Detroit Red Wings get close late, but fall to Florida Panthers, 3-2: Game thread recap
Detroit Red Wings (16-13-7) vs. Florida Panthers (18-14-4)
When: 7 p.m. Friday.
Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
TV: Bally Sports Detroit Extra.
Radio: WXYT-FM (97.1; Red Wings radio affiliates).
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Game notes: Chemistry on the ice can be a tricky thing; just ask the Panthers, who are trying to recapture the high-scoring formula they had in storming to the Presidents’ Trophy last season with the NHL’s best record. (Just, uh, don’t ask them about the playoffs, after they flamed out in a second-round sweep by the Lightning.) Of course, they swapped out some of the ingredients of that formula when they pulled off the offseason’s biggest deal: shipping forward Jonathan Huberdeau and defenseman MacKenzie Weegar — who combined for 159 points — to Calgary for 25-year-old star Matthew Tkachuk, who had 104 points himself. It’s tough to argue with the results on the stat sheet this season: Tkachuk leads the Panthers with 47 points while Huberdeau and Weegar have combined for 34, but overall the Panthers have gone from averaging 4.2 goals a game — tops in the NHL — to 3.3 this season, good for 10th.
Ranking 10th in the league in scoring shouldn’t be a problem, but the Panthers’ goaltending duo definitely needs a bit of offensive support, starting with the perennially up-and down Sergei Bobrovsky, who is in the down cycle this season, with an .894 save percentage and 3.32 goals-against average just a year after posting .913 and 2.67 marks last season while leading the NHL in wins (39). The 34-year-old (who admittedly held the Wings to just one goal in a Dec. 8 start at home) still has three more seasons on his contract with an annual cap hit of $10 million , so it’s little wonder the Panthers are hoping 21-year-old Spencer Knight will deliver on the promise that made him a first-round pick (No. 13 overall) back in 2019. He opened the year 5-1-0 with a .925 save percentage and 2.18 GAA, but in the 12 games since, he’s 4-5-3 with a .900 save percentage and 3.43 GAA. Ouch.
The Wings, meanwhile, would just like to get out to a fast start for once; they’ve allowed the first goal in five straight games. Their 3-2-0 record in that span isn’t terrible, but it would probably be nice to play from ahead in the first period one of these days. The Wings’ top line has been clicking in those games, with Dylan Larkin picking up three goals and two assists and Lucas Raymond adding two goals and three assists, while Michael Rasmussen leads the team with six points (3 G, 3A) in that span.
In less than a month, Tkachuk and Larkin will be teammates; both were named to the Atlantic Division All-Star squad, which will take on the other divisions in the now-annual three-on-three tournament in February. This season's All-Star games will be held on the Panthers' home ice, FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Florida, on Feb. 4.
After Friday’s game, the Wings won’t have much down time; they’re headed to Toronto for an Original Six matchup with the Maple Leafs on Saturday night. The Panthers, meanwhile, have Saturday off and will head to Dallas for a Sunday game with the Stars, the second game of a four-game road trip.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings lose to Florida Panthers, 3-2: Game thread recap
