SUNRISE, Fla. – How’s this for goaltending depth?
A game after Anthony Stolarz made 26 saves in a shutout of the Ottawa Senators, Sergei Bobrovsky followed suit by stopping all 25 shots he faced to earn his sixth shutout of the season in a 4-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday.
Over the last four games, the Panthers have allowed just two goals.
“Guys worked hard,” said Bobrovsky, who’s now tied for second in the NHL with 35 wins. “Sometimes it’s not easy to play those games, but I thought the guys did a great job. They did the right things. They played a great game on offense and defended very well.”
With the action atop the Atlantic Division remaining tight, the Panthers (50-24-6) now trail the Boston Bruins (46-18-15) by one point for first place with one more game played. They also lead the Toronto Maple Leafs (46-24-9) by five points with one more game played.
As long as they finish first or second in the divison, the Panthers will have home-ice advantage in Round 1 of the playoffs.
“We played a smart hockey game,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. “It’s toward the end [of the season]. You don’t want the same fireworks. There’s more to this. Everyone can feel the playoffs coming. No concern about our energy level for the playoffs -- none. That goes back to training camp. They’ve been preparing for this the entire year.”
Breaking the ice just 47 seconds into the first period, Matthew Tkachuk beat Blue Jackets netminder Jet Greaves with a shot from the top of the right circle to put the Panthers up 1-0.