Matthew Tkachuk assisted on two goals and added an empty-net marker and Sergei Bobrovsky made 29 saves to lead the Florida Panthers to a 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings at Amerant Bank Arena.
A strong forecheck enabled the Cats to open the scoring 4:55 into the first period. After collecting the puck at the left point, Dmitry Kulikov passed to Tkachuk in front and he drew both defensemen to him before spinning and setting up Sam Bennett. With Darcy Kuemper selling out low, Bennett smacked a shot of the keeper’s leg pad which ramped up into the net.
Following a scoreless second period that saw Bobrovsky stop ten shots and Kuemper nine, a couple of Los Angeles penalties put the Panthers in a highly-advantageous position early in the third.
With just nine seconds of 5-on-3 time to work with, Aleksander Barkov won an offensive draw in the left circle. Sam Reinhart collected and dropped to Tkachuk, whose subsequent shot looked like it had Kuemper beat, but struck the shin of defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov. The puck came off the end boards to Barkov, who steered it into the net at the 4:43 mark for his first goal of 2025. The last time the captain lit the lamp was on December 30, against the New York Rangers.
The Cats clamped down on the Kings the rest of the way and Tkachuk dotted the “i” in win with an empty-netter with 1:12 left on the clock from just outside the center line with the assists going to Eetu Luostarinen and Aaron Ekblad.
On night that saw the Maple Leafs fall to the Wild, the Panthers took an early lead and worked hard the rest of the way to overcome another stingy performance from Kuemper, who made 36 saves – 19 in the first period, and the Kings, who always give the Cats a tough time. The Panthers find themselves back in first place with a couple of days off before they host the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday afternoon.
Baubles & Bits
- First Star Sergei Bobrovsky posted his second shutout of the season and became just the second Panthers goalie to whitewash the Kings. The only other was John Vanbiesbrouck, who blanked Los Angeles back on January 4, 1997.
- After enduring a lengthy scoring slump, Matthew Tkachuk has produced two three-point outings in his last three games. Tkachuk now has 47 points in 47 games played.
- Sam Bennett delivered a strong performance for the Cats. Bennett scored for the third time in the last five games and finished with game-highs in shots (8) and hits (6).
- Drew Doughty made his season debut for the Kings. Doughty registered three shots on goal and was credited with one hit in 23:51 of ice time.
- Dmitry Kulikov became the 135th defenseman in NHL history to reach 1,000 games. Kulikov had an assist, a shot on goal and a block on his milestone night.
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