FORT LAUDERDALE – The Florida Panthers are eager to turn the page.
Following their 5-1 loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round on Monday, players and coaches spent Tuesday’s practice at Baptist Health IcePlex working through video in order to find a way to even the series in Game 2 on Wednesday.
In reviewing the defeat, they hope they’ll find a path to victory.
“It’s just the necessary skill for survival in the playoffs,” head coach Paul Maurice said when asked about the ability to learn from tough losses. “Nobody’s gone 16-0 as far as I know. Everybody’s going to suffer a defeat. You’re always going to have a game that you don’t like -- rebounding, learning from it. Even if it’s not the critical piece to the next game, you’ll always comes back to it. There will be a loss that will really help you going forward.”
Taking a look back at the regular season, the Panthers had a knack for bouncing back.
In winning the Atlantic Division, they rebounded from a loss with a win 17 times.
“I think you have to learn [from losses], especially at this time of the year when you’re playing the same team,” forward Sam Reinhart said. “You try and learn as a series goes, the things you can do better. Defend a little bit harder, get to their net a little bit more, just the things that bring you success at this time of the year that we can be a little bit better at.”
Letting things get away from them in Game 1, the Panthers allowed five straight goals after breaking the ice and making it 1-0 in the second period on a goal from Matthew Tkachuk.
Finishing with a 41-23 advantage in scoring chances -- not to mention a 17-12 edge in high-danger shot attempts -- the Panthers are confident they can turn the tide if they clean up the mistakes and uncharacteristic breakdowns that cost them against Boston in Game 1.
Overall, Florida boasted a 3.4-3.2 edge in expected goals.
“If you looked at the analytics, you’d think we had a better game,” Maurice said when asked about those numbers. “That game’s 1-1 late in the second. We lost. They deserved to win the game. They finished on their chances; we didn’t. That’s not the important story of the game. The important story for us is where we have to get better to be a good hockey team.”
SWAYMAN IN THE ZONE
The main reason those expected goals weren’t actual goals was Jeremy Swayman.
Giving up fewer than two goals in all seven of his appearances so far in this year’s playoffs, Boston’s sizzling netminder made 38 saves in Game 1, including nine high-danger stops.
According to the folks over at NHL PR, Swayman’s seven consecutive playoff starts allowing two or fewer goals is tied for the fourth-best run by a goalie in NHL history.
So how do you throw some water on that fire?
It starts with getting to the net.
Looking back on their loss in Game 1, the Panthers, despite racking up a wealth of scoring chances, felt they didn’t get in front of Swayman’s eyes enough to make his life difficult.
On the checklist of things they need to do in Game 2, getting to the net is near the top.
“He was solid last night,” said Reinhart, who fired off nine shot attempts in the loss. “You have to give him credit. There’s always areas where you can try to make it more challenging on a goalie. That’s certainly what we’re going to try and do moving forward.”
BENNETT PRACTICES
Sam Bennett has taken another step on his road to recovery.
Out of action ever since he suffered an upper-body injury in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the second-line center was on the ice with teammates this morning for the first time since the incident occured.
“He’s closing in,” Maurice said. “He’s close now.”
When asked about his availability against the Bruins in Round 2, Maurice said that Bennett should make his return to the lineup in "one of the next three games, for sure."
That would be huge.
A physical tone-setter for the Panthers on the ice, Bennett, aptly labeled “Playoff Sam,” logged 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) during last year’s run to the Stanley Cup Final.
“That’s a big personality, a big presence in our lineup,” Reinhart said. “Any chance to get him back, hopefully sooner than later, is a positive.”
Stay tuned for more updates on Bennett's status in the coming days.
