5 TAKEAWAYS: Barkov Makes History, But Panthers Fall to Devils

On the night in which he claimed the franchise's all-time goals crown, Aleksander Barkov didn't feel much like celebrating after the Panthers suffered a 7-3 loss against the Devils on Tuesday.
"Right now, it's tough," said Barkov, who tallied his record-setting 189th career goal in defeat. "This loss, it hurts. We didn't show up the way we wanted. All the thoughts are about that."

Still off to an outstanding start with a record of 10-2-1, the Panthers have now lost consecutive games in regulation for the first time this season. And just as it was during Monday's loss to the Rangers, their domination of the possession battle was outdone by a few too many mistakes.
During their two-game hiccup, Florida has led 81-34 in scoring chances at 5-on-5.
"The last two games, we just haven't really grabbed those momentum swings," Panthers Interim Head Coach Andrew Brunette said. "We're allowing, even tonight, two goals in 30 seconds and then it's a 4-3 game, and the next thing you know it's 6-3. The same thing happened yesterday."
Despite the end result, the Panthers actually got the start they wanted.
Returning to the lineup after missing the previous three games while nursing an injury, Sam Bennett opened the scoring tonight when, after collecting a smooth no-look pass from Owen Tippett along the boards, he skated around the net, fired one shot and then swept in his own rebound from on the doorstep to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead just 3:53 into the first period.
Although their power play was operating at just a 9.7% success rate entering tonight's game, the Devils then managed to even the score when Andreas Johnsson followed up on a shot from Jesper Bratt on the man advantage and ripped the rebound into the net to make it 1-1 at 15:46.
Taking the lead just under two minutes after that score, Nico Hischier stuck his stick down and tipped a wrist shot from Ty Smith past Spencer Knight to put New Jersey on top 2-1 at 17:45.
Wasting no time in getting that goal back in the second period, Barkov took a nifty touch pass from Carter Verhaeghe, who posted two assists in the game, and lifted a shot past MacKenzie Blackwood to even things up and make it a 2-2 contest just 24 seconds after the puck dropped.
Rewriting the record books, Barkov's goal was the 189th of his budding career, which moved him past fellow Finn and former Panthers captain Olli Jokinen for the most in franchise history.
Briefly giving the Panthers their first lead soon after, Tippett, who was cutting towards the net, redirected a centering feed from Gustav Forsling past Blackwood to make it 3-2 at 1:29. But that advantage lasted less than a minute, as Johnsson scored another goal to make it 3-3 at 1:58.
Overall, the first three shots fired in the second period all ended up in the back of the net. "We don't need that," Barkov said of the back-and-forth scoring spree between the two teams.
"We want to keep the game tight, control the game and play with the puck. We don't want to trade goals like that. That's not us. We want to play a solid, simple game as much as possible."
After that wild start to the period, the action would calm down a bit until P.K. Subban put New Jersey up 4-3 when his shot from the point clipped off a defender and flew into the net at 18:15.
Pulling away in the third period, Pavel Zacha, who recorded the second power-play goal of the game for New Jersey, and Ty Smith found the back of the net at 4:44 and 5:13, respectively, to give the Devils a commanding 6-3 lead and essentially put the game out of reach for the Cats.
In net, Knight made 24 saves, while Blackwood stopped 35 of 38 shots.
"This is a real good experience for him," Brunette said of Knight, who is still just 20 years old. "Back-to-back in the NHL is tough, and I thought he battled. There were a couple bounces that didn't go his way tonight, or our way, and he unfortunately had to pay the price for those."
Capping off New Jerey's win, Jimmy Vesey scored an empty-net goal to make it 7-3 at 16:11.
"They played a fast game," Bennett said of the Devils. "They kept coming at us. I think we needed to play a little more desperate and hold them off a little bit harder. In our own zone we got trapped a couple times and it cost us goals. It's a game that we'll just move on from."
Looking to get back in the win column, the Panthers will visit the Penguins on Thursday.
"We've just got to forget these two games, get our head straight and move on," Barkov said.
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday's loss in New Jersey…

1. BENNETT IS BACK

Welcome back, Benny!
Picking up right where he left off after missing three games due to an injury, the grizzled center scored the first goal of tonight's game when he buried his own rebound early in the first period.

Prior to his injury, he'd scored four goals in eight games.
"It was nice to get back in the lineup," Bennett said. "It's tough sitting out and watching your team play, so it definitely felt good to get back. … But it was a disappointing game tonight."
A two-way force ever since the Panthers plucked him from the Flames last season's trade deadline, Bennett has tallied 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in 19 games since the move.
Skating 16:58 against the Devils, he also dished out two hits and won 56% of his faceoffs.

2. BARKOV MAKES HISTORY

Barkov's first-career goal came in his NHL debut back on Oct. 3, 2013.
More than eight years sand 188 more goals later, he's now made history. By beating Blackwood from just to the left of the cage less than 30 seconds into the second period tonight, the Panthers captain overtook Olli Jokinen for the most goals in club history.

"When this all settles down, that feeling is going to be great," Barkov said. "I know so many great players have played for this organization, and Olli Jokinen played for a long time, played unbelievable hockey here. To be in the same category as him, it was never even a dream, and now it's a reality. I'm happy, but at the same just need to keep going and keep getting better."
Taking a closer look at his 189 goals, Barkov has scored double digits against four teams in his career: Montreal (16), Detroit (13), Dallas (10) and Carolina (10). Per the NHL, the Panthers are also just one of five teams whose all-time goals leader is active with the club as of this season.
This season, Barkov's eight goals are tied with Anthony Duclair for most on the team.

3. TIPPETT TIPS ONE

Tippett lived up to his name on this goal.
Skating from right to left and into the slot, he deftly tipped a pass from Forsling over Blackwood's glove in stride to put the Panthers on top 3-2 early in the second period.

"I've always said he's a really good player," Bennett said of Tippett. "Once he realizes how good he is, he's going to be even better. I think he's starting to find some confidence and his game is trending in the right direction. I'm enjoying playing with him, for sure."
Finishing tonight's matchup with a goal and an assist, Tippett is now riding a three-game point streak in which he's produced one goal and three assists. Tightening his grip on his spot on the second line, the 22-year-old sniper has now registered three goals and five assists in 13 games.

4. CARLSSON DEBUTS

Lucas Carlsson took the ice for the first time with the Panthers tonight.
Paired up with Brandon Montour, the 24-year-old defenseman recorded three shots, one hit and one blocked shot over 15:14 of ice time. Per NaturalStatTrick.com, Florida also led 28-11 in shot attempts, 15-7 in shots on goal and 17-5 in scoring chances when he was on the ice at 5-on-5.
"I thought he played a solid game," Brunette said. "He moved the puck pretty well. It was kind of what I expected out of him. He's a solid player and he fit in very well."
Recalled from the AHL Charlotte on Sunday, Carlsson, who appeared in 18 NHL games with Chicago before being traded to Florida last season, was named the Checkers' top blueliner in October after racking up six points (one goal, five assists) and a +10 rating in eight contests.

5. BOBROVSKY BACKS UP

One of the most important players to watch tonight wasn't even on the ice.
After sitting out the last three games due to an upper-body injury, Sergei Bobrovsky served as the backup goaltender in New Jersey. Considered day-to-day ever since he was knocked out of the lineup on Nov. 4, this progress is a good sign as the Cats won't play again until Thursday.
Already a two-time winner of the Vezina Trophy, Bobrovsky has been playing this season like he really wants a third. Boasting a 1.72 goals-against average and .948 save percentage, he's gotten off to a 6-0-0 start while giving up more than two goals in just one of his appearances.
Stay tuned for updates on Bobrovsky's status later this week.