5 Takeaways: Luongo Bounces Back, Shuts Out Canadiens
"Needless to say, I don't feel too good about myself after tonight," Luongo said somberly in the post-game dressing room. "I feel like I cost the team a win here."
One game later, the future Hall of Famer was Florida's reason for victory.
In a bounce back performance for the ages, Luongo stopped all 28 shots he faced to lead the Panthers to a 2-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Monday night -- keeping Florida's playoff hopes very much alive.
"Even if he has an off game, we know what he's going to come back with," Panthers coach Bob Boughner said. "He's that kind of a pro. He means everything to this team. There was no doubt in our mind because we know what kind of person he is on and off the ice. Lou's the ultimate pro."
The shutout was the 76th of Luongo's storied career, moving the 38-year-old into a tie with Ed Belfour and Tony Esposito for ninth place on the NHL's all-time list. Since returning from a two-month absence due to a lower-body injury, Luongo has been simply outstanding, going 9-3-1 with a .928 save percentage.
"Obviously, it was a must-win for us," Luongo said. "We dropped one in the last game at home. It was important to start off this road trip with a big win here."
After blanking the Canadiens in each of their previous two meetings this season, Monday's shutout win marked the first time in franchise history that the Panthers have held the same opponent without a goal in three straight contests.
With backup James Reimer slated to start in the second game of Florida's back-to-back set on Tuesday night in Ottawa, the Panthers are still in control of their playoff destiny, trailing New Jersey by three points for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference with two games in hand.
"I thought we played really well," Panthers winger Jonathan Huberdeau said. "Obviously, [Aleksander Barkov's] line got us going. Lou shut the door on big saves, and that's good. It's a big win. Now, we've got to go back tomorrow and get another one."
Here are five takeaways from Monday's win in Montreal…
1. EKBLAD'S TOE DRAG
Aaron Ekblad sent Twitter into quite the tizzy on Monday night, scoring his 15th goal of the season in exceptional fashion. After collecting a loose puck near the top of the slot, Ekblad unleashed a demonic toe drag to cut through Montreal's defense before lifting a backhand shot over goaltender Antti Niemi's shoulder to give the Panthers an early 1-0 lead at 18:31 of the first period.
"I was cheating a little bit there," Ekblad chuckled. "I'm sure we'll look at the video and see maybe I should have stayed out, [but] it worked out. I got [the puck] on the backhand, pulled it across my forehand and then back and got a good goal there."
The highlight-reel move has already been shared by nearly every major hockey outlet via social media, often accompanied by a well-deserved fire emoji. For Ekblad, the spectacular goal not only matched his career-high, but also moved him into a four-way tie for first in the league for goals by a defenseman.
At 22, Ekblad leads Florida's defensemen in goals (15), power-play goals (4) and shots (171), while also leading the team in even-strength ice time (1321:11).
2. UP TO THE CHALLENGE
Just 12 seconds after Ekblad's goal, the Canadiens raced down the ice and scored to make it a 1-1 game - or did they? While the rowdy fans at the Bell Centre were celebrating Jacob De La Rose's supposed game-tying goal, the Panthers were looking at the tape.
After a quick chat with his coaching staff, including video coach Ben Cooper, Boughner made the difficult decision to challenge the play for offsides. If the call was upheld, Florida would be charged with a two-minute penalty and lose its timeout. But after a rather lengthy review, the NHL Hockey Operations staff determined that "Montreal's Alex Galchenyuk was off-side prior to the goal."
With the goal taken off the board, the Panthers headed into the first intermission with their one-goal lead intact. Florida is now a perfect 3-for-3 on offside challenges this season.
To see the replay, click HERE.
3. SETTING THE TONE IN THE SECOND
After holding a slim advantage in both shots on goal (9-7) and even-strength shot attempts (17-15) in the first period, the Panthers came out firing in the second. As you can see in the chart below (courtesy of NautralStatTrick.com), Florida controlled play throughout the entire second frame, finishing the period with a 25-9 advantage in shot attempts.
Unfortunately, the Panthers just couldn't capitalize on any of their nine scoring chances in the period, as Niemi stood tall, stopping all 19 shots on goal he faced in the hellish 20-minute session for the backup goaltender.
"They came out strong in the first 10 minutes," Luongo said. "They had a couple chances. Afterwards, I thought we kind of took over the game and established our forecheck and our speed and all that kind of stuff. We created a lot of chances, but couldn't seem to find the back of the net for a while there."
4. MORE POINTS FOR BARKOV
After a mountain of missed opportunities, the Panthers finally capitalized in the third period, with Aleksander Barkov using a little bit of puck luck to get the team its much-needed insurance goal.
With the puck on his stick inside the left circle, Barkov attempted to pass the puck to Nick Bjugstad in the slot. Instead the puck took an advantageous detour, bouncing off a Canadiens defenseman, past Niemi and into the net to extend Florida's lead to 2-0 at 6:23 of the third period.
After the goal - his 26th of the season - Barkov's point total now sits at 71, which is tied with Olli Jokinen (2007-08) and Ray Whitney (1999-00) for the fifth-most points in a single season in franchise history. Already the team's first 70-point scorer in a decade, Barkov has the potential to reach 80 before the end of the season, as the 22-year-old center is on a tear, notching 17 points (6-11-17) over his last 13 games.
5. PERFECT PK
When the Panthers made a mistake on Monday night, they made sure that it didn't cost them. Florida went a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty against Montreal, limiting the Canadiens to just six shot attempts with the man advantage.
Even more impressive, however, is the fact the Panthers penalty kill provided as much offense as Montreal's power play, unleashing six shot attempts - including a few golden scoring opportunities -- while shorthanded.
The Panthers have now gone nine straight games without surrendering a power-play goal and have begun to earn a reputation for their offensive bite when down a man. With 10 shorthanded goals this season, Florida is tied for the league lead.
"We've been pretty good in that department all year, being a shorthanded team," Boughner said. "Sometimes as a coach you sit back there, and you don't want to see guys pressing too hard for offense when we're short, but we've done a real good job. We missed quite a few chances in the last two weeks shorthanded as well.
"We're a little bit of a threat in that category and I think that sort of makes other power plays take notice of that and maybe they're a little more hesitant to make that high-end play once in a while through the box."
