FORT LAUDERDALE – Going a perfect 3-for-3 during a 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday, the Florida Panthers continue to impress on the penalty kill.
Prior to that matchup, the Bolts boasted the best home power play in the NHL.
“We’ve been working on it all season,” said forward Kevin Stenlund, a new addition to the penalty kill this season. “It’s been good. The last stretch here we’ve had a little more communication, maybe sacrifice with some blocks. We’re happy with it.”
Since Nov. 20, the Panthers have surrendered just four power-play goals over the 54 times they’ve been shorthanded, giving them an NHL-leading 92.6% rate of success in that span.
In the 17 games before that stretch, they operated at 74.1% on the kill.
When asked what’s behind this surge in success, defenseman Gustav Forsling, who leads the team with 97:12 of shorthanded ice time this season, said it’s a combination of the team’s approach as well as some stellar play from goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.
Over the last 17 games, Bobrovsky owns a .944 save percentage on the PK.
“Everyone is really working together,” Forsling said. “We’re just trying to pressure as quick as possible. Bob’s been unreal. I think it’s a combination with the killers and Bob.”
After finishing 23rd in the NHL on the penalty kill at 76% last season – as well as operating at 70.4% during the playoffs – general manager Bill Zito made it a priority to improve that area of the game when free agency opened back in July.
In addition to bringing in Stenlund, he also inked defenseman Nikko Mikkola to a three-year contract. Stenlund currently ranks second among the team’s forwards in shorthanded minutes (75:09), while Mikkola is second among the defensemen (70:14).
“We had a problem that we had a hard time fixing,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “This year, we brought in some people that could help us fix it. … Credit to Bill and his staff. We knew the penalty kill was probably the area we needed to improve the most.”
With the addition of Stenlund, the Panthers are also benefitting in the faceoff circle as they have both a lefty and righty on each of their top forward duos on the penalty kill. Faceoff wins equal clears, which means less time for opposing power plays.
Stenlund (right) and Eetu Luostarinen (left) compromise the top unit, while Aleksander Barkov (left) and Sam Reinhart (right) are the second. Stenlund and Luostarinen usually start the kill, which means Barkov and Reinhart, two of the most elite two-way players in the league, can often attack once they’re deployed.
Against the Lightning, Reinhart netted his second shorthanded goal of the season.
“It’s a big part of it,” Stenlund said of the combinations. “It helps a lot.”
Thanks in part to their success on the penalty kill, the Panthers are currently allowing the fourth-fewest goals in the NHL per game at 2.59. Set to host the New York Rangers at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday, they’re looking forward to another big test ahead.
At the time of this writing, Florida (20-12-2) is holding down second place in the Atlantic Division, while New York (24-8-1) is occupying the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.
“Defense first, then everything else is going to come to us,” Forsling said.
LUONGO STEPS IN
With Sergei Bobrovsky getting a breather after a 27-save performance at Tampa Bay less than 24 hours earlier, the Panthers turned to a familiar face to fill in for practice.
None other than Roberto Luongo.
