With seventh loss in 10 games, Florida Panthers end 2022 way outside postseason position
The Florida Panthers’ second game back from their Christmas break this weekend was always going to be a much stiffer challenge than their first -- a second game in as many nights against a legitimate Stanley Cup contender on the road is the type of game even the best teams in the NHL might pencil in as an acceptable loss when they first look through their schedule.
The Panthers didn’t just lose to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday, though. They hardly even showed up, falling 4-0 in their final game of 2022. The Hurricanes outshot Florida, 34-19, and the Panthers mustered only four shots on six power plays in Raleigh, North Carolina.
A night after blowing out the Montreal Canadiens for an important no-doubt victory coming out of a five-day holiday break, Florida (16-17-4) couldn’t hang with the Hurricanes.
Even though it was an understandable loss, every one is costly for the Panthers right now after they went into Christmas with a sub-.500 record and eight points out of postseason position. With the loss to Carolina, Florida still sits eight points behind the New York Islanders for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Panthers were down early and, as has been the case all season, they never could recover. The Hurricanes (24-6-6) took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission on a power-play goal by Carolina winger Stefan Noesen and Florida could never fight back to even tie the game.
With almost half the season done, the Panthers are still the only team in the league without a win when trailing at the end of the first period.
Florida was fortunate to get out of the first down only 1-0. The Hurricanes outshot the Panthers, 12-3, in the opening period and Florida wasted three power-play chances without registering a single shot.
The Panthers’ first only lasted 36 seconds, too, before defenseman Brandon Montour was whistled for a questionable interference call, shifting the action to 4-on-4 play before an abbreviated power play for Carolina. On their 36-second chance, the Hurricanes converted when Noesen scored with 12:55 left in the period.
Florida’s best moment came early in the second period and then it went without the Panthers capitalizing. After a couple early impressive saves by goaltender Spencer Knight, Florida pushed and finally threatened for the first time, only to eventually send too many men out onto the ice and head back onto a penalty kill. With 15:02 left in the second period, star left wing Andrei Svechnikov scored to double Carolina’s lead to 2-0.
By the second intermission, the Hurricanes were up 3-0 on three power-play goals, much to the delight of the crowd inside PNC Arena. Carolina still has the second best record in the NHL.
The Panthers, who spent the last two years in the same class as the Hurricanes, have now lost 7 of 10 and missed out on a chance to put together just their fourth two-game winning streak of the year. They still don’t have a streak longer and the schedule won’t let up once the calendar flips to 2023. Eight of their 15 games next months are against teams currently in playoff position with nine of the 15 away from Sunrise.
This story was originally published December 30, 2022 at 10:12 PM.
