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Panthers fire on all cylinders in 5-0 rout of Jets

Nov 16, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) celebrates with defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) and defenseman Gustav Forsling (42) after scoring a short-handed goal against the Winnipeg Jets during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The Florida Panthers bounced back from back-to-back losses to the New Jersey Devils by closing out its five-game homestand with a dominating 5-0 victory over the league-leading Winninpeg Jets.

Aleksander Barkov scored shorthanded and added two assists; team scoring leader Sam Reinhart collected three helpers; and Sergei Bobrovksy (27 saves) posted his first shutout of the season as the defending Stanley Cup champions rolled over the best team in the Western Conference.

Florida carried the majority of the play in the first period and finally took the lead with 5:01 left in the frame when Mackie Samoskevich checked Josh Morrissey, causing a turnover. Tomas Nosek moved the puck to A.J. Greer, who fed Gustav Forsling and his pass pinballed in off Samoskevich after he wisely got to the front of the net.

Collecting the puck behind his own goal, a determined Sam Bennett went end to end on a rush, putting a low backhand on Connor Hellebucyk that created a juicy rebound for Nate Schmidt to wrist in from the left faceoff dot 2:07 into the second. Reinhart drew the secondary assist by breaking up Gabriel Vilardi’s pass attempt deep in Florida’s end.

Shortly after Bobrovsky denied Mark Scheifele on a partial breakaway, Evan Rodrigues nudged home a rebound after Barkov first deflected Aaron Ekblad’s shot from the right point down in the slot and then regathered the puck and fired a shot along the ice that Hellebuyck was able to stop with his right leg. Rodrigues’ fourth in the last seven games made it 3-0 Cats at the 12:21 mark.

With an assist in his back pocket, Barkov got his goal 2:15 later with Ekblad off for cross-checking. After combining with Forsling to force a turnover in the defensive zone, Barkov and Reinhart broke out 2-on-1 against Morrissey. Barkov crossed to Reinhart, and then deftly swept in the rebound on his backhand after Reinhart’s shot caught the far post.

Dmitry Kulikov would join Samoskevich and Schmidt in the three-goal club 3:23 into the third when he steered in a back-door pass from Barkov, who took the defenseman’s position at the right point after exhanging passes with Reinhart with the teams skating 4-on-4.

Coming after consecutive losses to the Devils, Florida excellent all-around effort replenished the good vibes gathered during the seven-game winning streak and gave head coach Paul Maurice his first victory over the Jets since he left that franchise in 2021. The two teams will conclude the season-series Tuesday night at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg.

Pitch & Yaw

  • After getting blanked 3-0 by the Jets at Amerant Bank Arena in the last meeting between the two teams, the Panthers returned the favor, becoming the first team to shut out the Jets since March 24, 2024.
  • Sam Reinhart’s first assist on ex-Jet Nate Schmidt’s goal extended his point streak to ten games. Reinhart has racked up sixteen points (8G/8A) during the run and is third in the league in scoring with 28 points.
  • Aleksander Barkov has registered at least one assist in all eight games of his point streak. Barkov is up to 13 career shorthanded goals. He is three behind Radek Dvorak, who holds the franchise record.
  •  Sergei Bobrovsky posted his 45th NHL shutout and joined Roberto Luongo as one of two goalies to win 150 games as a member of the Panthers.
  • Nikolaj Ehlers was the most effective of the Jets, finishing with a game-high five shots on goal.

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