Panthers couldn't overcome potholes on road

The Florida Panthers (43-30-8) were eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoff contention when the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the New York Rangers 5-0 on Saturday.
The Panthers were 19-22-6 prior to the All-Star break, but used a 24-8-2 stretch in their next 34 games to get into the playoff mix. However, they ultimately ended up falling short of their first postseason berth since 2015-16.

Here is a look at what went wrong for the Panthers in 2017-18 and why things could be better in 2018-19.

The skinny

Potential UFAs: Radim Vrbata, RW; Connor Brickley, C
Potential RFAs: Jared McCann, C; Frank Vatrano, C; Alexander Petrovic, D; MacKenzie Weegar, D
Potential 2018 Draft picks: 6

What went wrong

Road woes: The Panthers won 27 games at home but 16 of 41 away from BB&T Center. Florida lost four of its past five games on the road, where it had trouble stringing together consecutive wins, and had a minus-18 goal differential away from home. Nine teams had fewer.
Luongo's injury: Goaltender Roberto Luongo, 39, missed six games from Oct. 21-Nov. 2 with a hand injury and 26 games from Dec. 7-Feb. 12 with a groin injury. In those 32 games, the Panthers won half (16-13-3) and were unable to establish momentum. Luongo (18-11-2, 2.48 goals-against average, .929 save percentage, three shutouts) arguably was Florida's MVP this season.

Nothing extra: Their 6-8 record in games that went beyond the third period proved costly, considering how few points they will miss the playoffs by. They were 3-5 in overtime; the three wins are tied for the fewest in the League with the Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens.

Reasons for optimism

Aleksander Barkov: The 22-year-old center had a breakout season with 78 points (27 goals, 51 assists) in 79 games, besting his NHL personal high in points by 19 and was one goal from tying his high (each set in 2015-16). Barkov, who missed the final two games of the season with an upper-body injury, won 908 faceoffs, which ranks fifth in the League. He also likely will be in the Selke Trophy conversation for the best defensive forward.

Core secured: They have two potential unrestricted free agents and four potential restricted free agents, and have locked up their core for the next four-plus seasons. Center Nick Bjugstad is signed through 2020-21; centers Vincent Trocheck and Barkov are signed through 2021-22; forward Jonathan Huberdeau is signed through 2023-24, and defenseman Aaron Ekblad is signed through 2024-25. The five each are among Florida's top seven in scoring.
Center of attention: In addition to their center depth at the NHL level, the Panthers have several good prospects at the position. Henrik Borgstrom, 20, the No. 23 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, got his feet wet with three NHL games this season and had 52 points (23 goals, 29 assists) in 40 games with the University of Denver. Aleksi Heponiemi, 19, selected in the second round (No. 40) in the 2017 draft, has 118 points (28 goals, 90 assists) in 57 games with Swift Current of the Western Hockey League.