After their big win in Toronto last night, the Cats seemed to have righted themselves after what I can only call a post-Christmas hangover.  The loss to the Islanders may have been the breaking point for this combination of Panther-veterans and new comers whose common goal has been simply to make the playoffs.  Since that game the Panthers have shown improvement in many areas and that is what we are going to focus on.

SHOTS ON GOAL

The Cats have 93 shots on goal in their last 3 games.  That’s 31 shots/game and a shooting percentage of 16%  (meaning one in every 8.4 shots has been a goal).  The shots have been good shots too, not just the outside wristers the Cats had a tendency of firing throughout December.  Now they are moving much better without the puck, especially in the offensive zone. 

GOALS

The 15 goals scored in their last 3 games in the highest goal output of any 3-game period this season.  They aren’t cheapies either, most of the goals coming from the high-scoring areas in and around the crease and the slot area.  The Panthers are getting much better at gaining the offensive zone with possession and using their speedier players (Booth, Dvorak, Zednik) to tie up defenseman and get the puck when playing the dump-n-chase.

Also to note, the Panthers have accumulated 40 points in the 3 games.  While I wish that meant points in the standings, its just the amount of points Panther players have been credited with.  15 goals mean a possibility of 45 points (you can get as many as 3 points for each goal; 1 goal 2 assists).  The Cats are moving the puck extremely well, especially in the offensive zone, and not just aimless cycling in the corners as we have seen in years past in Jacques Martin’s system.  The puck is moving around the ends and through the middle, with the openings in the D being caused by the constant movement of the Panthers players.

POWER PLAY

In what has been the Achilles Heal of the Cats offense, their power play has come to life of late, and it all comes back to moving without the puck.  The only power play movement that Panthers players have shown has been their D switching sides, but that is now a thing of the past.  I can’t stress enough how important it is for the players without the puck to be moving, and finally the Panthers seem to be getting it.  They are giving each other options and outlets, all while getting open and stretching out the opposition. 

The power play, a mere 15% success rate on the year has been much more lethal of late, scoring on 4/17 power plays, good for a 23.5% success rate which is up there with the best teams in the league.  Assuming that the Cats keep up their great playing and positioning, these numbers should be more consistent and the Power Play success, and team’s overall success, should keep growing.