The Panthers continued their road trip today with a game in Buffalo. Puck dropped at 1 PM, and we were underway.
Once again, Matthew Tkachuk was all over the ice, making his presence known. He wound up with another goal and an assist, a phenomenal start to his first few games as a Panther. Outside of the scoring, he also managed to irritate the Sabres, becoming involved in a few scuffles on the ice.
The Panthers power play looked better today, with the Cats able to convert on 2/6 opportunities. Both power play goals came in the second period, a welcome relief after going 0/5 against the Islanders.
Buffalo opened the scoring in the first with a goal by Tuch, assisted by Jokiharju and Comrie, making it the first time in Buffalo history a goalie has assisted on a goal in his debut. The Cats answered back with a goal from Colin White assisted by Luostarinen and Lundell, and then a few minutes later, Tkachuk swept one home assisted by Forsling. The Sabres quickly tied it back up less than a minute later with a beautiful drop pass from Peterkas that allowed Giergensons to drive the puck home. The teams headed to the dressing rooms tied at 2.
The second period was just as lively, bringing a power play goal from Aaron Ekblad assisted by Barkov and Reinhart. The score remained 3-2 till the end of the second, when another power play brought a goal from Brandon Montour, assisted by Tkachuk and Barkov. A minute later, Dalin closed the score gap again, and the period ended with the Panthers up 4-3.
There were no goals scored in the third period, but the energy and intensity was there. Buffalo had a massive opportunity to tie the game with a 5-on-3 power play, but the Panthers penalty kill went to work. Both teams fought hard till the end, leading to some tension boiling over and a bit of a square-off among some of the players.
When asked later about Tkachuk’s performance so far, head coach Paul Maurice had this to say:
He’s around everything, that man. He’s involved, to say the least. That’s his game. There’s no show going on. That’s just who he is. He’s involved in every scrum, most of the hits, and a goal a game so far.”
The Panthers close out their 3 game road trip on Monday October 17 in Boston, taking on the Bruins at 7 PM.
Cat Scratch Fever 