SUNRISE, Fla. _ As the odor of desperation puffed from the visitor's bench on Saturday night at the BB&T Center, the scent of confidence emanated from the Florida Panthers' dressing room. The stench of a three-game losing streak followed the Montreal Canadiens. The perfume of a four-game winning streak hovered over the Panthers.
Two teams going opposite directions met on the ice. With a 2-0 Panthers win, the separation widened.
Florida continued its push to reenter the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference with its fifth straight win. Montreal's tumble down the Atlantic Division worsened. And for the first time since the season's third game, the Panthers (17-16-5, 39 points) rose above .500.
Connor Brickley's goal in the second period gave the Panthers a lead, and James Reimer made sure Florida kept it. Brickley's goal was his second in four games, and punctured the barrier named Carey Price. Vincent Trocheck added a goal at 11:49 of the third period to extend the Panthers' lead.
It was Reimer's second shutout in his last three games.
Price came up big in the first period for the Canadiens (16-19-4, 36 points), keeping the game goalless as both teams traded chances. But Brickley's quick shot from the left dot changed that. After Mark Pysyk fired a shot from the point that hit Brickley in front of the net, he gathered the puck and swung it on Price.
It beat Price short side, sending Brickley into a celebration that matched his fourth goal of the season. He turned to the Florida bench and dropped on to his left knee. He wound his left arm and brushed the ice before his teammates joined him.
Brickley's goal underscored what's been going right for the Panthers during their winning streak. They've gotten contributions up and down the lineup; not enough to inflate scores, but enough to cover the team when its top stars can't carry the club.
This month, Brickley has rotated in and out of the Panthers lineup, an injection of energy when he's in, but sometimes scratched in favor of players with more offensive upside. His goalless streak stretched 18 games by the time he scored against Minnesota on Dec. 22.
That goal was off a rebound. Saturday's was too.
Brickley's goal came on the heels of a slight adjustment by Panthers coach Bob Boughner. During the second period, he dropped winger Evgenii Dadonov to the third line. He elevated Brickley to the second one. Brickley's forechecking and net-front presence earned him a spot on the second line earlier this season. His promotion was timely Saturday.
"Price is the best goalie in the league," Boughner said before the game. "You got to find ways to solve him early. Got to keep the puck away from him on our dumps, on our forecheck. We got to make sure we get someone in his eyes. That's the key to this game tonight is trying to break down Carey Price a little bit and a ton of shot attempts and a lot of traffic."
With Price leading the Canadiens once again, Reimer's brilliance continued in his 11th straight start in place of the injured Roberto Luongo. Though his shutout streak of 141:54 was snapped last game against Philadelphia, he started a new one Saturday night.
He made 13 saves in the first period, and nine more in the second to keep the Canadiens frustrated on offense. Montreal entered Saturday having scored just one goal in each of the last three games.
Canadiens coach Claude Julien responded by tweaking his lineup and preaching a fresh approach that involved more movement from defensemen in the offensive zone. It didn't matter.
With the win, the Panthers gained two points on the New York Islanders for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, now sitting five points back. The deficit in the Atlantic Division remained nine points with Boston's win on Saturday night.
Even on a five-game winning streak, the Panthers have a lot of work left to be considered playoff contenders. Consider this: after games on Dec. 12, Florida sat three points out of playoff spot. Entering Saturday, the Panthers were 4-2-0 since and lost six points on their quest for the postseason.
On Saturday night, one team exited closer to the hunt. One team remained clouded by desperation.
"Team is just as desperate as we are for points and there's no easy games," Boughner said. "We're in no position to take anybody likely. It's a division game, four-point game."
