Panthers Wrap-Up: Panthers 4, Jets 3 (SO)
Versteeg, Clemmensen help Panthers end eight game road-losing streak with rare shootout victory.
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 Mikael Samuelsson scored the Panthers' winning goal of the shootout, which used 14 skaters. Mike Santorelli also scored in regulation for Florida (22-15-10), which also ended a four-game skid. FULL RECAP |
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 - Panthers goaltender Scott Clemmensen |
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 2. Jets Pressurized Hockey: Down by two after one, the Jets came at the Panthers with even more pressure. Winnipeg swarmed the Florida zone for what seemed like the entire second period. They were rewarded on one of their 15 shots as Kyle Wellwood put pressure on Dmitry Kulikov behind the net. The Jets forward picked off Kulikov's pass and found Nik Antropov from in close 5:06 into the second for a power play goal, cutting the Panthers lead to one. A little over a period later (5:54 into the third), they were knotted the game at two as Antropov netted his second of the night from the left slot. Versteeg, who was along with Clemmensen was Florida's best player all night recaptured the lead for the Panthers as he answered Antropov's tally 57 seconds later as his hard shot on the turnover was hard enough to just get past Pavelec's glove hand. Trailing once again, Winnipeg put continued their pressure and knotted the game once again as Alex Burmistrov scored with 6:15 left to play. The Jets finished the game, outshooting the Panthers 44-23. 3. Ending A Streak With A Shootout Win: Outplayed most of the night, the Panthers still lost leads on two seperate occasions. While you want to close out a team when you have a chance, and giving Winnipeg a point in the standings, Florida ultimately came out on top for an important two points. In overtime, the teams traded chances but the game ultimately went to the shootout. It was Wellwood who would find the back of the net first in the Jets second attempt. Versteeg however answered with a tally of his own. After missing on each of their next shots, the shootout went to sudden death. Blake Wheeler, up for the Jets, gave the home crowd a temporary chear as he beat a downed Clemmensen. Needing a goal or the game was over, Santorelli came through as he scored five-hole on Pavelec. After another round of saves, Burmistrov missed the open net. Looking for the victory for their fourth time in the shootout, Mikael Samuelsson obliged as he put a shot over Pavelec's shoulder, giving the Panthers a 4-3 victory. For Florida, it was just their third shootout victory of the season (3-5). The victory was huge in several ways. It vaulted Florida back to the top of the Southeast with 54 points and it also helped end an eight-game road losing streak. For a team that had gone 7-3 and 10-6 in their first 10 and 16 games of the season on the road, the victory will hopefully bring back pleasant memories of success on the road. |
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 Memorable twitter posts from the game.
@RyanMaloy13: @flapanthers #Flapanthers. Good game tonight by the cats. Steeger with another big performance in winnipeg. #Gocats #Buzzin |
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 Memorable fan posts from the game.
Christina Colon: YES! The Panthers are back!!!!! Congrats Versteeg, Santorelli and Samuelsson. They should count Versteeg's goal as a hat trick. :) Dave G.: All that matters is we got the 2 points, no matter who outplayed who. Games aren't won or lost on overall effort or who the healthier team is, they are won by scoring more goals than the other team. That's it. Nagy Gabriel: Thank you Steeger,Santorelli,Sammy and Clemmer!Finally a SO WIN!:D Adam Cohen: I was on the edge of my seat during that shootout, didn't think it would ever end! How do you like dem apples. Joe Fiore: I don't think any of you can deny that Clemmensen was a wall tonight. |
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 5. If only the Panthers could play the Jets in all 82 games. At least Kris Versteeg probably wished that. Shut out in his first game against Winnipeg, Versteeg notched the first NHL hat trick of his career in a four-point night on November 11. He followed that up with two more goals and an assist, giving him 7 points (5-2-7) in three games against the Southeast Division foes. |
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2 Goals, 1 Assist, 4 Shots, +3
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Panthers
JETS
Author: Glenn Odebralski | FloridaPanthers.com
