FORT LAUDERDALE – The Florida Panthers are humming.
With their 6-2 drubbing of the Nashville Predators Thursday at Amerant Bank Arena, the Panthers extended their season-long winning streak to six games.
Winning on the road, abroad and at home, the Panthers won three in New York (Rangers, Islanders, Sabres), two in Finland (Dallas), and now at home, where they’ll be playing the next three games.
During that span, the Panthers have outscored opponents 30-14, while also clicking at a 33% rate on the power play and 86.4% on the penalty kill.
Returning from injury during the streak, captain Aleksander Barkov has returned with a vengeance.
Despite only playing in four of the six games, Barkov is tied with Sam Reinhart for team lead with 10 points (two goals, eight assists) during the winning streak.
Assisting on both of Carter Verhaeghe’s goals against the Predators, the 12-year veteran, per NHL Stats, became the first player in Panthers history to record 100 career multi-assist games.
Barkov also joined Teemu Selanne, Jari Kurri, and Saku Koivu as the fourth Finnish-born player in NHL history to reach the milestone.
Going for lucky number seven, the Panthers will try to keep their winning streak alive when they host the Flyers, who sit at 5-8-1, at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET.
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POWER PLAY COOKING
A key factor in the winning streak and the overall season success, the power play has been one to watch.
Sitting at 26.2% on the year, the Panthers rank sixth in the NHL.
Able to run two units, with plenty of scoring weapons on both, the team has been able to count on whoever is on the ice.
On the power play, the Panthers have had six different goal scorers, and 13 players record at least one point.
“I like the pace of it,” said head coach Paul Maurice of the power play. “They're not locked into one idea of one set, so we've had a great success. The confidence comes from their five-on-five play. When they go on the power play, they think they’re going to score – they got lots of confidence in their ability to play.”
REINO GOAL STREAK CONTINUTES
If it seems like Reinhart is scoring every game lately, it’s because he is.
After scoring in the win against Nashville, the two-way forward extended his goal streak to five games, which matched the longest by a player this season (Alex Ovechkin and Sam Bennett).
During his streak, Reinhart has recorded nine points (six goals, three assists), boasts a +8 plus/minus rating, and has scored both on the power play and shorthanded.
Consistently scoring all season, Reinhart is tied with Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov for the NHL lead in goals with 11.
On what’s been working during the goal streak, Reinhart said it’s about “finding the right areas and playing with some confidence all contributes to it.”
GADJOVICH GETTING HEALTHY
The Panthers are almost back to 100%.
The last remaining player on the team’s injury report – knock on wood – Jonah Gadjovich, who has been dealing with lingering “tightness,” is really starting to ramp up his rehab and nearing a return.
A full participant in Friday’s practice, the hard-nosed forward looks like his old self.
"We pushed him hard on the ice here today,” Maurice said. “We let him bang around a little bit. He's very close."
Gadjovich last played on Oct. 17 against Vancouver.
