5 TAKEAWAYS: Mamin scores twice as Panthers top Blues in shootout

SUNRISE, Fla. -Another game, another hero.
Led by a pair of goals from Maxim Mamin, the Panthers continually clawed their way back from three separate one-goal deficits to come from behind and close out their successful homestand with an exhilarating 4-3 shootout win over the Blues at FLA Live Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Improving to 17-4-3, the Panthers, who have picked up wins in seven of their last nine games, are just the sixth team in NHL history to win 14 of their first 15 games at home to start a season.

"I'm extremely lucky to have a group like this," Panthers interim head coach Andrew Brunette said of the team's incredible depth. "They're fun to be around and fun to watch night in, night out. We're blessed with depth. Every guy every night is stepping up. That's fun to be a part of."
In full control throughout most of the matchup, Florida led 72-26 in shot attempts at 5-on-5.
"We've been so strong on pucks," Brunette said of the possession battle. "When we don't have it, we get it back as soon as possible. That's been a good trait of our team here so far this year."
Trading goals in the first period, the Blues took an early lead when Dakota Joshua made a nifty move in the slot before sending a pass to Logan Brown for a goal on the doorstep to make it 1-0 at 5:24. Less than two minutes later, Mamin got that that goal right back for the Panthers when he collected a pass from Lucas Carlsson and sniped a shot into the cage to make it 1-1 at 7:04.

With 20 minutes in the books, Florida led 31-14 in shot attempts and 16-9 in scoring chances.
In the second period, the Panthers looked like they were about to head to a 5-on-4 power play after Scott Perunovich interfered with Ryan Lomberg in the neutral zone. But Lomberg was also called for embellishment on the play even though he popped right back up.
On the ensuing 4-on-4, Ryan O'Reilly swiped a puck in the offensive zone and teed up Jake Walman for a heavy slap shot that flew past Sergei Bobrovsky to put the Blues up 2-1 at 6:36.
Cleaning the slate and pulling the Panthers even going into the intermission, Sam Reinhart, who had already scored in each of the two previous games, found the back of the net yet again when he buried a rebound after a shot from Carlsson to make it 2-2 with two minutes left in the period.
"They're a tough team to play against," Reinhart said of St. Louis, which fell to 12-8-4 with the loss. "They don't give up much. Structurally, they're very sound and they play a tight game. I liked our determination. We were able to stick with it. We kept battling through it."
Early in the third period, the Blues regained the lead when Brandon Saad took a cross-ice pass from O'Reilly and sent a shot past Bobrovsky from the left side of the net to make it 3-2 at 4:29.
But after pulling Bobrovsky in favor of the extra attacker with a draw coming up in the offensive zone late in the period, the Cats found the game-tying goal when Anton Lundell won the faceoff back to Mamin for a quick top-shelf snipe to make it 3-3 with just 2:34 remaining in regulation.
"I just heard a sound off the post, and it was in," Mamin smiled when asked about the play.
Following a scoreless overtime in which the Panthers came oh-so-close to scoring on several attempts during a 4-on-3 power play, Lundell and Reinhart each beat Ville Husso in the skills competition before Bobrovsky shut the door on O'Reilly to secure two points with a 4-3 victory.
Pelted with pucks all game, Husso finished with 48 saves for the Blues.
At the other end of the ice, Bobrovsky stopped 22 shots to improve his record to 11-1-2.
"Everybody has stepped up," Brunette said. "That's what good teams do."
Here are five takeaways from Saturday's win in Sunrise…

1. MAMIN NETS TWO

Mamin is certainly making the most of his latest opportunity.
After scoring the first goal for the Panthers this afternoon, he then wired home the game-tying goal past Husso following a key faceoff win from Lundell to make it 3-3 late in the third period.

Playing on a line with Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe, Mamin also fired off five shots in the win.
"The last couple games he's been trending," Brunette said. "That line there with him, Hags and Lundy, I thought they played really well. I thought Mams did a really good job hounding pucks, staying on pucks and being strong. I'm still trying to get familiar with him, but when he plays his best he's strong on his stick and strong on the puck and the rest of it usually takes care of itself."
Returning to Florida after spending three seasons in the KHL, Mamin, who was originally drafted in the sixth round (175th overall) in 2016, has now scored three goals in nine games this season.
"I'm feeling better game to game," said Mamin, who saw a season-high 14:36 of ice time against St. Louis.
"The more time you get, you start to feel more confident. It's helped me. I feel good."

2. REINHART KEEPS ROLLING

Reinhart is on a roll.
By tapping in a rebound past Husso after a shot from Carlsson to even up the game at 2-2 late in the second period, the talented forward extended his goal streak to three games. Not done there, he then went on to score again in the shootout to help lock in the win for the Panthers.

"When we move the puck and play a fast game, we're tough to defend against," Reinhart said.
During his three-game streak of terrorizing opposing goaltenders, Reinhart has tallied a total of six points (three goals, three assists). Thanks to that offensive surge, he's also climbed into a tie for third on Florida's scoring leaderboard with 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) this campaign.
Acquired from the Sabres during the offseason, he's definitely starting to get comfortable.
"He's been really good for us wherever we've played him," Brunette said. "We're trying to find spots for him and get used to him, and he's trying to get used to us. It's always hard for a new player coming in. He has some real good chemistry with his line right now and they're playing at a high level. Feeling really good about his game right now."

3. CARLSSON'S CRUISING

With Gustav Forsling injured, another Swede has been stepping up on the blue line.
After posting two points -- including scoring the first goal of his NHL career -- in Thursday's win over the Sabres, Carlsson dished out a pair of primary assists against the Blues this afternoon.
Paired on the blue line with Radko Gudas, the 24-year-old defenseman also produced two hits and two blocks while skating a career-high 19:34. Pretty much always on the positive side of the possession game, the Panthers also led 30-8 in shot attempts when he was deployed at 5-on-5.
In nine games this season, Carlsson has recorded five points (one goal, four assists).

4. IN FULL CONTROL

The Panthers are quickly becoming the possession kings of the NHL.
With four lines and three defensive pairs all pushing in the same direction at a high pace, the Panthers finished with lopsided advantages over the Blues in shot attempts (72-26), shots on goal (42-18), scoring chances (38-15) and high-danger shot attempts (15-6) at 5-on-5 play.
"We play a fast game," Reinhart said. "We've got some pretty quick players, but when we move the puck like we're capable of, it's that much faster. I like the way we did that this afternoon."
Taking a look at the individual numbers, Jonathan Huberdeau, who looked every bit like the superstar that he is when the puck was on his stick, was the top possession player for the Panthers, helping the team lead 27-3 in shot attempts when he was on the ice at 5-on-5.
Overall, 12 different players finished with a Corsi for rating of 70% or better against the Blues.
"We had the puck all game it felt like," Brunette said. "We did lots of things we wanted to do."
In 24 games, Florida has lost the possession battle just three times, per NaturalStatTrick.com.

5. HEADING OUT OF TOWN

After playing eight of their last nine games at home, the Panthers will now hit the road.
Embarking on a three-game trek into the Western Conference, they'll open things up with a rematch against the Blues on Tuesday in St. Louis. After that, they'll visit the Coyotes on Dec. 10 before going up into the mountains to wrap up their trip against the Avalanche on Dec. 12.
At the time of this writing, Florida sits atop the league's standings with 37 points.
"We've got another big test against the Blues] in a couple days," Reinhart said.
For tickets to the Panthers' next home game on Dec. 14, visit
[FloridaPanthers.com/Tickets
.