5 Takeaways: Panthers Inch Closer to Playoffs with 5th Straight Win

SUNRISE, Fla. -The Florida Panthers can almost taste a playoff spot after a 4-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres at BB&T Center on Friday night brought them within one point of the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Panthers (31-25-6) have won each of the first five games of their season-long six-game homestand and 12 out of their last 15 overall. They trail Carolina and Columbus by just one point for a place in the postseason picture with games in hand on both clubs.

"We knew we had to get on a run like this," Panthers forward Nick Bjugstad said. "The way we started [the season] wasn't ideal, but anything can happen at the end of the year. A spark has been lit here and we're meshing well.
"There's no stopping here. We obviously still have a lot of games to play and we can't rely on other teams to help us out. It's got to be us. It's going to be a fun run here."
At the beginning of the season, Panthers coach Bob Boughner said he believed that good teams don't lose two games in a row - a mantra he hoped to instill in his players. For the Panthers, that's been a reality for most of the last month, as the club has lost back-to-back games just once since late-January.
From here on out, the Panthers are no longer surprised by their success.
"That's been the goal all year, to make our game and our systems instinctive and to expect to win every game if we're a structured team," Boughner said. "For me as a coach, when you see guys get on rolls and see the team get on a roll, it's an easy buy-in.
"I think they understand the way we need to play to be successful. Now, they're reaping the rewards. They go into every game knowing how it important it is and expect to win. That's a great identity."
Here are five takeaways from Friday's win in Sunrise…

1. MATHESON MIXES IT UP

Alas, the Road Warrior is no more. After having scored the first eight goals of his season on the road, defenseman Mike Matheson finally lit the lamp at home on Thursday night, converting on a wrist shot from the slot to put the Panthers up 1-0 at 1:25 of the first period. "I didn't give it too much thought," Matheson said of contract between his scoring at home and on the road. "I guess that's just how it goes sometimes. It can just happen." For the Panthers, scoring first as been very important as of late, as the team has lit the lamp first in 11 of their last 13 games and is 22-9-2 overall when opening the scoring this season. In the midst of his second full season in South Florida, Matheson has already set new career highs in goals (9), assists (14) and points (23). A stick-checking machine, the 24-year-old also leads Florida's blueliners with 50 takeaways, which is also good enough for fifth among the league's defensemen.

2. EK-CEPTIONAL

Ekblad scored his 13th goal of the season on Saturday night, cashing in on a one-timer from the right circle to put break an early tie and put the Panthers up 2-1 at 16:41 of the first period. At just 22, Ekblad leads the Eastern Conference in goals by a defenseman, trailing Nashville's P.K. Subban by two goals for a share of the overall league lead. The goal also had some history to it, as it was the 50th of his career. Only former Panthers defensemen Robert Svehla (61) and Jay Bouwmeester (53) have scored more goals than Ekblad in franchise history. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, Ekblad has posted 11 points (4-7-11) over his last 13 games.

3. APPLES FOR BJUGSTAD

Bjugstad's resurgence this season can't be understated. The 25-year-old picked up a pair of primary assists on Friday night, giving him 34 points on the season - his best since 2015-16. After a few injury-plagued campaigns, he finally appears to be getting back into a grow. Since being promoted to the first line, Bjugstad has tallied 12 points (2-10-12) in 16 games while playing alongside Aleksander Barkov and Evgenii Dadonov. Still, it hasn't been just the quantity of his assists that's been impressive, but also the quality. Bjugstad is tied for fifth on the Panthers with 16 primary assists this season, moving into a tie with Keith Yandle after setting up Colton Sceviour midway through the second period. Carrying the puck from the blue line to the right circle, Bjugstad spun around before sending a backhand shot towards the net, creating a juicy rebound that Sceviour buried to extend Florida's lead to 4-1 at 11:16 of the period. "The goals haven't really been coming, so you've got to find ways to generate stuff," Bjugstad said of his playmaking. "When you play with Barkov and Dadonov, they find ways to get open. You've got to look for that pass. Barky had an unbelievable goal tonight, and did the other night, too."

4. BARKY'S GOT BACKHAND

What's there left to say about Barkov? A lot, actually. The 22-year-old superstar ruined yet another goaltender's day with his backhand on Saturday night, cutting through Buffalo's defense before chipping a shot over Robin Lehner's shoulder to put the Panthers up 3-1 at 6:49 of the second period. "The Barky show took over there for a few shifts," Boughner said.The goal was Barkov's 24th of the season, moving him into a tie with Vincent Trocheck for the team lead. In the midst of his third consecutive 20-goal and 50-point campaign, Barkov leads Florida with a career-high 62 points and is tied with Jonathan Huberdeau for the team-lead in assists (38).

5. NO RUST FOR REIMER

James Reimer showed no signs of rust in making his first start since Feb. 18 - a 7-2 loss in Winnipeg. After the Sabres scored just over five minutes into the first period, Reimer found his rhythm and settled down, finishing the night with 24 saves on 25 shots - his first full start allowing one-or-fewer goals since shutting out Montreal on Dec. 30. "He was great," Matheson said of Reimer. "It didn't seem like he hadn't been in for a while. He was solid from the get-go, other than the breakdown that we had ourselves. He had nothing to do with that one, so he had a perfect game." Roberto Luongo, who is 5-1-0 with a 2.48 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage since returning from a groin injury that kept him out of the lineup for more than two months, is expected to start on Sunday when the Panthers close out their homestand against Philadelphia.