Summary:
The Panthers put together an impressive effort through the final two periods of regulation and overtime Thursday night. However, a record tying 55 shots on net was not enough to send the Columbus Blue Jackets packing with a loss, as the Panthers fell in the shootout. Now comes the Buffalo Sabres, the next contestant in the race to the bottom of the NHL standings. The Panthers must again avoid falling into the trap taking a team for granted. Can the Panthers move on from a frustrating loss, and find a way to impose their will on the Sabres? On to the game!
Know Your Enemy:
Panthers All-Time Record v. Buffalo: 32-38-6 with 4 ties
2014-15 Season Record v. Buffalo: 1-0-0
Last Game: 10/17/14 @ First Niagara Center (Buffalo, NY), Panthers won 1-0
This will be the second time this season these two division foes will face each other. The Sabres are actually in the middle of a somewhat hot streak. They are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games, and have climbed past Edmonton, Columbus, and Carolina in the standings. However, they are posting a whispy 38.1% on shot attempts when adjusted for score over that stretch. The Sabres are not a good team, and they are in the basement for a reason. Tonight is not a guaranteed win though. This Sabres team has beaten San Jose and Montreal each twice, teams who both have better records than the Panthers. If the Panthers hope to avoid the same fate, they will need to test goalie Michal Neuvirth, who has posted a respectable .920 save percentage in 10 games, and shutdown the top line of Matt Moulson, Tyler Ennis, and current leading All Star Game vote getter Zemgus Girgensons.
The Rundown:
Sabres Leaders & Special Teams
Goals: Tyler Ennis (16)
Assists: Tyler Ennis (9)
Points: Zemgus Girgensons (8)
Shot Attempts (Corsi) Rel: Brian Flynn (+7.4%)
Power Play: 6.8% (30th)
Penalty Kill: 75.6% (25th)
Panther Leaders & Special Teams
Goals: Nick Bjugstad (10)
Assists: Jussi Jokinen (11)
Points: Nick Bjugstad (15)
Shot Attempts (Corsi) Rel: Sean Bergenheim (+6.8%)
Power Play: 15.6% (22nd)
Penalty Kill: 80.5% (18th)
*Shot Attempts (Corsi) Relative calculated at 5v5, having played at least one half of team’s games.
The Hat Trick:
1. Here’s a quick fun fact about the dynamic duo of Vincent Trocheck and Jimmy Hayes: Trocheck is 4th in the league in generating points per 60 minutes of 5 on 5 play, while Hayes is 14th in the league.
2. The 99 shot attempts made by the Panthers was not only a season high for the team, it was also a season high for the league. The next highest total of shot attempts made by a team in a game this season was 96 by the Chicago Blackhawks against the Calgary Flames on October 15. In addition, only three other teams outside of Chicago and Florida have put up 90 or more shot attempts in a game this season: Montreal (91 vs. PHI 10/11 & 90 vs. BUF 11/29), Nashville (90 vs. CGY 10/31), San Jose (91 vs. ARI 11/22). Here’s the shocker though: of these 6 games, the team with the most shot attempts has won only once, and that was the Montreal Canadiens against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 11, a 4-3 victory in the shootout. Furthermore, of those five losses, three have extended into overtime and two were decided in the shootout. That is nuts. How can teams generate so many shot attempts, yet fall short on the result?
3. The Panthers exploded quickly for 3 goals in 4:37 in the previous game. They also put 19 shots on goal in each the 2nd and 3rd periods. However, they were not record setting numbers. The fastest three goals in Panthers history took place in just 1:17, in the dying minutes of a game against the Los Angeles Kings on October 6, 1999, and the most shots in one period by the Panthers is 28. However, one player did make Panthers history: Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. He broke a 21 year old record when he made 52 saves on 55 shots, both are the most by an opposing goaltender. Both records were previously held by Los Angeles Kings goaltender Kelley Hrudey, who made 50 saves on 52 shots in a 2-2 tie at Miami Arena on October 19, 1993.
Projected Lineup:
Buffalo Sabres
L1: Moulson | Girgensons | Ennis
L2: Flynn | Mitchell | Gionta
L3: Foligno | Hodgson | Stafford
L4: Deslauriers | McCormick | Stewart
D1: Gorges | Myers
D2: Ristolainen | Zadorov
D3: Weber | Strachan
SG: Neuvirth
BG: Enroth
Florida Panthers
L1: Huberdeau | Bjugstad | Fleischmann
L2: Bergenheim | Jokinen | Boyes
L3: Pirri | Trocheck | Hayes
L4: Kopecky | MacKenzie | Thornton
D1: Campbell | Ekblad
D2: Mitchell | Kulikov
D3: Olsen | Gudbranson
SG: Luongo
BG: Montoya
Closing Thoughts:
There is no truth to the rumor that the Buffalo Sabres are going to try to pre-emptively draft Connor McDavid at the BB&T Center tonight.
AJ can be reached for contact on Twitter.
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