The Florida Panthers came up short in a tough 3-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at Amerant Bank Arena, missing out on needed points in the process.
A hooking penalty on A.J. Greer set the stage for the first Buffalo goal with 2:12 left in the first. Alex Tuch was given enough space to take a slick little backhand dish from Ryan McLeod and fire it above Daniil Tarasov’s right shoulder from the slot. The second assist went to defenseman Bo Byram.
Florida would need just six seconds to take advantage of a hooking call on Michael Kesselring to even the tilt 13:51 into second. Following the ensuing draw in the left circle, Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett touched the puck before Matthew Tkachuk took possession and skated in on Alex Lyon, sending a beautiful shot into the top of the net from tight quarters.
The Sabres broke the tie at 11:38 of the third, when Beck Malenstyn’s blast from the left point eluded Tarasov with traffic in front. Tarasov lobbied for an interference call as Mattias Samuelsson’s stick brushed his glove, but the goal stood with Josh Norris and Noah Ostlund getting the helpers.
Peyton Krebs made it a two-goal game with an empty-netter from Tage Thomson and Tuch with 1:17 remaining in regulation.
The Cats would pull Tarasov a second time and halve the deficit when Bennett’s shot got through Lyon and Rasmus Dahlin’s attempt to clear the crease struck the goalie and put the puck in.
Unfortunately, the Cats only had 35 seconds left to work with and they would fail to come up with the equalizer, leaving them a paltry 4-8-1 in their last 13 games at home.
Lyon (28 saves) won the goalie duel against a fantastic Tarasov, who stopped 36 of 38 shots to give his team a chance to get a point or two. The Panthers just couldn’t finish their chances to grab the lead. The Cats remain eight points behind the Boston Bruins, and have now played one more game. No bueno.
The Five Hole
- After bagging the final ENG in Friday’s win over Toronto, Matthew Tkachuk’s second period marker gave him goals in back-to-back games for the first time this season. Tkachuk is up to ten points in 12 games played.
- Brad Marchand’s primary assist on Tkachuk’s goal was his 69th career point against the Sabres – his most against any team. Marchand registered four shots on goal, one less than Tkachuk’s team-high five.
- Sam Bennett’s tally was his 20th goal and 45th point of the season. The goal put Bennett at the 20-plateau for the third straight season. He is one assist, five goals and six points away from matching his career-highs in those categories with 23 games left on the slate.
- Gustav Forsling logged 23:51 of ice time and prevented two goals in the second period, laying out to deny a crossing pass from reaching Mattias Samuelsson and blocking Tage Thompson’s shot at an open net. Forsling finished with three shots, three blocks and an even rating.
- Tough night for Carter Verhaeghe, who failed to register a shot on Alex Lyon and was on the ice for both of Buffalo’s even-strength goals.
Stat Card
