One unheralded part of the Panthers’ three-game win streak — Bobrovsky ‘closing the door’ late

Sergei Bobrovsky was, at least in part, responsible for putting the Florida Panthers in this position.

With about 90 seconds left in the second period against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, four shots had already slipped past him and into the back of the home team’s net at the BB&T Center.

What followed was the Panthers’ second miraculous rally in a 10-day span, coming back from a four-goal deficit to win 5-4 in overtime.

The Panthers’ red-hot offense during the final 22 minutes of the game will rightfully get most of the praise for the change in fate on Thursday night. Brett Connolly scored two goals at the end of the second period, and Aaron Ekblad added two of his own sandwiched between the game-tying shot from fourth-line winger Dominic Toninato.

But give credit to Bobrovsky, too, for what he did in that span. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner, who has gone through his lumps to start the season, clamped down when it mattered most, stopping the final 10 shots that came his way to give his team the opportunity to rally.

“He never gives up,” Ekblad said. “It doesn’t matter what happens in the other two periods, he’s ready to go in the third. He played big for us in all kinds of situations and kept us in the game.”

That can be said for all three games in this win streak — the longest of the season so far for the 12-5-5 Panthers.

After giving up three third-period goals in the Panthers’ 4-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Nov. 14, Bobrovsky has held opponents scoreless in the final 20 minutes of regulation in each of the past three games.

A perfect 12 for 12 against the New York Islanders on Saturday to preserve a 4-3 lead.

A perfect 14 for 14 against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday with Florida already well ahead en route to a 5-2 victory.

And a perfect 10 for 10 against the Ducks on Thursday as the Panthers rallied.

“Closing the door, three games at home,” Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said. “That’s a big reason why we won.”

These past three games put Bobrovsky’s season into perspective a bit. Yes, his .886 save percentage is low. Only three goaltenders who have made at least 10 starts this season have lower marks than him on that front.

“I’m not looking for any excuses,” Bobrovsky said after the Jets loss. “Everybody has their challenges and their hurdles. It’s disappointing, but it is what it is. Tomorrow’s a new day. Get back to work.”

He’s gotten back to work, and while there is still an uphill climb to get his overall body of work this season back to a respectable level, there has been progress.

And when he gets locked in — and the defense in front of him is humming — he looks like the top-end goaltender the Panthers signed to a seven-year, $70 million contract this offseason.

His late-game heroics this week have shown that.

“We’ve still got to find ways to help Bob out,” Connolly said. “He’s making big, big saves. It’s hard. There are back doors that are impossible to save and there’s obviously tough goals to give up, but he’s battling and making big saves in the third. We’ve just got to find ways to get better defensively. If we can fix that, we’re going to be tough to beat.”

The Panthers are already proving to be a handful even when Bobrovsky isn’t at his best. Florida has won five of its last six games and seven of its last 10. The Panthers have 29 points through 22 games — only the 1996-97 team had more (33) at this point in the season.

“We just haven’t quit on any games,” Connolly said. “It’s obviously a huge positive when a group has that. You’ve got to find ways to win in this league. It’s a tough league. ... This game is weird sometimes. You just have to answer the bell, and we did. It’s a huge win. Just have to keep going.”