Roblogg’s Panthers Portal

With the upcoming Florida schedule brimming with top-opposition, this was a game the Panthers needed to win: Especially after losing that tight game to the Capitals on Sunday.

New Jersey entered the Bank Atlantic Center full of confidence after beating the best teams in the league over the weekend (Boston and San Jose) and winning 13 of their last 15 games. The Cats meanwhile have played fantastically well since the New Year, but the stats didn’t favor them going in to this game nonetheless. However, games aren’t won on statistics alone and the Panthers stepped on to the ice with purpose and determination written all over their collective faces.

Getting a good start is essential when playing the Devils and Florida got that crucial break when a Bryan McCabe shot was spilled by Scott Clemmensen and Stephen Weiss found himself with the puck in possession in front of the goalmouth. Clemmensen cheated slightly to his right and Weiss coolly slotted it home to his left. 1-0 after 4.18 of the first period and the Cats got that influential opener that would allow them some space to maneuver in; whilst NJ was forced forward.

Tomas Vokoun now came to the fore with some wonderful saves to keep the fragile lead intact. New Jersey poured on the pressure, as the first period progressed, but Vokoun was staunch in his rearguard action. No puck was out of his control on the night it seemed and would soon be proved with a brilliant shutout. Tomas appears to be in the form of his life and as long as he plays this way, and has the stout defense to back him up, it’s hard to see anyone scoring on him (although Ovechkin did prove it is possible, after all).

It was a good all-round contest from both teams with plenty of chances and nice offensive plays. It can clearly be seen that the two coaches not only know each other well, but also have a similar hockey-philosophy and preferred style of play. Panthers were pressed at times but held their own and in the end it was only the crossbar that prevented Keith Ballard from doubling Florida’s lead – mere seconds before the first interval.

The game was won in the second period when, half way through, the Cats capitalized on a rare power-play advantage. A shot from Michael Frolik fell to David Booth who, under immense pressure in front of the crease, managed to steer the puck to Richard Zednik; whom in turn was left alone by the goalpost and was presented with an open net to effortlessly stuff the puck in to.

A couple of minutes later Richard Zednik found himself with the puck behind the goal, waited patiently for the right set up, and then flicked the puck behind his back and in to the crowded slot. Nathan Horton had meanwhile held back and now skated in to take the Zednik pass, put it on the blade of his stick and with a swift movement flick it in at the far corner – well out of Clemmensen’s considerable reach.

The Florida Panthers were three goals up with only twenty-five minutes to go, but the Devils – to their credit – never gave up and continued to press forward in search of what could have been a releasing goal on another day. Tomas Vokoun and his able defense however had other plans and had their eyes set on the prize of a shutout. 10 saves in the third period later (36 saves in all) and a Cory Stillman goal from a marvelous Stephen Weiss assist to effectively punctuate the game – Vokoun had his well deserved shutout and left the contest with another first star.

Whilst one can’t say too much about Tomas Vokoun’s performances of late, and in this game in particular, it should nonetheless be noted that this was a complete team effort from the Cats. Everyone was top of their game and pulled their own weight in their respective roles. Special mentioning, as always, goes to Karlis Skrastins and his solid defensive work and painstaking blocks. Jay Bouwmeester and Keith Ballard have been equally impressive in the defensive toil; it seems they’ve been asked to do focus on their defensive duties in these games against the best teams of the NHL and they’ve done it very assertively.

Among the forwards, one must mention the first two lines with rising respect: Booth – Horton – Zednik, and, Stillman – Weiss – Frolik. And what is truly impressive is that these two top lines have been not only producing when going forward, but have displayed some real grit and played compact hockey defensively as well (characteristics we are already well acquainted with from the third and fourth lines – night in and night out). Each of those players have upped their individual games of late and has started to find the net on a more regular basis.

That the lines have been kept intact in many consecutive games now has probably helped the players a lot in this respect. Chemistry is developing and the lines are started in play their notes more in sync with each other, feeling increasingly comfortable in their roles within the team.

Nonetheless, while this was a very important win, fact is that all games now are crucial. And there is no let up in the schedule either. Next follows a rejuvenated Chicago Blackhawks tomorrow and then the league pacesetters Boston Bruins come to town on Saturday. Yet, if the Panthers play like they did yesterday, against the hottest team in the NHL, there is no reason to believe we can’t pick up important points against these top-notch teams as well!

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