were scored. To end the period, PK Subban scored his first of the season to regain a Devils lead, now at 4-3.
Three minutes into the third, Sam Bennett took a tripping penalty. On the power play, Alexander Holtz assisted a Pavel Zacha goal; this was Holtz’s first career NHL point. Less than thirty seconds later, Ty Smith added another to the Devils tally, giving them a 6-3 lead. Florida received another penalty halfway through the period, but they were able to kill it. In an attempt to drag the Panthers back into the game, Brunette pulled Spencer Knight. Jimmy Vesey capitalized on the empty net, and scored the point after to make the game 7-3 New Jersey.
Takeaways/Notes
- Spencer Knight has now had his two career-worst games by save percentage in the last two games.
- Aleksander Barkov has now scored eight goals within the first 25 seconds of a period in his career. Four active players have done so more times: Sidney Crosby (11), Jonathan Toews (10), Alex Ovechkin (9), and Joe Thornton (9).
- Aleksander Barkov has the most goals in Florida Panthers franchise history. With 189 goals, Barkov passed former record holder and fellow Finn Olli Jokinen (188).
- Lucas Carlsson made his Panthers debut on Tuesday night. Acquired alongside Lucas Wallmark in April, Carlsson has spent all of his time as part of the Florida organization in the AHL before Tuesday night.
Up Next
Florida will play game three of a four-game road trip in Pittsburgh on Thursday night. Puck drop between the Penguins and Panthers is scheduled for 7:00 PM EST.