Panthers lose in shootout in Tom Rowe coaching debut

CHICAGO -- Corey Crawford made 38 saves to help the Chicago Blackhawks to a 2-1 shootout victory against the Florida Panthers and Tom Rowe, who made his NHL coaching debut, at United Center on Tuesday.
Chicago forward Artemi Panarin beat goalie Roberto Luongo in the second round of the shootout, and Richard Panik, who scored in the first period, ended it with his goal in the third round.
It was Florida's first game since Gerard Gallant was fired as coach following a 3-2 loss at the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday. Rowe, who is Panthers general manager, will coach them the rest of the season.

WATCH: All Panthers vs. Blackhawks highlights
"I'm really proud of the guys," Rowe said. "The effort was incredible to come into Chicago and go into the third period [down] 1-0, give yourself a chance to win the game, and then we tie it up and we get a point. It was a great effort by everyone."
The Blackhawks (15-6-3) played at home for the first time since completing their seven-game "Circus Trip" on Saturday. Chicago played its third straight game without center Jonathan Toews, who is day to day because of an upper-body injury, and it lost center Artem Anisimov in the third period to an ankle/foot injury.

"That was a long trip there, and we were excited to come back home," said Crawford, who made four saves in overtime to help kill 1:40 of carryover power-play time for the Panthers. "They came out pretty strong, but we played pretty solid and smart and we created a lot, where I think their guy made a bunch of saves, and we just found a way to win in this one."
Luongo made three of his 32 saves for the Panthers (11-10-2) in overtime.
Panik scored on a breakaway with 2:10 left in the first period to make it 1-0, and Florida's Jaromir Jagr tied it 1-1 35 seconds into the third period.
It was Panik's seventh goal, first since Oct. 22, a span of 17 games. Prior to it, the Panthers outshot the Blackhawks 12-3 during a 14:26 span.

Goal of the game

A fortunate bounce off a pass by Chicago forward Dennis Rasmussen led to Panik's breakaway goal in the first. Skating through the neutral zone, Panik got the puck behind two Panthers defensemen, headed for the net, and scored with a forehand-backhand move.
"[Rasmussen] flipped it over and the [defenseman] touched it," Panik said. "I was hoping it was going to go by him and it went, so I got a breakaway. It was good I scored."

Save of the game

Crawford's save on Derek MacKenzie at 6:15 of the third period kept it tied 1-1. Vincent Hinostroza got his left skate tangled with Crawford and sent his own goalie to the ice. Crawford was dazed but got to his knees as MacKenzie took a slap shot and deflected the puck off the left post with his right hand before covering it.
"I was pretty mad there," Crawford said, smiling. "[Hinostroza] said he didn't see me."

Unsung moment of the game

Jonathan Marchessault got the primary assist on Jagr's goal with a strong second effort. Marchessault's shot was blocked by Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook, but he chased the puck down in the corner and threw it to the front of the net. It bounced off Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith's right skate and went straight to Jagr.

Highlight of the game

Luongo's diving save at 3:05 of the first period kept the score 0-0. He made an initial save off Seabrook's shot, but Anisimov got the rebound and sent the puck to Panarin for a backhand shot. Luongo dove and knocked it down with his glove.

They said it

"We feel that we are on the right track with this game today and obviously after the events that happened before this. I think we are moving forward and in the right direction based on the way we played today."-- Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad on Tom Rowe's first game as their coach
"Certainly, we need more traffic and we should never be passing up shots. I think sometimes we look for something even better than a glorious chance." --Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville on their struggling power play, which went 0-for-2.

Need to know

Chicago forward Jordin Tootoo returned to the lineup after missing a game with a lower-body injury. … Anisimov left the game at 12:36 of the third period after he was struck on the inside of his right ankle/foot by a Keith slap shot. … The Panthers have lost their past six games in Chicago (0-4-2). … Jagr passed Chris Chelios for fifth place on the NHL's all-time games played list (1,652).

What's next

Panthers: At the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; FS-D, FS-F, NHL.TV)
Blackhawks: Host the New Jersey Devils on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; CSN-CH, MSG+ 2, NHL.TV)