The Florida Panthers opened a three-game road trip with a gritty 2-1 shootout victory versus the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday at Canada Life Centre. The win improved Florida’s record to 26-20-3, while Winnipeg fell to 20-23-7.
The sport unfolded as a defensive battle from the opening faceoff. The primary period ended scoreless, as each teams combined for less than 11 shots, with the Panthers outshooting the Jets 6-5.
That trend continued into the second period. Florida allowed just one high-danger likelihood within the frame, in accordance with NaturalStatTrick.com. Winnipeg earned the one power play of the period but didn’t put a puck on net, because the Panthers’ penalty kill kept the Jets to the perimeter. Shots after two periods favored Florida 13-10.
Florida finally broke through late within the second. At 18:49, Sam Bennett scored his 18th goal of the season, converting a one-timer from the left circle after a pass from Matthew Tkachuk. The play began with an offensive-zone faceoff win, and the goal got here on the Panthers thirteenth shot of the sport.
“It was only a grinder the entire way,” said Bennett, who led all Florida forwards with 21:42 of ice time. “Not a ton of probabilities either way, but we stuck with it.”
The assist was Tkachuk’s first point of the season, coming in only his second game after missing the primary 47 games following adductor muscle surgery and sports hernia repair in August.
Winnipeg responded within the third period. At 5:24, with teams skating four-on-four, Cole Perfetti tied the sport 1-1. Jonathan Toews forced a turnover by Uvis Balinskis and fed Perfetti, driving toward the online, where the Jets forward finished with a backhand past Daniil Tarasov. It proved to be the one goal of the period.
Neither team scored in extra time despite various scoring opportunities. Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey hit the crossbar, while Connor Hellebuyck made essential saves to maintain the sport alive. The competition was decided within the shootout, where Anton Lundell and Sam Reinhart each scored for the Panthers. Tarasov stopped attempts by Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele, ending the night with 17 saves in regulation and two more within the tiebreaker. Meanwhile, Hellebuyck stopped 19 shots overall.
Florida’s defensive discipline showed within the shot totals, with the Panthers allowing not more than seven shots in any period. The win pushed Florida to 4-2-0 over its last six games and improved its record in one-goal games this season to 14-0-3. The Panthers will proceed their road trip Saturday night against the Minnesota Wild.