Taking the ice without several key players due to illness and injury -- including leading-scorer Matthew Tkachuk -- the Panthers suffered a 4-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.
Leading 1-0 after the first period thanks to an early goal from Lomberg, the Panthers allowed a shorthanded goal and a two power-play goals to fall into a 3-1 hole. On the wrong end of "puck luck," both power-play goals were scored as the result of the puck hitting off a player in front.
Getting back to within striking distance, Sam Reinhart blasted a one-timer past Trisan Jarry to cut Florida's deficit to 3-2 at 10:14 of the third period. But with 1:18 remaining in regulation, Jake Guentzel cashed in on an empty net to put Pittsburgh up 4-2 with his second goal of the game.
Florida finished 0-for-3 on the power play, while Pittsburgh went 2-for-3.
"I think they definitely won that battle," Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe said. "One shorthanded and [two] on the power play, and that was definitely the difference. At 5-on-5 I think we controlled a lot of the play, but special teams wins and loses games in the NHL."
With both goalies standing on their heads, Jarry stopped 32 of 34 shots for the Penguins, while Sergei Bobrovsky made 35 saves for the Panthers, including going 30-for-30 at 5-on-5. Starting each of the last five games, Bobrovsky is 2-3-0 with a solid .919 save percentage in that span.
"It's not surprise to us," Lomberg said of Bobrovsky's performance. "He's always one of the hardest workers and he makes amazing saves in practice. From the outside looking in he's playing some good hockey, but for us in this room we know that. We expect that from him. He's more than capable. We've got to get a better result for him because he deserves better."
As for Tkachuk's status for tonight's matchup, head coach Paul Maurice should provide updates following morning skate in Newark, so stay tuned to @JamesonCoop on Twitter for more information. In 28 games this season, Tkachuk, who is dealing with a non-COVID illness, leads the Panthers with 39 points (14 goals, 25 assists).
Leading the Metropolitan Division with a record of 21-7-2, the Devils are currently in the midst of their first real stretch of adversity this season. After going on an incredible run right out of the gate -- including a 13-game winning streak -- they enter tonight's matchup on a four-game skid.
In their latest outing, Jack Hughes scored the lone goal in a 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday. Running into a hot goaltender, Carter Hart shut down New Jersey's seventh-ranked offense (3.50 goals per game) from start to finish while turning aside 48 of 49 shots.
"You know, we lost four in a row. It's like, it's not good," Devils forward Erik Haula told reporters after the loss. "We're not happy about it. It's very frustrating to us and it's unacceptable."
Young and fast up front, Hughes leads New Jersey in goals (16) and points (35), while Jesper Bratt sits first in assists (20) and second in points (30). Nico Hischier has produced 29 points (13 goals, 16 assists), including finding the back of the net in three of the past five contests.
Vitek Vanecek has handled the bulk of the work in net for the Devils. In 20 appearances, the former Washington Capitals goaltender owns a 12-3-2 record with a .912 save percentage.
Meeting for the first time this season, the Panthers took two of three games from the Devils in 2021-22. In their last visit to Newark, the Panthers clawed their way back from a 6-2 deficit to get the game to overtime and eventually win 7-6 on a goal from Gustav Forsling.
Overall, the Panthers own a 4-1-0 record in their last five matchups with the Devils.
