5 TAKEAWAYS: Panthers 5, Red Wings 2

DETROIT -- Getting hot at the perfect time, the Florida Panthers clawed their way back into a playoff spot with a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Monday.
Going 6-0-1 over their last seven games to improve to 36-27-7, the Panthers currently hold a one-point lead over the Penguins for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference, while also trailing the Islanders by just one point for the first wild card with a key game in hand.
With 12 games left to play, the Panthers control their own destiny.
"We always believed in ourselves," forward Carter Verhaeghe said. "The job's not done yet. We clawed back, but we still have a lot of work to do. We have the right guys in the room."
For a quick recap of the game, click
HERE
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To read up on five key takeaways for the Cats, continue below.

1. MULTI-POINT MADNESS

There goes that man again.
Finding another gear in recent games, Matthew Tkachuk notched a goal and two assists against the Red Wings to match the franchise record for most multi-point games in a season with 31.
Additionally, his 12 three-point games this season are the second-most ever by a Panther.

"He's been a force all season," forward Sam Bennett said. "He stepped right in and led our team. He's done a heck of a job all season long. It's fun playing with him right now."
Riding a five-game point streak, Tkachuk, a potential finalist for the Hart Trophy, has tallied 14 points (five goals, nine assists) during that torrid stretch. On pace to post the second 100-point season in franchise history, he ranks fourth in the league with 95 points (33 goals, 62 assists).
Since Jan. 1, Tkachuk is third in the NHL in points (52) and second in assists (36).

2. TWO FOR SWAGU

Verhaeghe is shedding his underrated label in a hurry.
Lightning the lamp twice in Detroit for his second multi-goal game in his last three outings, the swagalicious sniper now ranks tied for 13th in the NHL in goals with a career-high 36, while also sitting sixth in even-strength goals with 29.
"It's fun playing these meaningful games," Verhaeghe said.

Joining some elite company, Verhaeghe, who has increased his goal total in each of his three seasons with Florida, joins Pavel Bure (59, 58), Olli Jokinen (39, 38, 36), Aleksander Barkov (39, 35) and Mike Hoffman (36) as the only players in franchise history with a 35-goal campaign.
In the history of the Panthers, only Pavel Bure (12) has recorded more multi-goal games in a single season than the nine that Verhaeghe is currently sitting on through 69 games.

3. THE GUS BUS HAS WHEELS

Gustav Forsling showed off both sides of his game in Detroit.
In addition to putting the Panthers up 3-1 with a blast from beyond the left circle at 11:33 of the second period, the smooth-skating Swede showed off his defensive wheels earlier in the game when he turned on the jets to shut down a breakaway attempt for Pius Suter in the first period.
Check out the tweet below to view the "Gus Bus" in action.
As for his goal, Forsling gave a lot of credit to the relentless work of Florida's top line.
"You could see how strong they are on the puck and protecting it," Forsling said. "That's how you create chances, you keep the puck in the O-zone."

After setting new career-high marks in goals (10), assists (27) and points (37) in 71 games in 2021-22, Forsling, who's still only 26 years old, has produced nearly identical numbers through 70 games this season, racking up 35 points on 10 goals and 25 assists.
When Forsling was on the ice against the Red Wings at 5-on-5, the Panthers led 19-8 in shot attempts, 7-4 in shots on goal and 6-3 in scoring chances, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.

4. BARKOV MAKES HISTORY

Barkov was just 18 years old when he picked up his first point with the Panthers.
Flash forward a decade later and the captain now sits alone on top of the franchise's all-time points leaderboard after tallying the 614th point of his career with an assist on Forsling's goal.
"It's a huge honor," said Barkov, who's produced 61 points (18 goals, 43 assists) in 56 games this season. "After my career I'm going to realize even more what that means, but right now everything happens so fast. We won the game, we're in a playoff race, so you don't think about that too much. But obviously it's a huge honor to play for this organization. I'm really happy."
After inking an eight-year contract extension back in October of 2021, Barkov will likely hold pretty much all of the franchise's offensive records by the time he's done. As it stands now, he already ranks first in points (614), goals (238), power-play goals (69) and game-winning goals (43).
He's also just 20 games away from overtaking Jonathan Huberdeau for the most games played by a Panther (671) and 40 assists shy of passing Huberdeau's franchise mark for assists (415).
Not bad for a humble kid from Tampere, Finland.
"I got here and didn't really speak English and didn't really know anything about America or Florida," said Barkov, who the Panthers selected with the second-overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft. "These 10 years flew by pretty much. It feels like I got here like yesterday or a week ago and it's just been one long season.
"I've learned a lot. I've learned a lot about Florida, about this organization. This organization has been growing a lot. A huge fanbase right now. We have a lot of support from them. I've been really fortunate and lucky to call myself a Florida Panthers for the last 10 years, and hopefully for many more."

5. BOBROVSKY'S RUN CONTINUES

Sergei Bobrovsky is a workhorse.
Manning the crease in 16 of the last 17 games, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner has posted a strong 12-4-1 record with a .915 save percentage during that extended stay between the pipes.
Turning aside 20 of 22 shots against the Red Wings, Bobrovsky made four high-danger saves.
In the zone, the 34-year-old veteran has played a key role in helping the Panthers claw their way back into a playoff spot. Owning a 7-1-1 record over his last nine starts, he's continually put the team in a position to win while surrendering two or fewer goals in six of those contests.
Always at his best later in the season, Bobrovsky owns a career .929 save percentage in March.
Looking ahead, head coach Paul Maurice said the Panthers plan to give Bobrovsky at least a start or two off down the homestretch due to the team's jampacked schedule. With that, Alex Lyon, who has gone 3-2-1 this season, is expected to see some action in net in the near future after being recalled from a quick stint in the AHL on Sunday.
Moving up the all-time leaderboard, Bobrovsky's 360 wins are the 23rd-most in NHL history.