Panthers' Matthias scores two, Vokoun and Florida defense clamp Canadiens 2-1
by Donny Rivette on Jan 26, 2010 10:47 PM EST
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Was it the home or road club which walked away victorious?
Part-time Panthers forward Shawn Matthias has no illusions about the answer: his two-goal performance - the first of his NHL career - not only evened up the score for Florida on a gorgeous penalty shot but included a game winner, paving the way for a come-from-behind Cats road home win.
The victory also marked ex-Florida GM Jacques Martin's first loss to his former club. So there's that.
Tomas Vokoun was stoic - only facing 17 shots this time around; a tribute to his defenders - and only beaten by a Tomas Plekanec power play goal at 18:47 of the second period. Thus ended the 202+ minute home shutout streak, but not the netminder's determination: he only got better.
On to the third, and in less than nine minutes from goal-to-goal Matthias performed an extreme makeover on his previously questionable potential; coming in to the game with three goals in 25 games as a Panther this season, the 2006 second round pick earned a helluva lotta brownie points in an enormous win.
Oh, and he only logged 8:40 on the ice.
Notes: Remarkably, four Cats had 4 SOG: Matthias, Michael Frolik, Cory Stillman, and Rostislav Olesz. Michal Repik - recalled early Tuesday from Rochester - and Dominic Moore assisted on Matty's second goal. Announced attendance: 17,104. Steven Reinprecht - injured in Saturday's victory over Toronto - returned to the Florida lineup, logging 15:45. This was coach Peter DeBoer's first win over Canadiens' bench boss Jacques Martin, who hired him for the Florida position in 2008.
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i attended tonight because i expected the overwhelming amount of Habs fans. they confirmed that there are no ice dancers in Montreal.
what a great shot by Matthias to prove my normally pessimistic self wrong. never did i think the “kid with great potential” would convert his first chance on a penalty shot, in the third period, on his “home” ice and needing the goal to tie the game. boy am i glad he was wrong.
it feels great to send the Habs fans home unhappy, but even better to be leaving the BAC on a regular basis feeling happy. points in 8 of the last 9 games, 4 wins in a row at home. 2-0 without Horton, 7 left til the break. keep it rolling boys!
also, watching the defense tonight was a clinic in getting in front of the puck. it’s so great to see these guys throwing their bodies and helping their goalie maintain this stellar play.
by alterego6487 on Jan 26, 2010 11:43 PM EST up reply actions
Mike Kitchen’s preachings are taking hold, evidently. Took a while (one year, two years, three…) but over the past several weeks his philosophies have merged solidly with DeBoer’s overall strategy.
Is it enough to make The Jump? Might take a ridiculous amount of help, given Florida’s lack of playoff-tested troops, but Coach Pete’s got some phenomenal moments on his resume. Enough to grab eighth or better?
BarterTown’s open.
by Donny Rivette on Jan 27, 2010 12:22 AM EST up reply actions
It was a great game from a strategy angle. Must’ve been quite the walk out of the main concourse!
by Donny Rivette on Jan 27, 2010 12:23 AM EST up reply actions
Repik and Matthias were two of our best forwards, they better get some real ice time to get the opportunity to prove themselves before Booth comes back. I can think of certain guy named Kamil who could be sent down instead of one of the rookies.
he had a tough night. Er, a tough moment, anyway.
by Donny Rivette on Jan 27, 2010 12:36 AM EST up reply actions
Is it just me or would Weiss and Frolik be better served with a faster winger instead of Stillman? Maybe Rusty or D-vo? It just seemed that they lacked their usual pop.
by IceCat69 on Jan 27, 2010 12:46 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Stiller isn’t getting any faster. Leon is getting no larger.
by Donny Rivette on Jan 27, 2010 12:54 AM EST up reply actions
Olesz isn’t must faster than Stillman, but he still might be a better fit on that line. The one thing I’ll stay for Stillman is that as slow as he is, his positioning is good. He’s good at getting himself in the right place, but he’s never going to be able to make a breakaway. At least he’s smart enough to make sure if he’s in that position that he’s got someone to pass to.
Weiss looks lost without Horton or Booth out there. Guy needs to shoot more. Take a shot and hope Frolik gets into position to grab a rebound. Better than a pass to no one.
Florida Panthers: Giving the league a punching bag since 2000.
I want to give Radek “Barky” Dvorak a big thumbs up for his play last night — he was busting his butt and did a lot to break up the few plays the Habs managed. His seems to have finally recovered from his injury earlier this season.
I just looked at the boxscore for last night’s game. Matthias got less than eight minutes of ice time, but made the most of it. One reason why DeBoer may not like to put Shawn out — he lost all three faceoffs he took.
Thanks Bill; I was actually referring to the total he came into this one with.
by Donny Rivette on Jan 27, 2010 11:07 AM EST up reply actions
I'll also point out
Matthias has 7 goals in exactly 46 NHL games. He’s twice scored two goals in a game. That’s a pace for 13 goals on the year and he’s 21 years old. Disappointing isn’t a label I’d use for him. Mishandled and incompetent might be the terms for the handling of Matthias by Panther management and Peter DeBoer. Tell me why they play Kreps, 5 goals in his last 120 games instead of Matthias?
Nice game by matthias in the little bit of ice time he had. Also, he and Repik as well as McArdle played very well, and deserve more ice time. 4th line minutes are not serving their purpose, but for the moment they are taking advantage of their time.
As for Stillman, I would agree he is slow, but also agree he’s positionally sound. However, until Horton comes back, there needs to be a faster winger on that line. Put Repik there, move Stimman to the second line where he and Rhino had some chemistry that apparently has been lost.
I think Repik would respond well
I agree. I’d like to see him put Repik out with Frolik and Weiss. If he’s concerned about that being his “first line”, he can always play the Reinprecht-Stillman-Whomever line more. Weiss will get the extra ice time on special teams anyway, so it’s not like he’s getting demoted.
Weiss plays better with a couple of fast skaters out there, which is part of why he plays so well with Booth. Putting him out there with Stillman just doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Florida Panthers: Giving the league a punching bag since 2000.
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| GP | W | L | OTL | PT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Washington
|
53 | 28 | 21 | 4 | 60 |
|
Florida
|
52 | 24 | 17 | 11 | 59 |
|
Winnipeg
|
55 | 25 | 24 | 6 | 56 |
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Tampa Bay
|
52 | 23 | 24 | 5 | 51 |
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Carolina
|
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(updated 2.9.2012 at 9:25 AM EST)
Eastern Standings
| GP | W-L-OT | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|
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New York Rangers
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51 | 33-13-5 | 71 |
|
Boston Bruins
|
52 | 33-17-2 | 68 |
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Washington Capitals
|
53 | 28-21-4 | 60 |
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Philadelphia Flyers
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New Jersey Devils
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53 | 31-19-3 | 65 |
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Pittsburgh Penguins
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54 | 30-19-5 | 65 |
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Toronto Maple Leafs
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Ottawa Senators
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56 | 27-22-7 | 61 |
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Florida Panthers
|
52 | 24-17-11 | 59 |
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Winnipeg Jets
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55 | 25-24-6 | 56 |
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New York Islanders
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52 | 22-22-8 | 52 |
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Buffalo Sabres
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53 | 23-24-6 | 52 |
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Tampa Bay Lightning
|
52 | 23-24-5 | 51 |
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Montreal Canadiens
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54 | 21-24-9 | 51 |
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Carolina Hurricanes
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