5 TAKEAWAYS: Panthers Keep Scoring, Beat Flames for 4th Straight Win

SUNRISE, Fla. -- The Panthers never took their foot off the gas.
Going pedal to the metal for a full 60 minutes, the Panthers put on quite the show and pushed their winning streak to four games with a thrilling 6-2 win over the Flames at FLA Live Arena on Tuesday.

"We stayed with our gameplan the whole game," said forward Patric Hornqvist, who led the charge on offense with two goals. "They came out hot in the first period and I thought it was pretty even, but then we took over. It was nothing fancy out there. It was hard work and being on the right side of pucks."
On an early power play, Hornqvist opened the scoring for the Panthers when he swept a loose puck on the doorstep past Jacob Markstrom to make it 1-0 just 5:58 into the first period. But only 1:05 later, the Flames struck back when Johnny Gaudreau split the defense and scored on a breakaway to make it 1-1.
Briefly putting the Flames up 2-1, Blake Coleman took a pass from Mikael Backlund, skated around the net and banked a shot off Sergei Bobrovsky at 10:04. Answering for the Panthers, Gustav Forsling then fired a shot that bounced off Anthony Duclair before sailing into the net to make it a 2-2 game at 13:01.
Putting the Cats back on top, Joe Thornton tipped in a shot on the power play to make it 3-2 at 18:51.
"The first 20 [minutes] were kind of even, but after that we took over the game and did the right things," Hornqvist said of the team's relentless push after falling behind early. "Bob came up big for us when we needed it, and we got big goals at big moments. When we do that, it's hard to beat us."
Like Hornqvist said, the Panthers really took control of the game starting in the second period.
Leading 35-21 in shot attempts and 20-13 in scoring chances during the middle frame, the Panthers pelted the opposing net for almost 20 minutes until Ryan Lomberg finally broke through when he sent a shot under Markstrom's pads from the right circle to make it 4-2 with 16.7 seconds left on the clock.
Helping keep that growing momentum firmly in Florida's favor, Bobrovsky, who was named the game's third start after finishing with 47 saves, turned aside all 16 shots that he faced during the second period.
"I loved our second period," Panthers interim head coach Andrew Brunette said. "I know we got a little loose here and a couple guys snuck behind us in a change, but I really thought we ramped it up another notch. We were rolling and had line after line, wave after wave, of pace. We did a lot of good things."
Finding the back of the net once again in the third period, Hornqvist pocketed another goal when he picked off a clearing attempt in the offensive zone and, with Eetu Luostarinen using his body to clear some space on the ice, rifled a shot from the right circle into the cage to give the Cats a 5-2 lead at 5:47.
Locking in the win, Lucas Carlsson then wired home a shot to make it 6-2 at 13:04.

"I thought we took over as the game went on," Brunette said. "I really liked our response again tonight. It's fun to see a competitive, hard hockey game. That's one of the better ones I've seen all year."
Improving to 22-7-4, the Panthers have won 18 of their first 21 games on home ice.
Taking their show on the road, they'll kick off a two-game trip at Dallas on Thursday.
"It's fun to play at home," Hornqvist said. "You come out ready and you've got energy. Now we've just got to bring that on the road. We have to play with a little more confidence on the road, and I think this road trip here coming up is a good test for us. We have to go out there and earn it."
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday's win in Sunrise…

1. HORNQVIST NETS TWO

When the Panthers are on the power play, Hornqvist heads right to the crease.
Breaking the ice against the Flames, the veteran carved out some quality real estate around the blue paint before jamming a loose puck past Jacob Markstrom to make it a 1-0 game in the opening period.

Of his six goals this season, two have come on the man advantage.
"It feels good," Hornqvist said of his big night on the offensive side of the puck. "I haven't scored as many goals as I've wanted this year. But you know what? It's 2022, so let's get better and get more."
Not done there, Hornqvist then hammered home a shot in the third period to increase the lead to 5-2.

A leader in the locker room and a key cog on the fourth line this season, Hornqvist has accumulated 14 points (five goals, nine assists) while being one of just three players to suit up in all 33 of Florida's games.
"Horny just competes so hard," Brunette said. "It's nice to see him get some [goals]."

2. DUKE DOES IT AGAIN

Duke can't stop scoring.
Finding the back of the net for the fourth time in his last three games, the skilled winger, taking a break from showing off his all-world wheels, planted his skates just outside the blue paint before re-directing a shot from Forsling into the cage to pull the Panthers even and bring the score to 2-2 in the first period.

Breaking a tie with Aleksander Barkov to move into first place on the team's goal-scoring leaderboard, Duclair has now lit the lamp 13 times in just 25 games. Of those goals, 11 have been scored at home. At the time of this writing, that's tied for the fifth-most goals scored by a player at home in the league.
Helping deny goals as much as score them, he also matched a season-high with three blocks tonight.

3. THORNTON HAS POWER

What's better than a big goal?
A Jumbo goal.
Setting up shop in front of Markstrom on the power play, Thornton deftly re-directed a shot from Brandon Montour into the twine to put the Panthers up 3-2 with 1:09 remaining in the first period.

A conduit on offense throughout the entire game, Montour dished out three assists.
"Our power play is going good right now," Thornton said. "An overall good, intense game."
An ageless wonder, Thornton, who turned 42 this past summer, has recorded six points (four goals, two assists) in 19 games during his first season with the Panthers. Making history -- as he often does -- with his goal tonight, he moved past Larry Murphy for the 20th-most power play points in NHL history (548).

4. LOMBERG GOES OFF

The Lomberghini went from 0-60 in the blink of an eye on this goal.
Flying up the ice after Brandon Montour cleared the puck out of the defensive zone, Lomberg took a pass from Eetu Luostarinen, skated into the center of the right circle and ripped a shot straight through Markstrom's five-hole to extend Florida's lead to 4-2 with just 16.7 seconds left in the second period.

"We're a close group," Lomberg said. "We all get so excited seeing our teammates have success. I think that's part of being a really good team and a close-knit group. We're almost happier when other guys have success rather than ourselves. We're having fun, playing the right way, and we're winning."
Part of the Flames organization before signing with the Panthers in 2020, Lomberg, who appeared in 11 games over parts of two seasons with Calgary, said "it was just another game" against his former club.
"I played with a few of those guys for a few years, so it was nice to see them," he said.
A sparkplug on the fourth line, Lomberg has already set new career-highs in goals (3), assists (6) and points (9) through just 21 games played this season. In addition to scoring his goal, he also chipped in three hits and one takeaway while owning a +2 rating over 13:21 of ice time against the Flames.

5. SAVE CITY

Bobrovsky was unbeatable for the majority of tonight's game.
After surrendering two goals on 14 shots in the first period, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner turned aside all 35 shots he faced over the final two periods to earn his 12th win in 13 starts at home this year.
Of his 47 saves on the night, 16 came on shots from high-danger areas, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
"I thought Bob made some huge saves," Brunette said.
In the midst of a stellar season, Bobrovsky owns a 15-3-2 record with a .921 save percentage.