Cats, Weiss thump Senators 4-3 in OT; Anderson stops 34

by Donny Rivette on Dec 9, 2008 8:29 AM EST

Panthers hero Stephen Weiss (or as WJNO's morning host referred to him: Stefan Weiss. Vomit.) banged home the game-winner; his first point in four games.

I had a tough time approaching this one. Two evenly matched squads in so many categories; neither appeared to have the clear upper hand before the first puck dropped.

That being the case, my money would have been on - surprise - Ottawa, if only because their top line was intact and present. Whether winning or not, the triumvirate of Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza, and Daniel Alfredsson (2G, 1A combined) is always a headache for the opposition. Good thing I resisted the urge to wager. And by the way: the Cats never had a lead.

The man with a pla...whooooa; I almost said it.

Coach DeBoer's Cats have been switching up lines on the fly, by necessity, due to injuries on the front end. This improvisational method has produced a remarkable record over the past eight games (5-1-2, 12P), and it speaks volumes about DeBoer's ability to organize, prepare, and react to adversity. And he's instilling those qualities in his team. Or something.

If you can find a cheaper starting goaltender...buy him.

Of course, all of that effort would likely be moot if not for the rise of His Majesty Craig the First. What more can be said? He's simply done it all. Where would the Panthers be without him?

Bouwmeester, The Beach, and Michal Repik's first NHL goal - in his first NHL game - closed out the scoring for Florida.

LITTER BOX LINERS

Sun-Sentinel: game recap
Miami Herald: game recap, notebook
Ottawa Sun: game recap
Ottawa Citizen: game recap, Bouwmeester profile
AP via NHL.com: game recap w/video & stats
And hey: look who made the "Frozen Moment"...

With a small bit of luck, we could begin to see a few of the wounded make their returns to the lineup over the next week on the western road swing. Is that a good thing, based on how the club is currently playing? I'll always take more scoring help, but it is an interesting situation.

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cheap goalies

NHL network showed the stat last night; Anderson is 5th in the league in GAA, in front of is Tim Thomas, the only sure starter, then Brian Boucher, Alex Auld and Josh Harding (backup in Minnesota, only has a handful of starts this year) and he is making $550,000 this year, way below any of the other named goalies.

*I think we should trade Voky for some offensive firepower and lock up Andy long term.*

by David Dwork on Dec 9, 2008 9:41 AM EST reply actions

I’m intensely hesitant to dump Vokoun, but I don’t pay his salary.

Andy may very well be The Guy, capable of carrying the load consistently better than T-Vo, but for the sake of history:

Remember when Nashville thought they could cheap out by trading Vokoun, relying on young backup Chris Mason, who had just come off of a stellar season (24-11-4, 5 SO) filling in for the injured T-Vo?

The following year, Mason slipped big (18-22-6, 4 SO). Granted, the Preds were being dismantled, but the numbers stand.

I’m saying at all that Andy isn’t capable of doing it. He’s winning. Play him. We’ll worry if we need to down the road.

The Litter Box: Your SBNation Florida Panthers Blogging Colossus

by Donny Rivette on Dec 9, 2008 10:34 AM EST up reply actions

Not so fast, my friend!

First off, love the new look site. 2nd, Anderson has been playing well, granted. But at times he looks completely and utterly befuddled. Vokoun will get his chance this week. You don’t think he knows where he stands (or sits) right now? These guys will do nothing but make each other play better. I was surprised DeBoer didn’t pull Andy after the 2nd last night. He was awful. The Ottawa announcers did everything short of laughing out loud at his “saves”. He was falling over before the Chris Kelly (I think) was even shooting on the first goal last night. He gets in the way more then makes saves. I expect Vokoun against Edmonton or Calgary to come out huge and make a claim for his job back. And Anderson hasn’t played in more then 20 games since 2003 or something. It’s starting to show. You can’t rely on him to all of a sudden jump into the starters role and play 60+ games a year. This team will need Vokoun more then ever come Feb\March. This team is winning playing DeBoer style hockey. Wait for the IR to clear out a little, get the offensive guys back in, and then see where we stand. I don’t think this team necessarily needs to go out and get that superstar kind of guy. He wouldn’t fit in this style of play.

by Stanley C. on Dec 9, 2008 11:27 AM EST reply actions

different opinions friend

I think its the other way around, I think Vokoun gets in the way more then making saves…Anderson is a much more technically sound goaltender and it shows in the saves he makes. The majority of his rebounds go to the corner or past the defense, where as Vokoun gives up many rebounds to the slot/back in front. If you exclude the 5-hole, an area I think we can agree both goalies have trouble with; Vokoun has goals that go ‘through’ him, not so much with Andy.

And in response to the Whale man, in the case of Chris Mason, he had no previous experience and no past numbers/history to merit being named a starting goaltender. It was a risk which had early benefits but saw a significant drop-off in play, a similar case to when Cam Ward 1st got started and won the Conn Smythe, but has fizzled out since. Anderson had 3 years as a backup in Chicago, 2 of those years with a save % over .900 and GAA under 3, and since coming to the Panthers has continued to put up solid consistent numbers. When looking at the better goalies in the NHL you see one common trend and its consistent numbers. Both Andy and Vokoun have been very consistent through their careers, Vokoun’s play has been struggling of late, and even towards the end of last season he was giving up a few ‘softies’ every week. Andy is younger and I see much more upside out of him.

We can always disagree as long as we are rooting for the Panthers then its allllll good!!!! LETS GO PANTHERS!!

by David Dwork on Dec 9, 2008 7:15 PM EST up reply actions