The Florida Panthers held off the Dallas Stars to finish its four-game homestand on a high note by posting a 4-3 victory, thanks to Brad Marchand’s thrilling shootout goal.
Following a scoreless first period, Marchand opened the scoring 1:48 into the second. After Anton Lundell intercepted Mikko Rantanen’s crossing he fed Eetu Luostarinen as the Cats went the other way. Luostarinen crossed to Marchand and he fired a wrister by Casey DeSmith’s glove from the left circle.
Sam Reinhart put the Panthers up by two 2:14 later. Evan Rodrigues took possession of a loose puck high in the offensive zone and sent a shot towards the cage that Reinhart tipped off the left post. Carter Verhaeghe partially fanned and missed wide with his follow-up. The puck caromed off the end boards to Reinhart and he was able to beat DeSmith off the leg pad from an extreme angle for his 300th career goal.
The Stars would take full-advantage of a double-minor for high-sticking on Seth Jones to even the score with a pair of power-play goals just 14 seconds apart.
Dallas countered after Aaron Ekblad missed a golden shorthanded chance with Rantanen carrying from deep in his own end before gaining the Florida line and sliding a backhand pass to Sam Steel. Steel fended off Jeff Petry and slung a crossing pass circle-to-circle to a open-wide Wyatt Johnston, who smacked the puck past Bobrovsky at the 14:47 mark.
Jones’ victim, Justin Hryckowian would tie the tilt when he deflected in Thomas Harley’s shot after Steel won the puck along the left boards and fed the defenseman near the blue line. Hryckowian’s first NHL goal came seconds after Marchand almost picked off a pass from Mavrik Bourque that would’ve resulted in a breakaway.
The Panthers continued to be the better team 5-on-5 and they finally retook the lead 12:26 into the third on a much-needed greasy goal from Sam Bennett.
A crisp series of passes as the Cats entered the zone put the puck on the stick of Mackie Samoskevich. The second-year man sent Gustav Forsling into open space with a backhand. Forsling gathered the puck and sent it into the lower slot, looking for Bennett. Johnston got a piece of the pass, causing it to hit Bennett in the leg before he was able to swipe it home for his second of the season.
Rantanen would extend the Stars’ point streak to six games when he lit the lamp with 2:41 remaining on the clock. After taking a pass from Jason Robertson, Steel earned his third assist of the night when he sent the puck down low to Rantanen, who deftly deflected it in while facing away from the net.
Bobrovksy, who was only tested 17 times in regulation, had to make five saves to lug the Cats through overtime and into the shootout.
The first two rounds saw Lundell, Johnston, Reinhart and Tyler Seguin fail to convert. In the top of the third, Marchand charged to the net, opening up DeSmith pads before finishing on the forehand. Rantanen’s extension bid clanged off the post, giving the Panthers their sixth win of the campaign.
Kudos to the Panthers for pulling out a full two points in what was an enthralling back-and-forth bout against a difficult Dallas squad. Marchand’s heroics made for a winning homestand (2-1-1) and gave the Cats points in three-straight games. Florida’s shot suppression continued to be top-notch as they held the opposition to 17 shots on goal in regulation for a third-straight game. The Cats will hit the road on a four-game trip west that sees stops in Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose and Las Vegas.
The Five Hole
- Brad Marchand picked right up where he left off, opening and closing the scoring to earn First Star honors. In addition to collecting his team-leading 12th point, Marchand was credited with two hits in 17:49 of ice time.
- Sam Reinhart’s milestone marker gave him goals in four-straight games and tied him with Marchand for the team lead with six. Both players scored on their only shot on goal of the game.
- Sergei Bobrovsky (19 saves) posted his sixth win of the season and upped his all-time record against Dallas to 20-2-2.
- Sam Bennett’s goal ended a seven-game drought. It was his first marker since October 13, when he scored in a 5-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.
- Donovan Sebrango went +2 in his Panthers debut and registered two shots, a hit and a block in 15:56 TOI. It was Sebrango’s fifth game in the NHL.
Stat Card
