Three takeaways: Panthers going through it, breakaways remain an issue
An unfortunate recurring theme on the Florida Panthers current road trip has been frustration.
Florida is four games into their six-game journey and have only one win to show for it.
In two of those three losses, including Sunday on Long Island, the Panthers held a two-goal third period lead that saw evaporate before their eyes.
There are reasons to point to, such as the key players missing from Florida’s lineup or the trip itself, which finally offers some ease over the next several days.
Either way, this isn’t a team that cares about excuses.
They are about results, and right now, the results aren’t good.
Here are Sunday’s takeaways:
HOLES IN THEIR GAME
Florida generally doesn’t allow much off the rush, but when they do, it tends to be a breakaway.
The Panthers got burned by a couple of goals off-the-rush in the 3rd period last night against the Islanders.
— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) March 17, 2025
Florida has allowed 53 breakaways this season, only Anaheim has allowed more (55).
The Panthers -30 breakaway differential is tied with the Ducks for last in the NHL.… pic.twitter.com/NZPJzQCzvw
That’s what bit them twice against the Islanders.
In terms of the how and why, it semes Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice has a decent idea what the cause is.
“We got some miles on some people there,” were the first words out of Maurice’s mouth when he addressed the media afterwards. “The first one, I understand, the second one, those two, we just got beat to the net. It doesn't happen very often to us.”
STEADINESS FROM VANECEK
Since being acquired ahead of the Trade Deadline, goaltender Vitek Vanecek has played quite well for the Panthers.
In two starts, Vanecek has stopped 51 of the 54 shots he’s faced, including seven of 10 high danger shots.
He’s also been a steady presence in net, which is exactly what Florida needed after dealing Spencer Knight to Chicago in the Seth Jones trade.
“Oh, he was good tonight. Boy, we needed that,” Maurice said of Vanecek. “You come in on a back-to-back, and he was really good. I feel for the young man because he played well enough to earn recognition for the win, but we've got a good one there.”
TAKING THEIR LUMPS
It appears the Panthers are going through it right now.
That will happen.
The important thing will always be that they can come out the other side.
It’s what good teams do, it’s what the Panthers have done in past instances, and it’s what they’re expected to do this time around.
“It's good for us right now,” Maurice said. “I think there is a certain amount of humbling that you want to have happen before you go into the playoffs. We’ve still got some work to do to get there. We're losing bodies, and I think that's going to be the trend. We’ve still got four sets of back-to-backs, and all the teams we play are rested, so everybody's fighting for their lives right now. It's a grinder to the finish, so we want to make sure we feel confident in what we're doing. We’ve played some pretty strong periods in the last week, we just have had results that we don't care for.”
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