5 Takeaways: Barkov Scores Twice as Panthers Best Blackhawks

SUNRISE, Fla. - Welcome back, Anthony Duclair!
Returning to the lineup after missing six games with a lower-body injury, the speedy winger settled right back into his old routine, setting up Aleksander Barkov for a pair of goals as the Panthers kicked off their four-game homestand with an exciting 4-2 win over the Blackhawks at BB&T Center on Saturday night.

"It was great to come back," said Duclair, who earned second-star honors for his efforts. "You never like to be injured, be out and watch the boys from the press box. We have an unreal medical staff here that took great care of me. I'm just happy to be back, playing with these guys and getting some wins."
Following a scoreless opening 20 minutes of action, the Blackhawks managed to draw first blood when Brandon Hagel sent a cross-crease dish from Dominik Kubalik right past Sergei Bobrovsky and into the back of the net to make it a 1-0 game just 28 seconds after the puck had dropped in the second period.
After that, however, it was pretty much all Panthers.
Starting with a goal from Barkov at 7:46, the Cats touched twine three times within a span of 4:34 to turn the game on its head and take a commanding lead. After Barkov made it 1-1, Carter Verhaeghe and Frank Vatrano each got one past Kevin Lankinen at 11:00 and 12:19, respectively, to make it a 3-1 game.
"We had an excellent period," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said of the middle frame. "Outside of the goal that we gave up, I thought we did everything right… It was one of those periods where all the lines were doing the right things… It's one of those periods to remember that when you play right, it's fun."
Padding that advantage in the third period, Barkov essentially put the game out of reach when Duclair set him up with a nice pass for a goal from the low slot to make it 4-1 at 10:01. And even though Chicago managed to cut the deficit down to 4-2 with a goal from Adam Boqvist at 18:28, the Panthers held on.
Keeping the Blackhawks scorers in check all night, Florida received some exceptional play from both its penalty kill and Bobrovsky. Entering tonight's matchup with the third-ranked power play in the league at 31%, Chicago finished 0-for-4 on the man advantage, with Bobrovsky making eight shorthanded saves.

Stopping 30 of 32 shots during tonight's win, Bobrovsky, who improves to 11-2-2 on the season, has now gone 6-0-1 while turning aside 222 of 241 for a .921 save percentage over his last seven starts.
"It's a process that's been going on from Game 1," Bobrovsky said. "You're building. You go out and your mind becomes more and more relaxed. You see the game better, more clearly, and you feel comfortable more and more. The more you play, you feel better. I feel great physically and I feel great mentally."
Winning five of their last six games, the Panthers (18-5-4) are currently tied with the Lightning (19-5-2) for the most points in the Central Division, while the Blackhawks (14-10-5) are sitting in fourth place.
"Being on the road for a long time and then coming back home to play in front of our fans, it's an awesome feeling," Barkov said. "I'm glad that we won today. We've just got to keep going."
Here are five takeaways from Saturday's win in Sunrise…

1. BARKOV BREAKS IT OPEN

Barkov saw nothing but white twine on this one.
Collecting a pass from the Duclair in the low slot, the Panthers captain fired a shot and then followed up on his own rebound, sending the puck into the exposed cage to make 1-1 at 7:46 of the second period.

"He's been resting this whole time, so he had fresh legs," Barkov said of Duclair. "He got us going."
Not done there, Barkov was back at it again in the third period. Slicing down the slot, he corralled another great pass from Duclair before beating Lankinen with a shot from just outside the blue paint to send Florida ahead 4-1 with 9:59 left on the clock in regulation.
"He's elite," Duclair said of Barkov. "He's one of the best centermen in the league, probably one of the best two-way forwards I've ever played with. He's just so skilled, so talented."
Taking his game to another level, Barkov - who deserves some mid-season MVP recognition for his play at both ends of the ice - picked up three more points tonight to raise his lofty total to 31 (11 goals, 20 assists). Heating up, the 25-year-old center has tallied four goals and eight assists in his last nine games.

2. DUCLAIR DOESN'T SKIP A BEAT

Returning to the lineup after missing six games with an injury, Duclair looked like he'd never left.
After starting the night on the fourth line, the 25-year-old winger quickly climb his way back up to the top line alongside Verhaeghe and Barkov. Posting eight assists in 19 games before being knocked out of the lineup, the caliber of his two helpers against Chicago showed that he still has the magic touch.
"Obviously, we played together at the beginning of the season and we built chemistry right off the bat there," Duclair said of being reunited with Barkov and Verhaeghe. "For me, taking this time was pretty eye-opening, just watching the game from a different perspective and trying to get a read on guys. But when it comes to Carter and Barky, we have that instant chemistry and want to keep going with that."
When Duclair was on the ice tonight, the Cats owned big advantages in goals (3-0) and shots (15-5).

3. VERHAEGHE FROM DEEP

You never know what can happen if you just put the puck on net.
Jumping on a long rebound after MacKenzie Weegar rung a shot off the crossbar, Verhaeghe simply slapped a shot toward the net from the high slot that caught a piece of a defender and floated over Lankinen's glove to give the Panthers a 2-1 advantage at the 11-minute mark of the second period.

A staple on Florida's top line ever since the season began, Verhaeghe has now recorded a career-high 10 goals to go along with 10 assists in 27 games. Incredibly, all 10 of those goals have come while at even-strength, which are tied for the most on the team and, as of this moment, rank seventh in the league.
Over his last five games, Verhaeghe has lit the lamp three times.

4. THE TANK KEEPS CRUSHING IT

Vatrano gave all the love to his teammate after scoring this beauty.
With a defender draped over his back behind the net, Owen Tippett sent a no-look, backhand pass toward the low slot and right onto the stick of Vatrano, who then lifted a shot straight over Lankinen and into the back of the net to give the Panthers a sudden 3-1 lead at 12:19 of the second period.

Providing the Panthers with all the secondary scoring they've needed in recent weeks, Vatrano has been giving opposing goaltenders a ton of headaches. Over his last nine games, the 26-year-old speedster has made a habit out of not only scoring, but coming up in the clutch while netting a team-leading six goals.
As for Tippett, the gifted rookie extended his point streak to three games (two goals, one assist).
"He did make a special play to Frankie on the goal," Quenneville said of Tippett, who's notched three goals and three assists in 18 games this season. "I think when he does things right, he can really add something to our team because he's such a threat when he does have the puck on this stick."

5. PRE-GAME CELEBRATION

The party started before the puck even dropped tonight.
After skating in the 1,000th game of his NHL career last week at Carolina, the Panthers marked Keith Yandle's lofty milestone with a pre-game ceremony before facing the Blackhawks. In addition to all players wearing "1,000" jerseys during warm-ups, Yandle also received a tribute video and a few gifts.
Among the gifts were a silver stick, a framed photo and, in typical Florida fashion, a custom golf cart.
"It's been a very humbling week," Yandle said when asked about the celebration. "To see how excited my teammates were, and the coaches, the GMs, everyone involved, the owners, the amount of texts from guys that I've played with, it's been a super, super humbling week. I didn't expect anything."

Now at 1,003 career games after tonight's tilt, Yandle has spent with 342 with the Panthers, 558 with the Coyotes and 103 with the New York Rangers. In that span, the 32-year-old has registered 590 points (102 goals, 488 assists), including racking up three goals and 14 assists through 27 games this season.
Since entering the league in 2006-07, Yandle's 275 power-play points rank third among NHL blueliners.

BONUS: GUD-HITS

Gudas had a game-high six hits tonight, but none were bigger than the one in the below tweet.
After some repeat viewings, I'm sure you'll also share Weegar's reaction on the bench.

Ranking second in the NHL with 126 hits, Gudas continues to bring the pain from the blue line.
"He can change the complexion of games with the physicality that he brings," Quenneville said.