Following a downright dreadful first period by just about everyone in red, the Florida Panthers - led in part by Mikael Samuelsson's two assists - began to make life rather hairy for the Devils, who were forced to play hang-on hockey over the final forty minutes. A loss for the Cats, yes, but the complete turnaround in attitude and confidence was startling, as were the man-advantage (1-for-2) and penalty kill (5-for-6) units. Unsung hero? Marcel Goc (1A) and his 11 faceoff wins in 14 attempts; no player on either club came close to his .786 winning percentage (for those curious, Stephen Weiss was 5-for-10). Back at it tomorrow.

RECAPS: Litter Box Cats * SB Nation Florida * In Lou We Trust

Friday's other NHL Playoff action

• (5) PHI over (4) PIT, 8-5: got to see these numbers for yourself; Flyers lead series 2-0
• (5) DET over (4) NSH, 3-2 (REG): Wings with 17 total SOG; series tied at 1
• (8) LA over (1) VAN, 4-2: two more goals by Dustin Brown gives Kings 2-0 series lead

Coming up today

• (7) Washington at (2) Boston, 3 p.m. (NBC): Broons lead series 1-0
• (8) Ottawa at (1) NY Rangers, 7 p.m. (NBC-SN): Rags lead series 1-0
• (7) San Jose at (2) St. Louis, 7:30 p.m. (CNBC): Sharks lead series 1-0
• (6) Chicago at (3) Phoenix, 10 p.m. (NBC-SN): Coyotes lead series 1-0

Looking ahead

• Cats close out their series-opening homestand Sunday at 7:30 (NBC-SN, FS-FLA, MSG+); LBC Game Thread goes live one hour earlier.
• Need seats, be they in Sunrise or Newark? Check out TiqIQ for the best deals in all sections and price ranges.
• Any Panthers fans happen to be going to games three and four at Prudential Center? We'd like to assist in hooking folks up before/after the events, so let us know if you're interested in getting a group together
• Feel free to use this Caterwaul as a Game Thread for the Caps/Bruins tilt; we'll have another posted up at 7 for the later games. Have a great Saturday!