The goal gave Bennett his second consecutive 25-goal season.
“They know each other’s game and will at least be able to move the agenda forward for us,” head coach Paul Maurice said of the team of Bennett, Tkachuk and Verhaeghe. “Top-end players have to perform every night in this league, and it makes sense when we’re short-staffed.”
But just 2:59 later, Aatu Rati scored, giving the Canucks a 4-2 lead at 14:27.
“We left our players in front of our net three times,” Maurice said of the unusual breakdown. “I don’t remember ever seeing anything like that. That being said, I thought their players (goaltenders) played well. We had some action near the net, but we just couldn’t make it.”
As the Panthers tried to close the gap in the third period, Lankinen came up with some key stops for the Canucks, including shutting the door on a couple of shots from near the goal line.
Lankinen finished with 21 saves, improving his career record to 8-3-2 against the Panthers.
In Florida’s net, Bobrovsky, playing in his 800th NHL game, made 17 saves.
“This is my life,” Bobrovsky said. He is the 18th goaltender in NHL history to reach that mark. “I love everything about it. I love the preparation. I love the emotions and emotions during the game. Sometimes you get emotional like tonight and it’s tough, but you wake up in the morning and try to work hard to get out of this situation and focus on your net shots and build a good wave. There are ups and downs, but it’s fun. It’s still in me. I’m still a little kid that loves the game.”
With 5:35 remaining, Drew O’Connor scored from above the blue paint to make it 5-2.
they said it
“I liked Nolan Foote. I thought he was good. He had four shots on target. He had a lot of hits. That didn’t bother me at all.” – Paul Maurice talks about Nolan Foote’s debut in Florida
“We had some setbacks along the way, but we just tried to put ourselves in enough position to really make hits. As a defenseman, there’s a lot of contact in the game, and the collarbone is a big part of that.” – Seth Jones on recovery from collarbone fracture
“I think it was a battle in front of the net. They scored three points in front of our net. It was tough. I’m glad Georgie (Seth Jones) is back. He’s a big part of our team.” – Sergei Bobrovsky talks about tonight’s loss
cat statistics
– Sam Bennett has scored six goals in his last eight games.
– Matthew Tkachuk has scored multiple points in three of his last five games.
– Mike Benning blocked a team-high three shots.
– Luke Kunin hit 7 of 11 (63.6%) from the faceoff circle.
-Macky Samoskevic had a team-high four hits.
-The Panthers led 53-30 on 5-on-5 shot attempts.
– Tomas Nosek skated in the 500th game of his NHL career.
What’s next?
Grab some popcorn.
The Panthers, meeting for a rematch of the 2024 and 2025 Stanley Cup Finals, will take on the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET at Rogers Place.
The official watch party will be held at Jeronimos in Davie.
Click here for more information.
