CBS4’s Steve Goldstein on Panthers showing signs of success

SUNRISE – With some ground still to be made up in the playoff race, the Florida Panthers have perked up, winning four of their last six games.

There is much more work to be done in the standings and defensively, but the offense, sparked by a hot power play, has the Panthers feeling like they can get on a roll.

Road Warriors
The January schedule is a tough one. The Panthers are in a stretch of nine of 11 games on the road and have back-to-back games each of the next three weeks. This week’s road trip sees the Cats at Buffalo on Monday afternoon, Toronto on Tuesday, and Montreal on Thursday. The next home game is on Saturday. But being concerned with the schedule can’t be a factor now, the team must get wins.

Power Up
The power play has been in the league’s top five over the past month. And with the exception of a stretch early in the season, it’s been in the top 10. Lately, Aaron Ekblad has found his shot from his flank position. He’s scored three goals over the last five games on the man advantage. The Panthers have scored multiple power-play goals nine times this season. They are 8-1 in those games.

What about Bob?
With Spencer Knight mostly out of the lineup and struggling in his few games the last six weeks, Sergei Bobrovsky has shouldered the load in goal. The veteran has played in 16 of the last 19 games. While Bobrovsky has allowed some goals he would like to have back, he has kept the team in games and was sensational in the last game against Vancouver. The team needs to be much better in front of him in third periods when they have allowed too many goals this season. Knight has been on the ice and should be back soon.

Hey, Now, You’re An All-Star
Matthew Tkachuk will skate on home ice when South Florida hosts All-Star weekend in three weeks. He has led the Panthers in scoring right out of the gate and currently is on a six game point streak, the longest by a Panther this season.

The Numbers Don’t Lie, Or Do They?
Examining the Panthers’ analytics and underlying numbers, the fact is they should be winning more games than they are. Their expected goals have been top three in the league all season, yet the Panthers aren’t in the top 10 in scoring. The expected goals against are in the middle of the NHL and they are the best team at limiting opponents’ chances off the rush. But they allow more goals than most teams. Some of that is due to not getting the saves they should be getting. The offensive discrepancy could be players just not finishing as they should be, or the fact no one likes hearing, bad luck. Likely, it’s a combination of those are various other reasons and the hope is, over 82 games, the goals for and against will catch up and result in wins.