Wild Power By Panthers

     The Florida Panthers were surprised by the Minnesota Wild 6-4 at Amerant Bank Arena on Friday night. The contest concluded a five-game homestand for the Panthers as they compiled a 1-2-2 record. Florida is now winless in their last four games. 

     Minnesota(19-21-5) jumped ahead 1-0 on the power play at the 2:49 mark. Brock Faber passed from the left point. Matt Boldy took a forehand shot from above the right circle and Kirill Kaprizov redirected it from the crease area by Sergei Bobrovsky for his 14th goal this season. Kaprizov has not scored in the last five games. 

     Florida(27-14-4) quickly scored early in the second period 35 seconds into the frame. Carter Verhaeghe passed it off to Matthew Tkachuk on the right point. He made a drop pass and Aaron Ekblad snapped a shot from the right-circle dot past Marc-Andre Fleury for his second goal of the year. 

     It became 2-1 for the Wild with the man advantage at 3:22 of the period. Alex Goligoski angled a pass from the top of the zone and Ryan Hartman blasted a one-time slap shot from above the left circle for his 14th goal in 2023-24. 

     The Wild extended their lead to 3-1 on their third power-play goal of the contest at 7:36. Joel Eriksson Ek cycled the puck from behind the cage to Boldy on the right wing. He sent it to the blue line and Faber chalked up his third tally as he smacked a slap shot from the right point. 

     Minnesota had a three-goal margin with 9:28 remaining in the second. Kaprizov steered it from the slot area and Eriksson Ek poked it from the right circle. Mats Zuccarello placed a wrist shot from above the right circle on the power play for his eighth tally of the campaign. 

     Anthony Stolarz replaced Bobrovsky in goal for the Cats while Fleury left the game and Filip Gustavsson took over for Minnesota at the same time. It was a rare simultaneous change in net by both teams. 

     The Panthers cut it to 4-2 with 1:33 to go in the period. Eetu Luostarinen flicked a backhand shot from the edge of the blue paint for his eighth goal of the year. Anton Lundell and Ekblad were credited with assists on the play. 

     In the third period, Minnesota increased it to 5-2 just 41 seconds in on another power-play tally by Kaprizov. It was the most power-play goals that Florida had allowed since they surrendered five to the Atlanta Thrashers on October 23, 2006. 

     Florida closed it with two goals and trailed 5-4. Lundell scored his third goal on a backhand shot at 8:05 and Gustav Forsling added his seventh goal at 8:23. The Wild picked up an empty-net goal by Hartman with 11.8 seconds left for a 6-4 advantage.