A Centennial Blast!
It was one of those open, high scoring and thrilling games – that swung first one way, then the other, all throughout the 65 minutes of play. When the smoke cleared, it was Montreal fans that could continue to celebrate after scoring on the very last of six penalty shots. Ten goals and a shootout – who could ask for more!?
Well, Florida fans and players might be excused for doing just that.
After a hopelessly poor second period showing Panthers looked damned. The Centennial Montreal curse seemed to be in effect. It was a period in which the Floridians lost a two goal lead coming in to the period and ended up with a two goal deficit; going in to the third. But, in the third period the Cats awoke from the catnap and played that aggressive, fore checking game from the first period – to great outcome again. With the claws out, it looked increasingly likely that the South Florida team would recover and draw level. The hero of the day turned out to be Radek Dvorak who looked lively all night and now scored two goals in the third, including the tying 5-5 goal – with less than a minute left on the clock.
It was no less than the Panthers deserved. Having dominated for 40 minutes out of the sixty, one might indeed be excused for asking for both points and not just one. Certainly it continued to look good in the five minutes of overtime that followed and with just seconds on the clock it looked like Keith Ballard would clinch the deserved winner. But, it was not to be. His one on one wrist shot – hit the post and in the ensuing shootout the Cats again proved to lack the necessary skill to pull a win out of the hat.
This was a game that went all the way down to the wire, but, as engaging as it was, it was a game filled by mistakes and at times wayward positioning from both teams. Not a coach’s favorite type of game in other words, although the entertainment value was definitely 100 percent.
The momentum gained from the previous day’s 6-1 win against the Penguins, helped the precariously fragile levels of Panther confidence to rise. It showed clearly in the first period, in which the Cats dominated. And despite a disastrous performance in the second period, there was still enough left in the tank for a spectacular comeback in the third.
The important thing here is to underline the positives and not dwell too much on the negative, to try and keep that momentum going – all the way through an important Toronto game tomorrow. That game will decide whether or not the road trip was a successful one; or merely an outing down a side road of wasted opportunities.
This was a game I enjoyed watching. Yes, that second period was heatbreaking if you’re a Florida Panthers fan, but overall, the game proved that the Cats have what it takes, if they put their heart into it and play as a team!
Dvorak deserves a star of the game (not sure he got one!) as his speed was brilliant, and with pretty, pretty goals!
Now let’s hope to keep the momentum going against the Toronto Maple Leafs!!!!! Go Cats Go!!
Indeed, Panthers can do it when the apply themselves 100 percent, and tonights game might be key for a successful playoff tilt. Toronto are a team Panthers can beat and need to beat if we want to be in the race. Go Cats!!
As for Dvorak he was immense, definitely the best Panther player on the ice, let’s hope he can keep it up! We need scoring from all forwards, as we lack a Jokinen type player this year, Dvorak and his likes need to step up – and so far so good when it comes to diverse scoring – let’s just hope Horton and his likes can step up their games equally…