Aleksander Barkov raced through the middle of the ice with the chance to turn the Chicago Blackhawks’ power play -- probably the single biggest reason they’re a surprise playoff contender -- against them.
A few minutes later, the Florida Panthers were trying to kill off another Blackhawks power play when he charged down the right side and zipped a pass across the ice to MacKenzie Weegar for an open snap shot. With the clock ticking past the seven-minute mark, he saw the same play developing and a chance to deliver the Panthers the game-winning goal in an eventual 6-3 victory.
The star center slid the puck across the ice again and Weegar wound up to test Kevin Lankinen. He rifled a slap shot at the Blackhawks’ star rookie goaltender and it created just enough of a rebound for danger. Noel Acciari dug at it twice, then three times, while Barkov rushed in. One final shove would do it. Florida had the go-ahead goal with 6:34 left to complete another comeback win in Sunrise.
The win vaults the Panthers back into first place in the Central Division, one point ahead of the second-place Carolina Hurricanes and two ahead of the third-place Tampa Bay Lightning. Chicago remains in fourth, now nine points behind Florida.
In the final game of the first half of the 2020-21 NHL season, the Panthers hit all the beats that have defined their unlikely run to Stanley Cup contention. They gave up the first goal. They faced a multi-goal deficit in the second half of the game, then erased it in a flash. Sergei Bobrovsky was good, but not quite spectacular enough to erase every defensive breakdown and singlehanded win Florida the game.
In all of 62 seconds, the Panthers’ two-goal deficit disappeared Monday.
The Blackhawks took a 3-1 lead with 6:58 left in the second period, then took a penalty for the second time in the game. On its first power play, Florida ate up 1:58 before Owen Tippett finally beat star rookie Kevin Lankinen with a one-timer that went through traffic, banged off two Chicago defenders and slipped the Blackhawks goaltender.
On their second, the Panthers needed less than a minute. Star center Aleksander Barkov won the opening faceoff and Florida cycled the puck around the zone until Aaron Ekblad wound up with it in the left faceoff circle. The star defenseman pushed up to the dot and ripped a snap shot by Lankinen to cut Chicago’s lead to 3-2 with 5:02 left in the period.
Florida has become the NHL’s most prolific comeback artists this year because of its offensive firepower. The Panthers now lead the league with 12 wins after giving up the first goal and a flurry in the second period let them stage their fifth multi-goal comeback of the season.
Sixty-two seconds after Ekblad cut Chicago’s lead in half, Gustav Forsling erased it. Barkov won a loose puck in the right faceoff circle and danced away from chaos. The Blackhawks’ defense bent in the forward’s direction and he found Forsling all alone at the point. The defenseman gathered, fired and scored his first goal of the season to tie the game at 3-3 with four minutes left in the second.
After scoring three goals in 7:52 to raly against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday and three in 4:33 to beat Chicago on Saturday, Florida used a smaller rapid-fire burst to come back again Monday.
For the third straight game, Florida trailed in the second or third period and pulled off a comeback by scoring multiple unanswered goals in quick succession.
Florida got more power play in the period and twice nearly took the lead. First, Ekblad lined up a shot from the right circle, only to be denied and a sliding glove save by Lankinen. Later in the power play, Forsling lined up another open shot from the point, but clanged his slap shot off the post to keep the score tied.
More half of the third period ticked away and the Panthers couldn’t find the game-winner. Instead, they fought back on the ropes against the Blackhawks, whose power play is one of the most potent in the league. Florida beat them Saturday by stopping them all four times they went on the power play and the Panthers did the same Monday.
Bobrovsky made 26 saves on 29 shots and stopped every one he saw on the penalty kill to win his sixth straight game.
