RECAP: Panthers beat Sabres to take control of their playoff destiny

SUNRISE, Fla. -- After the sound of the final horn had faded and the rubber rats stopped flying toward the ice, Matthew Tkachuk said players raced to the locker room to check their phones.
With the Florida Panthers having just squeezed out a 2-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins suffering a 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils, the Panthers were not only back in a playoff spot, but also in control of their own playoff destiny with just four games left.
"After a win, it seems like the first person that finds out spreads the word," Tkachuk said when asked about scoreboard watching. "We knew pretty quick after."

Improving to 40-31-7, the Panthers now hold the first wild card in the Eastern Conference, while the New York Islanders, who also have 87 points at 39-30-9, are in the second wild card. Not far behind, the Penguins are just outside the playoff picture with a record of 38-30-10 for 86 points.
Shaking off a four-game losing streak, the Panthers have won each of their last four games.
"It's a good feeling coming to the rink," Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. "You're in control of something and you're on a bit of a roll. You feel good. You're watching the scoreboard differently. We're not watching it during the game, we're checking it after. It's a good feeling."
Given what was on the line, tonight's game was full of tension from start to finish.
After successfully killing off a power play for the Panthers, the Sabres opened the scoring on their own man advantage soon after when Dylan Cozens beat goaltender Alex Lyon with a blistering wrist shot from beyond the right circle to make it 1-0 at 8:58 of the first period.
On another power play, Aaron Ekblad, who entered the night riding a four-game point streak, evened things up for the Panthers when he settled down a pass from Brandon Montour and snapped a shot from near the top of the left circle past rookie netminder Devon Levi to make it 1-1 at 15:47.
In the second period, there were no goals to speak of as both goaltenders made some fantastic saves. Lyon stopped eight shots for the Panthers, while Levi made 14 saves for the Sabres. Also lending a hand, one of the biggest plays of the period came when Marc Staal put his body on the line to block a threatening shot from Cozens from the left circle that could've easily ended up in the back of the cage.
Led by four from Staal, every one of Florida's defensemen registered at least one blocked shot in the win.
"It just shows the buy-in and commitment we have to making the playoffs," Tkachuk said of the team's shot blocking. "Everybody's putting it on the line. Each and every shift you could tell. You could see the dedication and commitment. Everybody's playing for each other in this room."
Letting the home fans exhale and get their heart rates down just a little bit, Tkachuk broke the deadlock just 59 seconds into the third period when he stuck out his stick and re-directed a perfect point shot from Montour past Levi and into the twine to put the Panthers on top 2-1.

"I think it's just easier playing with the lead," said Tkachuk, who ranks second on Florida with 39 goals. "Getting that next one to give us the lead was obviously huge. … Both goalies played well. We capitalized on some hard plays in the third and the Lyon King made some big saves."
Indeed he did.
Turning aside all 18 shots he faced in the third period, Lyon came up in the clutch time and time again to keep that slim lead intact. And when the Sabres turned a 5-on-3 power play into a 6-on-3 advantage after pulling Levi with just over 10 seconds left in regulation, the 30-year-old locked in the win when he kicked away a slap shot from Rasmus Dahlin for his 39th and final save of the game.
Starting each of the last four games while Sergei Bobrovsky recovers from a non-COVID illness, Lyon has posted a 4-0-0 record while gobbling up 116 of 121 shots for a .959 save percentage.
"I've played a lot of playoff hockey," said Lyon, who backstopped the Chicago Wolves to a Calder Cup in the AHL last season. "I'm 30 years old. I've had a lot of experience, and that goes a long way. I'm pretty good at this stage of the game. It's just keeping it even and moving forward. You can't change your approach. You can't get too high or too low. Just keep going."

CATS QUOTES

"A lot of credit to the D-men tonight. Not all 40-shot games are equal, and tonight I thought we did as good a job as we've done. It made my life simple and kept me in it there at the beginning. A little bit of a rough start, but happy to bounce back. We've just got to keep moving forward." - Alex Lyon
"We desperately needed a win, and I thought we played solid. A lot of energy. We knew what was at stake here. The guys did a good job." - Brandon Montour
"That's what's great about these games, every single play is dangerous. Every puck that gets knocked down and goes the other way can create a problem for the other team. The greatest part about our sport is the tension that's built in tight games." - Paul Maurice

CATS NOTES

• Florida ranks second in the NHL in goals by defensemen with 49.
  - Brandon Montour registered his 14th multi-point game of the season.
  - Matthew Tkachuk needs one more point to match the career-high 104 he tallied in 2021-22.
  - Marc Staal blocked a team-high four shots.
  - The Panthers controlled 62.96% of shot attempts when Anton Lundell was deployed at 5-on-5.
  - Alex Lyon stopped all 18 high-danger shots he faced.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Panthers (40-31-7) will look to fortify their newfound place in the playoff picture when they host the Ottawa Senators (37-34-7) at FLA Live Arena on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET.
For tickets, click HERE.
\All advanced statistics courtesy of NaturalStatTrick.com*