Florida Panthers fall in shootout to the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2

After dropping a tough game to the Detroit Red Wings, the Florida Panthers were heading into Ohio, looking to snap their three-game losing streak.

Net minders James Reimer and Sergei Bobrovsky were starting in between the pipes tonight, for their respective sides. Both goaltenders were looking to come up big tonight, but only one would remain victorious.

The Blue Jackets started the game off strong, pouring pressure down deep in the Panthers end. The Cats on the other hand tried matching their opponents game style, but it didn’t work. For a good two-three minutes, the Panthers weren’t able to get the puck out. They were running around like headless chickens in their own zone.

Thanks to James Reimer’s solid play, the score remained tied for the time being. But that all changed at the halfway mark through the first, where Nick Foligno scored on the man advantage, giving his side a 1-0 lead.

Dubois received a pass from the point (courtesy of Seth Jones), immediately then finding Nick Foligno in the slot. Foligno then wristed a shot over Reimer’s glove and in:

The Cats received two power plays, later in the first, but ultimately failed to cash in on the first. The second would carry over to start the second.

With the first period heavily dominated by the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Panthers would head into the locker room a goal down.

The Panthers would begin the second period on the power play, which carried over from the first. Jonathan Huberdeau managed to put Florida on the board (31 seconds in), tying the game at one goal a piece.

Aleksander Barkov stripped Jack Johnson of the puck down low, and quickly fed Dadonov a quick pass. Evgeni Dadonov then found Huberdeau open in the slot, where Johnny snapped the puck home:

The rest of the second was evenly played by both sides, but it was Florida who would run into some trouble. Later in the second frame, both Ian McCoshen and Mark Pysyk each took penalties a minute and a half apart, sending the Jackets to a 5 on 3 man advantage.

The Panthers managed to kill off McCoshen’s penalty, but were scored on Pysyk’s. Aaron Ekblad failed to clear the puck, and Artemi Panarin kept the puck alive in Panthers territory.

Panarin then sent a cross-crease pass to Seth Jones, where Jones quickly fed Dubois in the slot. Dubois tipped the puck in, and the Jackets regained their lead (2-1):

Pierre-Luc Dubois’ goal would send the Cats into the dressing room a goal down, similar to the first period. Florida managed to play a better period in the second, but unfortunately it wasn’t good enough.

Columbus started the third on the attack, firing from all cylinders. With some big saves from Reimer, the game remained 2-1 in favor of the Blue Jackets. The Cats managed to get some pressure going in the Jackets zone, but Sergei Bobrovsky wouldn’t budge.

Eventually though, he would, and the Panthers would tie the game late. With under two minutes left in play, and with a pulled goaltender, Aleksander Barkov came to the rescue and tied the game.

Jonathan Huberdeau intended for his pass to go to Vinnie Trocheck, but instead it hit off Jack Johnson’s skate and deflected straight to Barkov. Aleksander was left all alone, and would redirect the puck pass Bobrovsky and in:

Thanks to Aleksander Barkov, regulation would end with a score of 2-2, sending both teams into overtime. Extra time was a thriller, where both sides would exchange chances at both ends of the rink. With both goaltenders making key saves in over time, extra time simply wasn’t enough, and a shootout was needed.

Artemi Panarin would begin the shootout with the first shot, ripping the puck over Reimer’s glove and in. Vinnie Trocheck would shoot first for the Cats, but was denied by Bobrovsky. Next for Columbus was Oliver Bjorkstrand, but like Trocheck, he was denied.

Barkov would shoot second for the Cats, and boy did he every pull off a fancy move to score! Boone Jenner with his team’s third shot, had the chance to give Columbus the lead. James Reimer had other plans, and denied him in his tracks.

The potential shootout winner was on Huberdeau’s stick, but Bobrovsky barely made the save on Johnny. From shooters 7-10, each of them would all miss against their respective opposing goal tender. Jack Johnson and Michael Matheson on the other hand, would each score, and send the shootout to additional rounds.

Eventually, Columbus would end the shootout with a Josh Anderson’s goal, and a Jared McCann miss. The Columbus Blue Jackets would go on to defeat the Florida Panthers, 3-2 in a shootout.

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Overall, the Florida Panthers got what they deserved, with the way they played most of the game. The Jackets dominated the majority of the game, and deserved the victory in the end. Your Panthers are back in action on Tuesday, January 9th @ 8:00pm against the St. Louis Blues!